books

The Bible and Ecology: Rediscovering the Community of Creation by Richard Bauckham, explores the relationship of humankind to the whole of creation. Bauckham is Professor of New Testament Studies at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. 

The Bible and the Environment: Towards a Critical Ecological Biblical Theology by David G. Horrell, Professor of New Testament and Director of the Centre for Biblical Studies in the Department of Theology at the University of Exeter, UK. Horrell discusses various interpretations of biblical texts and their relation to issues of ecology and the environment, arguing for an “ecological hermeneutic.”

Biblical Prophets and Contemporary Environmental Ethics by Hilary Marlow offers a careful reading of the Old Testament prophets, examining traditional Christian thinking on the environment and its relation to modern environmental ethics.

Creation Untamed: The Bible, God, and Natural Disasters Professor of Old Testament at Luther Theological Seminary in St. Paul, Terence Fretheim is author of God and World in the Old Testament: A Relational Theology of Creation. In this book, Fretheim sets out to answer one of the most troubling questions in Christian thought and practice—the question of God’s role in natural disasters and in the human suffering they cause. The author approaches familiar Old Testament passages--such as creation, the flood, and the suffering of Job—with fresh eyes, showing the God of the scriptures to be a god of compassion and relationship.

Ecology and the Jewish Spirit: Where Nature and the Sacred Meet by Ellen Bernstein treats the long-neglected themes of nature that appear throughout the biblical creation story, ancient Jewish texts, traditional law, the holiday cycles, prayer, mitzvot (good deeds), and community.

The Green Bible: Understanding the Bible’s Powerful Message for the Earth More than 1,000 verses in the Bible address the question of creation care and offer insight as to how humans should think and act as we confront the environmental crisis facing our planet. Essays from church leaders and theologians such as N. T. Wright, Barbara Brown Taylor, Brian McLaren, Matthew Sleeth, Pope John Paul II, and Wendell Berry are included. Passages are marked in green. With a foreword by Desmond Tutu.

Green Kingdom Come: Jesus and a Sustainable Earth Community by Joe Grabill ponders the question,  "Would Jesus live sustainably?" Featuring sustainable principles based on Jesus’ sayings, Green Kingdom Come is the first book project to explore ecology from a biblical perspective. It seeks to connect Jesus’ sayings and teachings to the ecological problems we face today. It also offers a host of green practices and suggestions. A cross-cultural appendix listing both sacred and secular names for the oneness of Earth and universe systems is also included.

Greening Paul: Reading the Apostle in a Time of Ecological Crisis by David Horrell, Cherryl Hunt, and Christopher Southgate (Baylor University Press, 2010). The authors stay close to the biblical text offering a careful reading of Paul’s writings that lays open common assumptions about the right of humans to exploit the earth for their benefit.

An Inconvenient Text: Is a Green Reading of the Bible Possible? by Norman Habel, fellow at Flinders University in Adelaide, AU. Chair of the Section on Ecological Hermeneutics at the Society of Biblical Literature, he is editor of the Earth Bible and co-editor of Exploring Ecological Hermeneutics. Habel argues that biblical passages depicting Gods of humans engaged in the destruction of creation are not 'green' but ‘grey.’ But what happens when these same texts from the perspective of the victims—from the perspective of the Earth and the Earth’s domains?

Let the Earth Teach You Torah, co-authored by Ellen Bernstein and Dan Fink, explores the place of humankind in nature by examining the relevancy of scripture to the modern environmental crisis.

The Splendor of Creation by Ellen Bernstein has garnered critical acclaim for its insightful reading of the Book of Genesis and discussion of contemporary environmental issues.

They Shall Not Hurt or Destroy: Animal Rights and Vegetarianism in the Western Religious Tradition by Vasu Murti, examines biblical and extra-biblical bases for vegetarianism in Christianity and Judaism. The book has been endorsed by ministers, rabbis, and animal rights organizations PETA and the Fund for Animals.

Wisdom and Creation: the Theology of Wisdom Literature by Leo G. Purdue provides a systematic look at the theology of the Wisdom tradition and argues that its foundation lies in creation theology.

 

 

 

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