Is global warming due to the Bible?

Question

God gave man dominion and so on. Therefore there is a split between humanity and nature. So we don't respect nature as we should. Also, church opposition to population control has led to over-population which also feeds into global warming. And according to Weber, capitalism (with its growth-maximizing tendencies) is strongly influenced by the Calvinist doctrine of predestination (i.e. if you're not rich, God doesn't like you).

So is it all due to the Bible?

Answer 1

What does the Bible say about Global Warming? Not much. There is a brief reference in Revelation about climate change and men's hearts not changing.

The Bible only states (in Rev 16:8)
Rev 16:8 The fourth {angel} poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given to it to scorch men with fire.

Rev 16:9 Men were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory.

While the timing of this event has been questioned, it is a clear reference to events (Which may take place in the future) of Global warming and man's refusal to repent.

Now, there are scholars which will say that the vials are to be poured only during the time of Tribulation (leading up to Armageddon) and there are some obscure ones that will say that the vials have been poured since (say) the start of WWII.

Answer 2

That is some creative thinking. Very impressive.

Here are some other things to consider:

If God gave man dominion over the world, that does not necessitate a disrespect for nature. A mother has dominion over her child, but that does not mean that she has to disrespect her child. That said, you are right in spirit. Many men choose to disrespect the earth, and their perceived dominion may play a role in that. I believe, however, that this attitude would exist regardless of the Bible. Lack of Christian influence in countries like China or the former Soviet Union did not prevent them from polluting. Few people, even today, use the Bible to justify driving SUVs at 70 mph with the air conditioning blasting on high. They mostly use individual freedom perceived to come from the Constitution.

Overpopulation IS a problem. But church opposition does not completely explain the problem, and only SOME Christian churches oppose population control. Meanwhile, many non-Christians still have lots of children. In fact, the most over-populated countries in the world are not even Christian countries.

Good call referencing Weber's view of capitalism. Calvinism, indeed, has played a major role in the growth of capitalism. That said, many more secular countries have whole-heartedly adopted capitalism, despite a lack of Calvinistic influence, suggesting that capitalism may well have risen without Calvin's influence. This is especially true in Asia. I don't suggest that as a fact, but the possibility is real. Weber's theory is not accepted 100% in the historical and economic communities, with many historians believing that this is a gross oversimplification.

That said, I personally think the Calvinist influence is real, though perhaps in a more limited form that Weber believed. I certainly do not believe it has anything to do with the Bible. For one thing, the doctrine of predestination was conceived by Calvin based on the writings of Paul, which do not constitute the entire Bible. Also, his views were hotly contested by many denominations of Christianity. Despite this, its influence is significant, but interpretations of predestination varied. Although more fundamental Calvinists believed that being rich suggested God's favor, many other Protestants believed that wealth had nothing to do with religion. The truth is that the people who formed capitalism did so to increase their wealth for personal reasons. The Bible, for some, was simply the excuse, not the cause. I doubt you can find a single person in history that decided to try to become wealthy simply because they thought the Bible wanted them to. You CAN find thousands of examples of people who CHOSE to live in poverty because of the Bible.

Ultimately, the Bible does not really contend with the environment in any real sense. As Galileo once noted, the Bible was not written to explain natural occurrences, it was written to save our souls. Any blame necessary for the rise of global warming does not need to be directed at the Bible, which is merely a book that guides the spirits of only a select portion of the world's population. Ultimately, the blame for global warming belongs to mankind as a whole. We are all responsible for it, Bible or no Bible.

Answer 3

Calvinists don't have any such doctrine declaring that "God only likes the rich". In fact, God specifically says in the book of James to esteem the rich and poor alike, with an attitude of chastisement for those who don't. As a matter of fact, according to the Bible, we are supposed to manage the environment (Genesis chapter 1). True Biblical advice on birth control is a matter between a husband and wife. (Some people really do love children, and actually want them!) Capitalism is a good thing...and you benefit from it. Or maybe you'd prefer living in a third world country??? Hmmm. P. S. Quit picking on the Christians!

Answer 4

Global warming is due to humananity. The Bible states that God made us stewards of the Earth, and we've haven't done a very good job, which could be attributed to sinning on our part as we did not follow that direction from God. There are also many statements in the Bible telling us that if we don't follow God's commands, then we will suffer for it. No, the Bible did not cause global warming, humans did because they did not follow God's advice which is given in the Bible.

Answer 5

I think that Christianity as it is understood through the King James bible has certainly had an influence on western culture and your example may be one side effect of that thinking. I know I came from a church that openly said that as christians we are not part of the "circle of life" and then criticized Disney.
That aside, any single doctrine is not to blame. The lesson of global warming is not to lay blame on others or some outside source.....it is an opportunity to look to ourselves and take responsibility for our own actions. It is an opportunity to see ourselves in the larger system of life and recognize the impact we can have.

Answer 6

People use any religious doctirne to justify their selfish actions.
Conversly, most religions also have an ethical/environmentally aware side to them (but this tends to be a radical wing, and often at odds with the orthodox power wielding side, see the fransicans).

Judaism/christian/islam certainly encourages a paternalistic view (god will not let anything bad happen, he will forgive/reward us, we are better than other creatures/races...) compared to many eastern & indigenous religions which emphasise an interconnectedness and personal responsibility.

climate change is a result of peoples attitudes to a range of issues, population, growth, wealth & technology amongst them. In Buddist terms "The problem is mind made" and so the solution is in our mind - turning from the industrial growth society to a life sustaining world view.

Answer 7

No. It's due to industrialization and technology. The US is guilty, Europe is guilty, and now China and other places are stepping up industrialization and sharing the blame as well. Things that make our lives easier like cars and factories and such are the causes. Big screen TVs and keeping computers on all the time are also bad for the environment.

In the past, no thought was given to emissions and energy efficiency when inventing things. Now that we have been recording temperature and other weather data for some time we can see trends and now maybe some will keep that in mind when they invent.

Answer 8

That is the worst supposition in the history of stupid suppositions. You are obviously just looking for something to be mad at God about. First off global warming is crap. And your drawn conclusion on Weber Capitalism, has NOTHING to do with predestination. Your blatant disregard for....... well anything involving brain cells or logic is annoying. This is literally the worst question I have ever seen asked on Answers.

Answer 9

First of all, your premise about over-population is flawed. we could take the ENTIRE population of the Earth, move them to Texas, and the population density would be LESS than that of Manhattan. The NUMBER of peopel isnt the problem- Niger, Africa, has been bandied about as being an "Overpopulated" area. yet, its population density is 9 people per KM2, which is miniscule compared to the densities of some wealthy countries such as the USA (28), Japan (340), the Netherlands (484) and HOng Kong (6621).

Famine is caused by civil wars and government corruption. the government militia stripped the land of cattle and grain in the Sudan. In Niger, 2.5 million people are starving because of geovernment controlled food allocation.

so lets not blame global warming on over population. this is just one of a THOUSAND myths about global warming that has been propped up as a scare tactic. GW is all about naturally occurring cycles on the Earth. no Bible or Population is to blame. in fact, nothing is to blame- that woul dbe like assigning blame for people breathing. who's fault is it we breathe? no one's. just like its no one's fault that the earth cools and warms on a regular basis.

Answer 10

It's a cleansing. The earth is resetting and changes will happen. We can't be so naive to think that we can take and take without consequences. The planet goes through a process, it's nature. We may affect things here and there, but it's cyclical. The earth had hurricanes, ice ages and solar flares long before the bible, and most likely will have them long after we are all gone.