I am a conservationist, secondly, because I am a Christian.

Upon the creation of man and woman, God declared that mankind shall “rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves over the ground” (Genesis 1:28). For all of recorded history, mankind has obliged by steadily increasing its power and influence over the world and its creatures, to such a degree that that this epoch has been unofficially termed the Anthropocene, due to humanity’s outsized influence on the climate and ecosystems of the biosphere.

This influence, like all things, has been tainted by our sin. Just as man knows he ought to love his neighbor as himself (Mark 12:31) but doesn’t, we implicitly know we ought to be caring for the natural world around us but don’t. Just as with morality, we are faced with an uncompromising, impossibly high ideal. No matter our best efforts, we all fall short of the ideal and inevitably inflict harms upon Creation, and the discomfort of this realization impacts believers and non-believers alike (Romans 3:23).

The pervasiveness of these “sins,” both pollution and environmental degradation, has increased dramatically in recent decades. This rise in environmental harm has aligned with a decrease in faithfulness in society generally. This is also not coincidental. By turning away from God, a man leaves himself with only two options: to turn internally toward himself, or to something in the created order. Both are harmful and cause us to stray from our intended path.

In the 17th century, the Scientific Revolution twisted man’s sights inward to a degree not seen before. It was at this point, in the famous and words of Sir Francis Bacon, Creation lost its purpose as a gift directly from God and became something to be conquered, something to “enlarge the bounds of human empire.” In this scientific “Manifest Destiny,” mankind began to see its dominion over nature not as something to be wielded responsibly in the context of God’s divine charter, but as our own gods.

Many scientists today boast of our control over the intricate functions of nature, yet our environmental woes still mount, making it clear we remain mortal. Therefore, though men are above nature, they are not gods, and no amount of scientific advancement will win us superiority over the unfathomable complexity of our world. This is not to negate the role of scientific advancement in our lives; indeed, many scientists new, old, and ancient delighted in the fact that they were uncovering the secrets of Creation and understanding it to a deeper level. This is instead a question of humility: those who do not understand man’s place within the hierarchy of Creation will find their efforts built upon sand (Matthew 7:24-27).

Those who do not understand man’s place within the hierarchy of Creation will find their efforts built upon sand.

In recent decades, an almost religious fervor over the environment has erupted in the younger generations. Without belief in a Creator, they scour for meaning, purpose, and identity. Because displaying awareness of our environmental challenges is the fashionable thing to do today, environmentalism and the unity it entails has become their pseudo-religion. Foolishly believing in the existence of utopian and human-based solutions, they coalesce around an increasingly radical orthodoxy that only detracts from reasonable discourse. By remembering that Creation is a gift from God, and points to Him, one can avoid this pitfall. Admittedly, given the sheer magnificence and beauty of Creation, the allure to value it more than we ought is frighteningly strong, and all must remain on guard.

Only by turning towards God and humbly understanding our true place and dependence upon Him can nature be best taken care of. This is why conservation, which humbly recognizes mankind’s weakness and dependence, is uniquely suited for such harmony. By continually reminding us of our need for the daily forgiveness and steady sanctification of Jesus Christ, Christianity uniquely reinforces the humble mindset we need for effective environmental solutions. It reminds us there will be no perfect solution until the new heaven and the new earth are forged after the return of Christ (Revelation 21:1-8).

This is why I am a conservationist.

By Evan Patrohay