Time to rethink what ‘dominion’ means

VIC LEIPZIG AND LOU MURRAY

Today, Christians around the world celebrate one of their most sacred

holy days. For many, this observation of the birth of Christ is a day

of peace and harmony.

“Peace on Earth,” the angels said. In past centuries, warfare was

halted on this day of days.

“Love the Lord thy God and love thy neighbor as thyself,” Jesus

said, and Christians have striven to do so ever since.

One sad thing about the Christian tradition is that it has

provided so little guidance in how to live in harmony with our

environment. In fact, many Christians have taken a profoundly

anti-environmental attitude. Some believe there is no point in

protecting the environment because the second coming of Christ is

imminent, which will wipe out the planet anyway. There is no

incentive to protect the environment under that belief system.

In 1981, President Ronald Reagan’s Secretary of the Interior,

James Watt, was asked if he believed in preserving natural resources

for future generations. He replied, “I do not know how many future

generations we can count on before the Lord returns.” Watt was

enthusiastic about digging mines and cutting down trees. From an

environmental perspective, he was probably the worst Secretary of the

Interior in history.

Does Christianity require its adherents to consume the resources

of the planet at the fastest possible rate? Certainly not. But some

Christians have found justification for doing so in the Bible itself.

For example, consider Genesis.

“And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the

Earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and

over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon

the Earth.’”

This mandate for humans to have dominion over the animals of the

Earth has been interpreted in a number of ways. In English, dominion

means power, authority and control. To us, that implies

responsibility. But, of course, the Torah, or what Christians call

the Old Testament, was written originally in Hebrew. The Hebrew word

for dominion is radah, which means tread down, subjugate, prevail

against or rule over. This is an even harsher view of man’s role in

the environment. Are we truly meant to subjugate the Earth and all of

its creatures? If so, we seem to have done a pretty thorough job of

it.

We’re hardly Biblical scholars, but we will attempt to place the

Old Testament in context of the times during which it was written.

The first five books, of which Genesis is the first book, are often

attributed to Moses, who lived about 3,500 years ago. Those who

believe that the Bible is the literal word of God believe that God

handed these stories to Moses on the Mount, but the stories in these

books may have been handed down in an oral tradition for centuries

before that.

All cultures have a creation story, some explanation of where we

came from. The story of creation as told in Genesis is only one

version from one culture. It tells us to subjugate the Earth. It was

written in times not far removed from the Stone Age, when life was

harsh.

The New Stone Age persisted in Europe until about 4,000 years ago

when the Bronze Age began. This was a mere 500 years before the time

that Moses is said to have written that mankind should be fruitful,

multiply and subjugate the Earth.

Many things have changed since then and the world is a far

different place. Our values and cultures have changed with the times.

We no longer make offerings of salt thrown over the shoulder, we no

longer slaughter and burn animals if we feel guilty about something,

and we no longer stone people to death for cursing God. At least not

in our culture.

While different cultures worship God in different ways, there are

some things all people on this planet share. All of us breathe the

air, drink the water, and take food, shelter, and clothing from

materials made on this planet. We are tied to the health of planet

Earth more intimately than most realize.

But we have been fruitful and have multiplied to a fault. We have

subdued and subjugated planet Earth more than any Stone Age person

could have imagined. We have nearly destroyed the natural environment

on which we depend for life itself. It’s time to put aside Stone Age

thinking and adopt a new ethic, one of stewardship and concern for

the planet that sustains us.

The teachings of Christianity focused on proper behavior toward

fellow humans. They tell us to live in harmony with others, but it is

also essential to live in harmony with nature. We need to recognize

that at this stage of the development of our human culture, we are

the primary influence on all the ecosystems of planet Earth. We need

to protect our environment or we will destroy the very thing that

nourishes us, sustains us and provides for us. We need to be better

stewards of the wonderful planet that we have been given and not

destroy that which God has created.

As you celebrate the birth of Jesus today, remember your Mother

Earth as well. Merry Christmas.

* VIC LEIPZIG and LOU MURRAY are Huntington Beach residents and

environmentalists. They can be reached at vicleipzig@aol.com.