Responsibility for the Ecological Crisis

The charge that Christianity is responsible for the ecological crisis is examined critically. The biblical record and the history of science and technology indicate that present-day misuse and exploitation of the environment is the result of human greed, carelessness, and ignorance, not religious belief. Two strategies for corrective action are discussed. It is concluded that holding Christianity responsible for the ecological crisis puts the emphasis for action in the wrong arena, and the charge may do great harm.