Religion and Ecological Destruction: Considering the ‘White Thesis’ in the Context of Indonesia
Although fifty-six years have passed since the ‘White Thesis’ appeared, the environmental crisis is not over but, indeed, has become more severe than before. Climate change has affected people everywhere, both in and outside Indonesia. Lynn T. White, Jr. was critical of Protestantism and Western Chr...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2025
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| In: |
Journal of reformed theology
Year: 2025, Volume: 19, Issue: 1/2, Pages: 21-44 |
| Further subjects: | B
The ‘White Thesis’
B anthropocentric Christianity B Ecology B divine immanence B Indonesia |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | Although fifty-six years have passed since the ‘White Thesis’ appeared, the environmental crisis is not over but, indeed, has become more severe than before. Climate change has affected people everywhere, both in and outside Indonesia. Lynn T. White, Jr. was critical of Protestantism and Western Christianity as a whole, which he regarded as anthropocentric and responsible for the present environmental crisis. He sympathized more with the non-Western religions, which he regarded as pro-ecology. Theological discourse on the White Thesis is regrettably lacking in Indonesia, possibly because it is regarded as a sensitive issue for Protestant Christians. Two anthologies have appeared as responses to the White Thesis, the first in 1974 and the second in 2017. The thesis is evaluated by studying six responses in the two anthologies, and consequently the need to defend or blame a certain religion or denomination may be seen as superfluous, as all could be deemed responsible for today’s environmental crisis. All may reconsider whether their theologies, norms, and practices could go beyond anthropocentrism in rendering an adequate response to climate change. |
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| ISSN: | 1569-7312 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of reformed theology
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1163/15697312-bja10074 |
