Loving the earth: introducing reformed eco-spirituality to adults

Kenneth Donald Henry

Etd

Loving the earth: introducing reformed eco-spirituality to adults

Public Deposited

MLA citation style (9th ed.)

Kenneth Donald Henry. Loving the Earth: Introducing Reformed Eco-spirituality to Adults. Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/394d244e-1544-4e07-8109-0ae58e7bdb37.

APA citation style (7th ed.)

K. D. Henry. Loving the earth: introducing reformed eco-spirituality to adults. https://rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/394d244e-1544-4e07-8109-0ae58e7bdb37

Chicago citation style (CMOS 17, author-date)

Kenneth Donald Henry. Loving the Earth: Introducing Reformed Eco-Spirituality to Adults. Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. https://rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/394d244e-1544-4e07-8109-0ae58e7bdb37.

Note: These citations are programmatically generated and may be incomplete.

Creator

Kenneth Donald Henry

Rights Statement

In Copyright

Abstract

This thesis provides a theological and spiritual perspective on a Christian's relationship to nature. Re-visiting Biblical texts from Genesis, Job and the Epistles, the author addresses themes including the goodness of God's creation, our relationship with the land, early Hebraic understandings of ecology, salvation of non-human entities, and, of course, the Biblical imperative to love our neighbor. This exegetical probe of the Bible concludes that our new neighbor, lying battered beside the road to Jericho, is the earth. The author draws on several scholars to evaluate the ethics of loving the earth, concluding that eco-spirituality invites believers to expand their reverence, respect, and love for each other and God to include God's creation--to value the earth as God values it. The author discusses mentors from the past who have blended their love of God with their love of the earth and provides two group exercises in eco-spirituality as teaching models for Christian educators.

Publisher