One of the Christian authors whose books I collect is Jacques Ellul, who died in 1994. He was a very complex individual with some positions that I do not accept. Nonetheless, he was a deep thinker and a constant critic of how the modern world is more the victim of technology than the master of it. Charles Ringma, professor of missions and evangelism at Regent College in Vancouver, BC, has written a wonderful devotional booklet using the thought of Ellul: Resist the Powers: With Jacques Ellul. It sits on my desk for an easy reach when I need to be challenged.
Now let me challenge you with Ellul. Here’s a snippet from one of his articles that relates to the theme of this blogsite. Let me know what you think about his views on this.
Stewardship and Love of Nature
- Jacques Ellul
Since nature is no longer sacred, man is taken to be the lord of nature. But the essential thing has been forgotten: This nature is the creation of God, who handed it over to Adam and Eve—not to do as they pleased, but to manage and care for in the absence of God.
What does this mean? From the perspective of the Hebrew Scriptures it means two things. It means that God does not want to rule over His creation directly; He does not want creation to be an object that runs exactly the way He sets it up like some automatic mechanism. God places people in nature precisely so that everything will not be submitted mechanically to some over-riding power, but in order “to give room to play.” This in turn means that humanity (in the image of God) is called to act toward creation in the same way God does, although without His total power. And this God is given the name love. If God created, it is through love; if He gives independence to creation, it is through love. We must treat nature in the same way, managing it not for blind and egotistical profit, but through love. Such are the implications of the first chapters of Genesis.
“Christian Responsibility for Nature and Freedom”
by Jacques Ellul
From Cross Currents Spring 1985 pp. 49-53
See you outdoors!
Dean
December 9th, 2008 at 3:01 pm
I almost thought I caught a whiff of some error there when Ellul states “God..handed over (nature) to Adam and Eve..in His absence” (is He absent? I believe He is omnipresent), “God doesn’t want to rule aver creation directly” (A sovereing rules directly but of course uses methods, man, etc.), and God wasn’t given the name ‘love’, He is love, etc. (Am I nitpicking?)
But the thrust of the message that man was placed in nature to “act toward creation in the same way that God does”, and to that I agree.
God for sure loves His creation, and His creation is wonderfully obedient to its call and function without a hint of rebellion. So unlike man: so unlike me to be un-rebellious. But God loves me and demonstrated that love in that while I am yet a sinner, Christ died for me.
But you have shown in all your posts that we are to care for God’s creation, not because He is absent but precisely because He is there (here) and desires us to work along side Him (Jesus says, “Take my yoke upon you” I love how The Message, Navpress, puts this passage Matthew 11:28,29: Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”)
Now thats the way to take care of nature with the King of kings working with us living freely and lightly in a joyful task of caring for our wonderful creation.
December 9th, 2008 at 3:04 pm
Sorry about the misspelled words there: aver instead of over, sovereing instead of sovereign. But, alas, my keyboarding leaves much to be desired.
December 10th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
“…We must treat nature in the same way, managing it not for blind and egotistical profit, but through love…”
I submit that if we apply the same principle to business we would not end up in the re-occuring economic mess.