Environmentalism and American Evangelical Christianity (Research Paper Sample)

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Portfolio Essay
Dear Jenny
I am writing this letter to you just to give you a brief summary, analysis and personal opinions of the things we have covered in the Religious Studies course so far. Despite the fact that we have only covered half of the course, I must admit that I have learned a lot so far. The following is a break down of the seven modules we have covered and some brief information on what we have learned in each module.
Module 1
Environmentalism and American Evangelical Christianity
The first module that we learned in this course is about environmentalism and its contribution of the Christian evangelists to environmental conservation, in America. This effort by the American Christian evangelists started in the 1980s, when activism for the environment increased dramatically in America. According to historian Lynn White, Christians feel like they bear a great burden of guilt because of the way human beings have misused and continue to misuse the environment. White argued that the great reaction from Christian evangelists meant that the care and protection of the environment must be based on religious grounds because they believe that God created the earth and everything in it. I think by far the thing I found most interesting in this topic is the ethic of creation spirituality, which follows the contents of Genesis. According to this topic, I understand that all human beings form part of the whole and that they are only different in terms of the potential for destruction that they have in the world.
We further learned about disputes and differences that exist among different human being regarding the cause of destruction of the environment in the world. Some people believe that the current state of technology and science is the only remedy that is going to solve the ecological crisis in the world today. However, some believe that this is not true and that the only way out is through finding a new religion by rethinking the old one, which clearly has failed. Still, we got to learn that some people think the taking an ecological perspective through theological stewardship is the best way to look after the environment. This is because God created the world the way it is and made it green and productive and resourceful. They then put man in the world to look after everything in it and use the various resources to benefit his life. I believe in this version of ecological salvation; that Christians have a role and responsibility of taking care of the earth and everything in it just as they were instructed by God. Through this first part of the world, I got to discover something I had never thought about in my life before; that God is a Green God (Moyers 1).
Module 2
Environmental Issues and Native American Religious Traditions
The second module that we covered in this course regarded the traditions of the Native American’s religion and environmental issues. In this module, we learned that the Native Americans had a close relationship with their surrounding physical environment. As such, they used the land and sacred places that shaped and bound the places around them to define their selves. They embraced the unity between their spiritual and physical universe and believed that the unity between supernatural and natural universes. The most saddening part of the story of the Native Americans and the environment is when their cultures, beliefs, and environments were invaded by the Europeans, and the environment they had guarded with so much passion was changed. Part of the change the environment experienced included epidemic diseases, the disappearance of native fauna and flora because of the introduction of domesticated plants and animals. Still the Native Americans cared to protect whatever small land was left to them by the Europeans and by early 20th century, they owned a small part of the trans-Mississippi West.
Native American Religious Traditions and Colonialism--Encounters with Spanish, French and English Colonizers
This section of the course covered some of the changes and events that took place in the religious traditions of the Native Americans when they came into contact with the English, Spanish and French colonizers. By the time, the Native American came into contact with the Europeans; most of the cultures in North America had established coherent religious systems, including the creation of myths and cosmologies that had been transmitted from one generation to another orally. At the time, most Native Americans worshipped an all-powerful being whom they believed to be the Creator and an all-knowing Master Spirit. The Native Americans also believed that the human soul was immortal and that there was an afterlife after death. Their main source of such belief was the abundance of earthly life and everything good that made life on earth so pleasant and secure. However, most of their beliefs were destroyed and overpowered by the teachings and new lifestyles that were introduced by foreigners including the Spanish, Europeans and French colonizers. The strongest effect was brought by the European missionaries who accompanied the colonizers in a mission to spread the Christian gospel (Gaustad and Schmidt 16).
Module 3
Colonialism: Colonial Spanish Catholics and Las Casas
In this module, we got to learn about the conversion of Native Americans into Christians during the colonization of the Spanish. This conversion was administered via a series of relations between the Spanish governments, the Spanish settlers, Catholic Missionaries, soldiers, and the Native Americans. At the time the Spanish missionaries held a tenuous duty of working both as the agents of colonization, as well as, defending the native people. Their role in the Native American society was facilitated wholly by the Spanish government, and the intimacy between the government and the Catholic Church. We also learned the different ways through which the Native Americans and the Spanish Missionaries related with each other. At first, the Native Americans welcomed them, but at the time they did not trust them. With time, the Native Americans saw the Spanish Missionaries viewed the Spanish Missionaries as actors of spiritual power and as a line of defense against the other Spanish settlers. The missionaries managed to convert Native Americans into Christians through crusades, and established the Catholic Church in the Native American territories.
Contemporary U.S. Anglicans/Episcopalians - Ordination Issues and Schism
This module of the course sheds some light on the issues and beliefs of Christians in the Episcopal and Anglican churches in the world. Some of the content we learned in class was from an Episcopalian church, Bishop as she gave answers in an interview regarding this issue. According to the Episcopal Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, crisis of climate change as experienced in the world today brings forth an unprecedented challenge of the interconnectedness, goodness, and sanctity of the world as created by God. The world presents the incredible wonder of the creations of God and the diversity of his abilities. The Episcopalian Christians have a prayer that they use after the baptism that prays for the newly baptized to receive the gift of wonder and joy in everything that God does. We also learned that the Christians in the Episcopalian Church believe that God asks them to build a favorable society for all people, where they can live together in peace, harmony and have a sense of justice. Nonetheless, to my surprise, I discovered that the Episcopalian Christians agree that Christianity has not been entirely effective in shaping the lives of people on earth because of the existence of some issues such as homosexuality, and the fact that some governments even embrace the whole idea (Bill Moyes Journal 1).
Module 4
Colonialism-Puritans in New England
This section of the course covered life in New England or the Puritan Life as compared to life in the Old England. The Puritan Life in New England seemed to burst with numerous opportunities for life. The Europeans could now enjoy a prolonged life expectancy rate, with an increased rate of population growth, which was almost twice that of Maryland and Virginia in the United States. As a matter of fact, England grew to be known as the inventor of grandparents because for the first time, people would grow old enough to see their children’s children. Moreover, we learned that the literacy rates increased as the Puritans encouraged their children to go to school and read the Bible. However, during this time male supremacy also dominated over the society, with men dominating over the power and control of the Puritan society. Men had the power to make decisions in the church and women were not allowed to participate in such roles. In the churchmen had the role of writing, as well as, preaching sermons. The most intriguing aspect of the Puritan life was their strict laws and harsh punishments because they believed they lived to serve God. As such, all those who were seen to stray from serving God faced harsh punishments, and some were even hanged in extreme situations (File Dropper 3).
Religion in Contemporary America
After learning about religion in the early days, we moved on to learn about religion in the contemporary American society. In this part of the module, we learned about the alterations that took place in the Christian religion, especially in the twentieth century. The greatest change that the American society experienced during this time was increased secularity among its entire people. This also implies that America was losing religion fast as more institutions chose to decline religious beliefs in the modern world. I learned that the aspect that fuelled the loss of religion in the American society was the rapid process of modernization, which is also a...