Dr. E. Calvin Beisner addresses the crowd at the "Pulpits, Pews and Environmental Policy: How the Cornwall Declaration is helping define the mandate of Biblical stewardship" luncheon briefing. Before a packed room in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on April 19th, 2006, the Interfaith Stewardship Alliance (ISA), in conjunction with the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty, and the Institute on Religion and Democracy, hosted a special Capitol Hill luncheon briefing entitled … [Read more...]
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ISA announces launch of Cornwall Network at Senate luncheon – Tonkowich
It’s hard to believe that it’s thirty years ago, but thirty years ago—almost to the date—I was with a group of college friends hiking Mount Washington from the west. We went up the Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail to Lake of the Clouds. It was a bright sunny day and relatively warm for April in New Hampshire. The spring melt was pouring down the ravine in wonderful eddies and waterfalls, and there was still plenty of snow above timberline for some snow climbing to the summit. What a day. In fact we … [Read more...]
ISA announces launch of Cornwall Network at Senate luncheon – Beisner
Good afternoon. I’m Calvin Beisner, associate professor of social ethics at Knox Theological Seminary and a founder and spokesman of the Interfaith Stewardship Alliance. I want to thank the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Democracy and the Institute on Religion and Democracy, whose new president, Jim Tonkowich, will be one of our speakers today, for co-sponsoring this briefing. To all of you, welcome, and thank you for coming. We are excited today to launch what we are calling the … [Read more...]
New Religious Coalition Brings Balanced Biblical Perspective to Environmental Issues
Washington, DC – In a marriage of environmental concern and religious faith, the launch of the Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation* was announced by Ugandan Ambassador Edith Ssempala, along with a distinguished group of Alliance organizers, at a press conference at the Embassy of the Republic of Uganda. The Cornwall Alliance adds a powerful voice to some of the most prominent environmental and developmental issues worldwide. The coalition promotes the principles of the Cornwall … [Read more...]
Pascal’s Blunder: Miscalculating the Threat of Global Warming
Prominent religious voices in America, especially among evangelical Christians, are increasingly being heard in the debate over global warming. More often than not, evangelicals - many of whom could easily be described as political and cultural conservatives - see climate change as a man-made problem. The National Association of Evangelicals, a coalition representing 52 member denominations, called on policymakers in October to pay more attention to the problem of “environmental … [Read more...]
Early and Notable Signers of the Cornwall Declaration
Sixty-six people from the Roman Catholic, Jewish and Protestant communities, as well as other layman, pastors, scholars, and religious leaders, endorsed the Cornwall Declaration on Environmental Stewardship when it was first released in March of 2000. By June 22, 2000, more than 921 others had joined them. Those first 987 signers are listed below. (Organizational affiliations are for identification only and do not imply organizational endorsement.) Since then thousands of others have joined … [Read more...]
Stop the Federal Land Grab
Question: Why do you find graffiti on public bathroom walls but not on your own? Answer: Because you own your bathroom---and the rest of your house---so you have an incentive to take care of it. But "everybody" owns the public bathroom---and what everybody owns, nobody owns, and nobody has an incentive to take care of it. Question: Why are massive forest fires more likely to occur on publicly owned land (federal or state) than on privately owned land? Answer: For the same reason you … [Read more...]
The Theologization of Global Warming Among American Evangelicals: Who Says Religion and Science Can’t Mix?
[Note: This essay was written in the summer of 2010 at the request of Dr. Patrick Michaels, intended for a book he was editing. His publisher declined to include it in the book because of its religious content. It was never published elsewhere until now. We hope it remains a helpful survey of the history of the debate over global warming among evangelicals up to that time.—ECB, March 11, 2016] Introduction In the last half decade there has been a blossoming of public concern about global … [Read more...]
An Open Letter to Pope Francis on Climate Change
Your Holiness: April 27, 2015—As world leaders contemplate a climate agreement, many look to you for guidance. We commend you for your care for the earth and God’s children, especially the poor. With this letter we raise some matters of concern that we ask you to consider as you convey that guidance. Much of the debate over environmental stewardship is rooted in a clash of worldviews, with conflicting doctrines of God, creation, humanity, sin, and salvation. Unfortunately, that clash often … [Read more...]
An Open Letter to Pope Francis on Climate Change
Your Holiness: April 27, 2015—As world leaders contemplate a climate agreement, many look to you for guidance. We commend you for your care for the earth and God’s children, especially the poor. With this letter we raise some matters of concern that we ask you to consider as you convey that guidance. Much of the debate over environmental stewardship is rooted in a clash of worldviews, with conflicting doctrines of God, creation, humanity, sin, and salvation. Unfortunately, that clash often … [Read more...]