This book identifies the land ethic as the best candidate for an
environmental ethic. The land ethic is a secular,
nonanthropocentric, holistic-ecocentric environmental ethic that
was initially conceptualized by the naturalist, Aldo Leopold, and
later historically expanded and conceptually developed by the
philosopher, J. Baird Callicott. The land ethic is grounded in the
science of ecology and evolutionary biology. The main purpose of
this book, however, is not to specifically justify the advancement
of the land ethic, but rather to evaluate whether it can be
embraced by Catholicism. Meaning, are the scientific, conceptual,
and logical foundations of the land ethic conducive with Catholic
theology? The hypothesis of this book is that Catholicism does have
adequate scientific, philosophical, and theological foundations to
embrace the land ethic as a viable environmental ethic. In this
book, the Catholic Magisterium's perspective on the environmental
crisis is evaluated through the review of pertinent Church
documents and writings. Principally, the Church's implicit theology
of the cosmic Christ is thoroughly evaluated and, then, expanded to
an explicit cosmic christology as conceptualized in the writings of
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin and other Catholic theologians and
scientists. This conceptualized cosmic christology (presented as
compatible with ecology and Catholic doctrine) could function-in
the context of the ongoing environmental crisis-as a Christian
panentheistic ecocentrism (with an accompanying eschatology of
hope) that is fairly compatible with the
holistic-nonanthropocentric ecocentrism of the land ethic. Despite
the title's cosmic implications, this book does not directly
promote the contemporary New Age movements nor their associated
beliefs. It, also, does not promote creationism, Intelligent Design
Theory or any other theories, which regard contemporary
evolutionary biology as completely fallacious. This book recognizes
the validity of ecology within its scientific context. At the same
time, it also recognizes that one can potentially acquire a much
deeper understanding of the ecological reality of life from a
religious perspective. This book is not evangelical, though, at
times, it attempts to be persuasive in absence of scientific
evidence, which is often the case when dealing with the
subjectivity of religion and environmental ethics. Defining the
intrinsic value of the natural environment is extremely difficult
and complicated-scientifically unapproachable. Yet, even though the
reality of the world's beauty transcends scientific understanding,
it inspires humanity to pursue its mystery and preserve its
integrity.
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