Dave is Director of Theology for A Rocha International, where he works to embed creation care into international Christian organizations, theological institutions, and mission movements. His past roles with A Rocha include being an International Trustee and the co-founder of A Rocha UK (with his wife Anne). He has a PhD from Cambridge University on biblical theology and biodiversity conservation, and has contributed to many books and articles, including Planetwise, available in six languages. Born and raised in India, Dave has a love for Indian food, Indian culture and Indian Christianity. Dave is also a qualified bird-ringer and loves birding, islands, running and mountains.
Recently, I was in Kathmandu, speaking on creation care to a group of about 90 Christian leaders from across Nepal, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. They were really receptive… until I got to God’s future plans for creation. Surely we’re all going to heaven? What about the Rapture? Won’t there be a new creation? Won’t the earth be destroyed by fire?
‘Of making many books there is no end’, wrote the philosopher, ‘and much study wearies the body’. So yet another new book on creation care may tempt you to click to another page. So, why is this book different?
Which is better, using a dishwasher or washing dishes by hand? I realize this is a rich-world dilemma, but as it comes up in discussion so often and raises some interesting issues, I thought it worth reflecting on.
I was distracted from the documentary by the reactions of my two friends. Jack revelled in the power and skill of the predators, their mastery of timing and feather control, the elegance and efficiency with which they hunted. Jill was horrified by their bloodlust. How could such callous cruelty be part of God’s good creation?
Recently I was staying overnight in a rural cottage and decided to get up for an early walk. It was bitterly cold. The fields were nearly bare; however, the hedgerows and field margins were bursting with life. The richness of life at the margins got me thinking.
It was extraordinary to be in Paris during the COP negotiations. So, now the dust has settled, the marquees are dismantled, and the circus has left town, what are we to make of the COP21 Agreement, and where do we go from here?
Climate change seems to polarize Christians. Why? Why do some believe it is a satanic plot whilst others see it as a crucial moral issue? Why do so many more simply ignore it as irrelevant to their faith and daily lives? In the end it’s about theology.
Last summer, events conspired to give me three totally different experiences: Week 1 at a Christian festival, part of Week 2 with my family at Disneyland Paris, and Week 3 at the Taizé Community in France. The question I found myself asking was, ‘What is the spirituality of this gathering? What are its “gods” – its underlying, unwritten values and assumptions about what really matters?’
On 25 September 2015, 193 nations gathered at the UN in New York to launch 17 new Sustainable Development Goals. I want to suggest some pointers as Christian organizations and individuals engage with this important process.
When Pope Francis’ encyclical on the environment was released, there was enormous media attention. Now the dust has settled, however, what can we make of the Papacy’s foray into environmental matters? And how does it fit with A Rocha’s focus on biblically-inspired, community-based, wildlife conservation projects?
