Christianity has understood the environment as a gift to nurture and steward, a book of divine revelation disclosing the divine mind, a wild garden in need of cultivation and betterment, and as a resource for the creation of a new Eden. This Cambridge Companion details how Christianity, one of the world's most important religions, has shaped one of the existential issues of our age, the environment. Engaging with contemporary issues, including gender, traditional knowledge, and enchantment, it brings together the work of international scholars on the subject of Christianity and the Environment from a diversity of fields. Together, their work offers a comprehensive guide to the complex relationship between Christianity and the environment that moves beyond disciplinary boundaries. To do this, the volume explains the key concepts concerning Christianity and the environment, outlines the historical development of this relationship from antiquity to the present, and explores important contemporary issues.
1. Introduction Alexander J. B. Hampton; Part I. Concepts: 2. Naturalism, supernaturalism, and our concern for nature Fiona Ellis; 3. From disenchantment to enchantment: Mind, nature, and the divine spirit Jörg Lauster; 4. Human and nonhuman animals from secular and sacred perspectives Charles Taliaferro; 5. Anthropocentrism, biocentrism, stewardship and co-creation Robin Attfield; 6. Participation and nature in christian theology Andrew Davison; 7. The Book of nature Jacob Holsinger Sherman; Part II. Histories: 8. Environmental perspectives in ancient greek philosophy and religion Crystal Addey; 9. Medieval nature and the environment Kellie Robertson; 10. Natural philosophy in early modernity Nathan Lyons; 11. Protestantism, environmentalism, and limits to growth Mark Stoll; 12. Romanticism, transcendentalism, and ecological thought Laura Dassow Walls; 13. Contemporary religious ecology Sean J. McGrath; Part III. Engagements: 14. The sublime and wonder Emily Brady; 15. Religious traditions and ecological knowledge Michael S. Northcott; 16. Venerating earth: Three sacramental perspectives Jame Schaefer; 17. Nature and aesthetics: Methexis, mimēsis and poiēsis Alexander J.B. Hampton; 18. Sophia and the world Soul Douglas Hedley; 19. Creation and gender: A theological appraisal Willemien Otten.
Alexander J.B. Hampton is an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto, specialising in metaphysics, poetics and nature. His publications include Romanticism and the Re-Invention of Modern Religion (Cambridge 2019), and Christian Platonism: A History (ed.) (Cambridge, 2021). Douglas Hedley is Professor of the Philosophy of Religion and Fellow of Clare College at the University of Cambridge. He is the author The Iconic Imagination and co-editor of Revisioning Cambridge Platonism.
