Green Witness is a work in theological ethics, addressed to theologians and seminarians, but also to clergy and church study groups.

The author develops an eschatological reading of our environmental troubles, approaching the topic of Christian environmental work not from the perspective of a global crisis that must be solved, but from the perspective of God's promise of the Kingdom. She argues that Christians can and should work for the wholeness of the biophysical environment whether or not their efforts bear immediate visible fruit, because God always welcomes and makes good use of faithful discipleship. This is good news to religious environmentalists who have grown weary of struggling to make a difference amid ever-louder announcements of environmental destruction. The eschaton is clearly a realm of interspecies peace, abundance, and diversity, and part of the church's mission is to demonstrate these aspects of God's plan for the world, although only God can and will consummate the Kingdom.

Preface

1. The Churches' Response to the "Environmental Crisis"
2. God's Eschatological Creation
3. Ethics and Eschatology
4. The Church's Eco-Discipleship
5. Conclusion

Bibliography

• Preface (PDF, 56 KB)
• Extract from Chapter 2: God's Eschatological Creation (PDF, 138 KB)

Laura Ruth Yordy is an assistant professor of philosophy and religion at Bridgewater College in Virginia.