Religion, Sustainability, and Place : Moral Geographies of the Anthropocene

"The editors and authors are right to note that the field of sustainability studies has been strangely silent on the salience of religion. This volume provides exactly the right kind of intervention to this emerging and multidisciplinary field, that is one which includes a diverse range of voices, practitioners alongside academics, and focuses on a range of landscapes from Ethiopia to Scotland where religion and sustainability meet in specific problems and forms of praxis. I highly recommend it!" --Jeremy Kidwell, Department of Theology & Religion, University of Birmingham This book explores how religious groups work to create sustainable relationships between people, places and environments. This interdisciplinary volume deepens our understanding of this relationship, revealing that the geographical imagination--our sense of place--is a key aspect of the sustainability ideas and practices of religious groups. The book begins with a broad examination of how place shapes faith-based ideas about sustainability, with examples drawn from indigenous Hawaiians and the sacred texts of Judaism and Islam. Empirical case studies from North America, Europe, Central Asia and Africa follow, illustrating how a local, bounded, and sacred sense of place informs religious-based efforts to protect people and natural resources from threatening economic and political forces. Other contributors demonstrate that a cosmopolitan geographical imagination, viewing place as extending from the local to the global, shapes the struggles of Christian, Jewish and interfaith groups to promote just and sustainable food systems and battle the climate crisis Contents Notes on Contributors List of Figures List of Tables 1 Introduction: Religion, Sustainability, and Place Organization of the Book References 2 By Their Fruits Ye Shall Know Them: Religion as Practice A Short Introduction Decolonizing Western Bias Community Religions Universalizing Religions The Trajectory of Universalizing Religions Religion as Methodology The Basic Recipe Religion, Science, and Sustainability Today References 3 Finding/Revealing/Creating Judaism’s Indigenous Core Introduction The Land That Drinks from the Heavens Sustainability Indigenousness and the Israelite Religion Strangers in the Land Creation-Centered Religion The Political Complexities of Indigeneity Decolonizing Judaism Strangers in a Strange Land After Exile Intercession and Theurgy—Kabbalah Revealing the Divine Flow—Hasidism Conclusion Works Cited 4 Water Law in Muslim Countries Revisited: A Study of the Qur’an Caponera’s Water Laws in Moslem Countries (1954, 1973) Spiritual Essays on Water in Islam Reading the Qur’an with Water in Mind: Three Experiments Sura al-Fatiha (the Opening) Sura al-Baqarah (the Cow) Reading for Water (Ma’) in the Historical Revelatory Sequence Reading the Canonical Arrangement and Reflecting on Water Laws for Muslim Countries References 5 Emerging Places of Repair: A Sustainable Urbanism Approach to Living in and with Cities—Inspired by Vine Deloria, Jr.’s Agent Ontology of Place An Agent Ontology of Place, Matter–Energy, Solidarity, and Sacred Places Place as Relationship Matter–Energy in a Living Universe Solidarity and the Sacred Sacred Places The Emergence of Places of Repair Welcoming the Camas, Drawing the Line: Places of Repair as a Principle for City Living and Design Welcoming the Camas, Repairing Relationships: The Native Gathering Gardens at Cully Park in Portland, Oregon Creating Sacred Place in Momentary Urban Space: The Lummi Nation House of Tears Carvers Totem Pole Journey To Conclude, We Must Begin References 6 Saving Mount Shasta’s Sacred Water: The Spiritual Campaign Against Crystal Geyser Mountain Metaphysics: Defining Sacred Water A Brief Profile of Ascensionist Esoteric Spirituality Spiritual Commerce and Water in Mt. Shasta: A Brief History Water Activism Past and Present Bibliography 7 Land Cover Change in a Ghanaian Sacred Forest Introduction Study Area Landscape Sacred Natural Sites in Ghana Governance of Sacred Landscapes in Ghana Forest Policy in Ghana Forest Cover Change in Ghana Forests and Livelihood Land Use Classification Results of Land Cover Classification Forest Cover Change Conclusion Appendix References 8 Role of Faith-Based Social Groups in Promoting Sustainable Food Security in Nigeria Introduction Nigeria: The Giant of Africa Addressing Food Insecurity Social Groups as Catalysts for Food Security The Financial Services Euphoria Pressure for Self-Reliance Conclusion References 9 Protecting Ethiopia’s Church Forests: The Disconnect Between Western Science and Local Knowledge What Is the Ecological Significance of Church Forests? How Long Have Church Forests Existed, and Are They Remnants of a Vast Native Forest? How Have Forest Conditions Changed Through Time, and Are They in Danger of Disappearing? Why Does the Local Community Value the Forest and Take Steps to Protect It? Why Is There Variability in Church Forest Conditions Today? In the Face of Potential Factors in Their Degradation, What Steps Should Be Taken, and by Whom, to Bolster Church Forest Protection? Degradation Narratives and Received Wisdom Sacred Spaces and Sustainability References 10 Religion and Spirituality in Hungarian Eco-Villages Introduction Eco-Villages Radical Rural Locality—Place and Eco-Villages Ecology and Religion Religion, Faith and Spirituality in Hungarian Eco-Villages The Role of Faith Conclusion References 11 Resource Nationalism and Spiritual Pathways to Sustainability in Kyrgyzstan Environmental Nationalism in the Soviet Union Resource Nationalism and Ecological Sustainability in Post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan Religion, Ecology, Nationalism Conclusion Bibliography 12 Grounded in Community: Christianity and Environmental Engagement in Scotland Religion and Ecology Research Method and Context Linking Religious Traditions and Environmental Sustainability Justice Stewardship and Creation Care Creation Spirituality Grounded in Community Conclusion References 13 Christian Ideas Influencing US Food Movements Introduction Food Safety Vegetarianism Organic Farming Food Justice Local Food Movement as the Integration of Other Movements Conclusion References 14 The Jewish Food Movement: A Sustainable and Just Vision for Place, Identity, and Environment Introduction The Alternative Food Movement Sustainable Food Spaces: Spaces for Jewish Renewal American Jewish Farming and Post-Earth Day American Jewish Environmentalism The Jewish Food Movement Actors and Organization Hazon: Hub of the JFM Other Actors and Organizations in the JFM A Jewish-Sustainability Discourse From Sustainability to Food Justice: Shmita Geographical Imagination of the JFM: Scales of Concern Conclusions References 15 A Womanist and Interfaith Response to Climate Change Introduction Case Study: Virginia Interfaith Power & Light Values: Constructing a New Theology Challenges Faced Misinformation, Rejection of Science and Politicization Urgency of the Climate Crisis Viewing Climate Change as a Moral Issue Connecting Public Policy and Charity Standing up to Powerful Polluters Organizational Sustainability Intersectionality of Leadership’s Identity Successes Achieved Conclusion References Index This book explores how religious groups work to create sustainable relationships between people, places and environments. This interdisciplinary volume deepens our understanding of this relationship, revealing that the geographical imagination--our sense of place--is a key aspect of the sustainability ideas and practices of religious groups. The book begins with a broad examination of how place shapes faith-based ideas about sustainability, with examples drawn from indigenous Hawaiians and the sacred texts of Judaism and Islam. Empirical case studies from North America, Europe, Central Asia and Africa follow, illustrating how a local, bounded, and sacred sense of place informs religious-based efforts to protect people and natural resources from threatening economic and political forces. Other contributors demonstrate that a cosmopolitan geographical imagination, viewing place as extending from the local to the global, shapes the struggles of Christian, Jewish and interfaith groups to promote just and sustainable food systems and battle the climate crisis.-- Provided by publisher