Throughout the course of recent history, Christianity and environmental awareness have seemed to exist in ideological opposition.
While the divide between these two principles still, in many cases, continues to grow, Palm Beach Atlantic University is actively doing its part to mend this fragmented relationship through this year’s Ecology, Faith, and Justice Conference, hosted by the university’s Community Transformation Center, in association with the American Association for the Advancement of Science and Knox Theological Seminary.
The conference, which took place from February 20 to21, featured a variety of sessions and speakers, one of which was PBA’s associate dean for the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Dr. Thomas Chesnes.
Dr. Thomas Chesnes, A Floridian Through and Through:
Dr. Chesnes, a native Floridian, has devoted his life to the study and preservation of the Florida Everglades, and of the organisms who call these estuaries home, such as fish, snakes, and seagrasses.
His keynote address, titled “Between Rhetoric and Resilience: Observations of a Native Florida Ecologist,” addressed the overall reluctance from Christians to acknowledge and participate in the upkeep of the environment, as well as the importance of the specific language used when discussing these issues.
Dr. Chesnes challenged attendees by saying that, historically, “those who believe the world came about by chance [have] cared better for the planet than those who believe in an omnipotent creator.”
Prior to his lecture, he shared that environmental accountability acts as an expression of love toward one’s neighbor, which first stems from the realization that no one is truly exempt from the effects of the climate.
“We’re ensuring that the ‘least of these,’ [those who] are usually the ones feeling the impact of these environmental issues…are [being] care[d] for, as we care for creation,” said Dr. Chesnes.
For him, natural stewardship is a matter, that if done properly, will “make [people’s] lives better.”
A Ministerial Response:
These concepts of values of love, compassion and responsibility, expressed by Dr. Chesnes and his fellow presenters through the duration of the conference, were received well by ministry students Joshua Harlan and Justus Verge, along with their Greek professor, Dr. Jesse Grenz.
Verge and Harlan, both Biblical Studies majors in the 3+2 master’s program, spoke of the responsibility of the Christian to tend the earth, a concept that the conference brought to their remembrance.
“[We have a] responsibility to take care of God’s creation,” shared Verge.
Dr. Grenz, assistant professor of New Testament and associate director of PBA’s Accelerated Ministry Program, found the conference to be as equally thought-provoking as it was necessary.
“We need to stop thinking of climate change as only a global phenomenon, but rather as a ‘localized’ occurrence,” he shared.
This needed realization is something that he believes Dr. Chesnes does a very good job of instilling in others, by making the topic of ecology “more applicable” to the average person.
To learn more about the Community Transformation Center at Palm Beach Atlantic University, click here.
To learn more about PBA’s accelerated master’s degree programs, click here.
