Why should Christians engage in earthkeeping as Christians and from within Christian communities? What is the underlying theological rationale for that? In this book some 19 reasons why Christians may be encouraged to engage in earthkeeping are identified, juxtaposed and assessed in order to call for clarity, to invite discussion and to elicit creative tensions. No single position is advocated ? it would be helpful if Christians could engage in earthkeeping on the basis of any of these motivations.

Addressing a topic of growing and vital concern, this book asks us to reconsider how we think about the natural world and our place in it. Steven Bouma-Prediger brings ecotheology into conversation with the emerging field of environmental virtue ethics, exploring the character traits and virtues required for Christians to be responsible keepers of the earth and to flourish in the challenging decades to come. He shows how virtue ethics can enrich Christian environmentalism, helping readers think and act in ways that rightly value creation.

This substantially revised and updated edition provides the most thorough evangelical treatment available on a theology of creation care.

Although our planet faces numerous ecological crises, including climate change, many Christians continue to view their faith as primarily a "spiritual" matter that has little relationship to the world in which we live. But Steven Bouma-Prediger contends that protecting and restoring our planet is part and parcel of what it means to be a Christian. Making his case from Scripture, theology, and ethics and including insights from the global church, Bouma-Prediger explains why Christians must acknowledge their identity as earthkeepers and therefore embrace their calling to serve and protect their home planet and fellow creatures. To help readers put an "earthkeeping faith" into practice, he also suggests numerous practical steps that concerned believers can take to care for the planet. Bouma-Prediger unfolds a biblical vision of earthkeeping and challenges Christians to view care for the earth as an integral part of Christian discipleship.

Ever since its original publication over a decade ago, Earthkeeping has presented a thought-provoking, biblically based call for responsible stewardship. In view of the continuing environmental crisis worldwide and in light of increased ecological awareness in recent years, the book's message regarding "earthkeeping" is now more pertinent than ever. This greatly revised and augmented edition of Earthkeeping updates the original edition while retaining the same breadth of perspective, reflecting the combined insights of Christian scholars in biology, physics, economics, literature, and philosophy. The book begins by laying out, with scientific precision, the state of the planet. Several chapters then carefully examine various historical and contemporary views of creation. Next the authors survey biblical and theological teaching relative to humanity's use of creation. The book concludes by offering helpful, practical guidelines for an earthkeeping ethic. Besides providing an updated "state of the planet" analysis, this revised edition of Earthkeeping deals with recent cultural and religious developments, incorporating new material, for example, on the "Deep Ecology" and "new age" movements, the Gaia hypothesis, and ecofeminism. This edition also takes into account the recent wealth of Christian thinking about the earth, including the recovery of important but neglected voices from the Christian tradition, such as Hildegard of Bingen and Celtic spirituality. At the end of the book, an expanded and updated annotated bibliography, organized according to subject area, and new indexes (of names and subjects and of Scripture references) enhance the value of Earthkeeping as a significant resource fostering better human stewardship of God's creation.