The Church is Always Greener on the Other Side: Ecotheology and Christian Environmentalism at the Dutch ʻGreen Churchesʼ Movement

This paper researches the way in which the Dutch GroeneKerken movement invokes ecotheology in its promotion of environmentalism amongst Christians in the Netherlands. Exploring the movement’s appeal to ecotheology will tell us something about the way in which Christian communities in the Netherlands have been adjusting to the rising awareness of the gravity of the environmental crisis. The paper relies upon an interpretative research method. Larger theoretical ideas about ecotheology have been used to make sense of the way in which the GroeneKerken movement promotes environmentalism amongst Christians in the Netherlands. This involved qualitative analysis of the movement through the lens of three different hermeneutical keys for interpreting the Bible ecologically: ecocentrism, environmental justice and environmental stewardship. It will be demonstrated that the GroeneKerken movement implicitly and explicitly invokes the ecotheological notions of ecocentrism, environmental justice...Show moreThis paper researches the way in which the Dutch GroeneKerken movement invokes ecotheology in its promotion of environmentalism amongst Christians in the Netherlands. Exploring the movement’s appeal to ecotheology will tell us something about the way in which Christian communities in the Netherlands have been adjusting to the rising awareness of the gravity of the environmental crisis. The paper relies upon an interpretative research method. Larger theoretical ideas about ecotheology have been used to make sense of the way in which the GroeneKerken movement promotes environmentalism amongst Christians in the Netherlands. This involved qualitative analysis of the movement through the lens of three different hermeneutical keys for interpreting the Bible ecologically: ecocentrism, environmental justice and environmental stewardship. It will be demonstrated that the GroeneKerken movement implicitly and explicitly invokes the ecotheological notions of ecocentrism, environmental justice and environmental stewardship in its promotion of environmentalism.Show less

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The Church is Always Greener on the Other Side: Ecotheology and Christian Environmentalism at the Dutch ʻGreen Churchesʼ Movement