Climate change is a difficult topic within the Christian church, but more Christians are exploring the conversation.
Pepperdine staff member, Falon Barton, University Church of Christ Malibu campus minister, and Religion and Sustainability Professor Chris Doran, are changing the narrative of how the Christian church responds to the issue of climate change.
“We believe that God actively chose to create,” Barton said. “Then we should be the leaders in preserving that creation and honoring that creation and stewarding that creation well.”
Integrating Faith and Sustainability
Barton said she was so fascinated by climate change and finding solutions for how it could relate to the Christian faith, she chose it as her topic while writing her doctoral dissertation.
When it comes to climate change, Evangelical Protestants are the most skeptical, according to an article by the Pew Research Center. Pew reports 32% of Evangelical Protestants say they are either unsure or not convinced of the Earth’s warming temperature.
Pew Research Center records American’s beliefs on why the Earth’s climate is changing in 2022 article. The survey shows that the majority of Americans believe the climate is being impacted by human activity, according to the Pew Research Center. Infographic by Rachel Flynn
In Ian Morgan Cron’s “Chasing Francis: A Pilgrim’s Tale,” Chase, an evangelical preacher at a megachurch, asks a woman working in a soup kitchen if Jesus really meant it when he said to sell all one’s belongings to the poor. The woman replies, “What if we started by repenting of our materialism and living more simply? I think we’d change the world in a heartbeat.”
Barton said she has always been a minimalist. However, reading this passage, Barton had the realization of how her simplistic practices could fit with her faith and care for climate issues, she said.
“Practices of simplicity can also be practices of caring for creation,” Barton said.
She said bringing the two together reduced her anxiety. Barton created a list of “Green Spiritual Practices” in her dissertation from her simplified implementations.
The Growing Rate of Climate Anxiety
Climate anxiety can present itself in a couple of ways, Barton said. The first is fear over how people are mistreating the earth. The second type of anxiety is how individuals and future generations will be impacted, Barton said.
Climate anxiety is defined as “heightened emotional, mental or somatic distress in response to dangerous changes in the climate system,” according to The Handbook of Climate Psychology. Those who have felt the severity of climate anxiety include young people, first responders to natural disasters and scientists and activists who study the information, according to an article by the National Library of Medicine.
Senior Natalia Lovejoy said her 6-year-old nephew began experiencing climate anxiety after developing an interest in watching natural disaster and safety protocol YouTube videos. She said his anxiety reached the point where he began experiencing nightmares.
Barton recently recorded a podcast titled: “Why Does Climate Anxiety Suck?” that talks about how this issue is weighing on young people.
“It’s easy for someone to look at our current climate and feel overwhelmed because the root of the issue isn’t being addressed,” Barton said.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2f3BJqSKgh/?igsh=NmJiYWZiY2E0Mg%3D%3D
Barton speaks to the climate anxiety young adults are experiencing on Episode Eight of her podcast, Emerge.
Barton recalled a fleet of container ships that docked off the coast of Southern California in 2022. Ships were lined up off the coast for over two years because of port issues in Los Angeles, according to the Wall Street Journal. Barton said she had definite real concerns over the amount of emissions the cargo ships were releasing into the water.
These types of incidents can make it difficult to dream about the future when thinking of having a family, Barton said.
Barton said she believes the hope of the Christian story, which is rooted in Jesus, can energize climate change solutions without falling into traps of shame, judgment and apathy.
Christian Beliefs and Matching Behaviors
Religion Professor Chris Doran is working with churches to help them mirror their behavior to Christian beliefs. This has been difficult, Doran said.
Doran teaches SUST 300, a sustainability class that discusses climate issues and how Christians can better address and understand climate issues,
“A lot of Christian behavior doesn’t always match Christian dogma or doctrine or belief on climate and other Christian care issues,” Doran said.
Lovejoy said Doran was the first person she met who combined climate change with faith, which gave her a new perspective, she said. In the church she attended growing up, they never mentioned the topic, Lovejoy said.
“Historically, the Christian church has been the one to take the lead [in many movements]; this is their opportunity,” Lovejoy said.
Doran said Pope John Paul II impacted the way he views the work he does as a scientist by intertwining it with his faith.
“Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth,” Pope John Paul II said in the encyclical Fides et ratio in 1998.
Climate change has become politicized to the point that churches are afraid to speak up, Barton said. This has resulted in many young people drawing the conclusion that the church is no longer relevant, she said.
“I think that Jesus is immediately relevant to the most pressing issues of our lives,” Barton said.
Senior Skylar Enge grew up Christian, but she never heard any of the churches she attended mention climate change or give to climate solution non-profits, she said.
“I wish more churches would speak on this issue,” Enge said. “They would be the ones on the front line, and that’s why it’s [the church] losing its relevance to me.”
Passions humans possess — in this case, climate change — are compatible with faith, Barton said. Climate change and faith don’t have to be lived out separately.
“Jesus assures us that everything is in God’s hands and invites us to participate in the healing of the world,” Barton said. “And that’s in the healing of humanity, but that’s in the healing of all creation.”
A group of six journalism students reported on the topic of climate anxiety and solutions. Creation Justice Ministries, Heal the Bay and Our Lady of Malibu Catholic Church are just a few working organizations they found to alleviate climate anxiety. Read their full Solutions Journalism reporting here.
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Contact Rachel Flynn via email: rachel.flynn@pepperdine.edu
