Religion and the environment:

Does religion play a role in protecting wildlife and the environment?

Christianity is one of the world's major religions

Eight out of ten people in the world consider themselves religious, which shows that although religion has not been as dominant as it was centuries ago, religion still has a huge impact on us.

What effect does this belief on religion have on the movement to save the natural environment? Does believing in God or some invisible force make people more sensitive to animals and the environment or do they become indifferent to them?

Everyone can tell many stories in answer to these questions. For example, you could say that many religions talk about the perishable world, which reinforces the idea that 'let the world burn', and if the Hour is really coming, the forests will continue to burn. Care

But at the same time, many say that every religion teaches compassion, and some religions, such as Jainism, urge their followers to protect the natural environment.

Christianity and the environment 

Let's talk about Christianity first

In 1967, historian Lin White, in an article published in the journal Science, defended the role of ethics in protecting the natural environment, accusing Christianity of lacking a sense of wildlife conservation. Is.

He said that the Gospel speaks of gaining "control" over nature, so Christianity teaches its followers that "if man uses natural resources for his own purposes uninterruptedly, then this is God's will." Is.

Some Christians in Kenya say forests that promote superstition should be destroyed.

Many other historians and religious leaders have argued that White's interpretation of the Gospel was incorrect because of the fact that the Bible speaks of saving the environment. They say White did not cite any trend or behavior that a true Christian would follow in support of his claim.

In 2013, some researchers studied the relationship between the majority religions of different countries and the number of biodiversity zones set up in those countries to protect animals and plants. In their study, they concluded that Christian countries, and especially those with a Catholic Christian majority, have more natural habitat than other countries.

But that doesn't mean White was wrong. Research by many other experts has shown that Orthodox Christians are less environmentally friendly than other sects.

For example, in 1993, Andrew Gurley, a pastor and sociologist, conducted a study to see how much money Americans are willing to spend to save animals and plants. Their research found that radical Christians were less willing to spend money on the preservation of the natural environment, while Catholic Christians were more willing to spend more money.

Thus, this research not only sheds light on each person's personal Christianity, but also shows that a Christian's attitude towards nature depends on how much he believes in his religion.

This research also shows that people's attitudes towards nature also depend on how Christianity itself relates to other religions.

The people of the Masai tribe are hunting more lions than the rest

Another researcher, Emma Shepherd Villain, in her PhD dissertation at the University of Kent in the UK, examined how people in Kenya would relate to their natural and sacred sites. Is made by tribes that believe in traditional religions, ghosts and spirits.

At the end of her research, Emma Shepherd said, "Among the Christians I met were some who thought that the forests should be destroyed, which the locals said had a demonic presence." And the one who destroys such forests will be destroyed.

One of them said that "traditional religion is satanic" while another said that the places that are considered sacred are associated with ghosts and superstitions.

This research shows that people's attitude towards a particular natural place is also affected by the clash between opposing religions. This means that as people in Kenya move away from their local and traditional religions, the trend could be detrimental to natural sites.

Similarly, Leila Haza, affiliated with the Line Guardians, an organization working to save lions, conducted a study in 2006 in which she found that people from the Masai tribe (Kenya and Tanzania) who had abandoned their traditional religion Became a Christian, they were more likely to kill lions than other religious people.

According to Leila Haza, "those who converted to Protestant Christianity did not have a positive attitude towards the protection of wildlife, national parks and other places."

Because Masai people are not yet accustomed to television and other media, they turn to their pastor for information about the world. If the pastor does not give them any positive news about the environment at the weekly prayer meeting, they will have no guidance on how to save the natural resources.

Even in churches where preaching is very important, weekly meetings are held, which means that Masai people do not have time to take care of their livestock during those days.

One day, 35 cows of two Masai people were lost. When Leka Haza asked him why he had left his cows alone for so many days, one of them said, 'When I am in the house of God, then I do not need to go to my house, because during that time God keeps my cattle safe. '

Fishermen collecting prey from dynamite 

All of this shows that Christianity can play a role in saving the environment.

What do other religions say in this regard?

Buddhism and Nature 

A 2016 study of the attitude of Indians towards animals found that Buddhists were more positive than Muslims.

According to this study, the more Buddhists participate in religious ceremonies, the more positive their attitude towards all animals, including wolves and leopards, becomes, and thus the process of saving Buddhism and the environment itself. The relationship deepens.

These results can guide us on how environmentalists should work in the Buddhist community. In such a community, when there is a concern about the relationship between man and nature, workers should contact local religious leaders.

But if this strategy is not followed, the consequences of using religious leaders could be reversed.

Emma Shepherd Villain says that environmentalists forget the role of religion because it is a common misconception that science and religion cannot go together, and if you want to be a good scientist. So it is important that you confront religion. People think that religious people do not apply science in their work.

There is also the issue of how environmentalists and religious people talk about animals and plants, because these two groups are talking from their own point of view.

However, there are some organizations that are trying to bridge the gap between the two.

One such group is called the CRCE, or Alliance for Religions and Environmental Protection. It is a non-religious partnership aimed at helping religious leaders run programs based on religious teachings.

Islam and environment 

The fishermen stopped using explosives after being told by Muslim leaders

One of the alliance's most successful projects is in the coastal areas of Tanzania, where people used explosives, dynamite, to catch fish. The use of dynamite is very harmful to small fish, turtles and other small marine life.

When local marine conservationists tried to stop the fishermen from using explosives, they failed. Even when the government banned the use of dynamite, fishermen did not stop using it.

In this situation, the workers of the said alliance started workingĺpq

The activists realized that all fishermen in the Tanzanian region were Muslims and that local leaders were influential. The activists told the leaders Qur'anic verses urging Muslims to take care of the environment. The activists told him that the use of explosives was against the teachings of the Qur'an.

At the request of local religious leaders, fishermen stopped using dynamite

Speaking to the weekly Christian Science Monitor in 2007, a fisherman said: I did not say, but I have learned this from the Qur'an.

The organisation's founder, Fazlon Khalid, founded it in the 1980s because of his passion for nature.

In addition to his attachment to animals, Fazlon Khalid also felt that Muslims, like followers of other religions, had lost touch with nature because the ghost of making money was on their heads.

In Tanzania, the organization has also set up plants in an orphanage run by the World Food Program, where renewable energy is being generated.

Fazlon Khalid says, "This village has been built in the light of the teachings of the Prophet of Islam in which natural resources are not wasted."

Khalid believes a global religious movement is emerging aimed at protecting the environment.

"Religious organizations are playing a key role in the global dialogue, and the Islamic Foundation for Environmental Sciences has been instrumental in the Islamic Declaration on Climate Change."

Evidence of the success of this strategy is visible

Combination of environment and religion 

A 2013 study in Indonesia also found it useful to include environmental protection messages in Friday sermons. According to the research, these messages helped in creating a public awareness campaign on the environment.

According to Jane McKay of the University of Kent, "Since then, the Malaysian government has issued a number of fatwas banning wildlife poaching and its illegal trade."

The CRCI says workers can learn a lot about religion, people's connection to religion. Religion can be a good tool to get people to think about public issues.

When we read news about climate change, we are dealing with news that looks very depressing, talking about animals and other species that are about to become extinct, and explaining how. We have destroyed wildlife.

These things are true in their place, but research shows that positive news influences people more than negative news and motivates them to do something, that is, the power of positive stories is very high.

Emma Shepherd Villain says that "the strategy of using religion to protect the environment can be positive, it has a wider scope, and the benefits of this strategy are greater than staying connected to science."

"It would be foolish not to pay attention to the current environmental crisis, but environmentalists may have to use the power of hope to solve this crisis, the hope that religions inspire."