Evangelicals and Creation Care: What We've Done and Where Were Going in Light of Scripture

Dr. Jim Ball (Evangelical Environmental Network, Washington, D.C.)

This presentation will put what evangelical Christians in North America have said and done about caring for Gods creation since 1970, as well as what I believe our future should be, in the broader context of the biblical story and its eschatological visions. The presentation will present a foundation for ethical action derived from the biblical doctrines of creation, Christology, and eschatology, and the ethical admonitions of the Great Commandments and the Golden Rule. The relationship between pollution and human health will be highlighted, and the positive role of science and technology in addressing the problem will be emphasized.

The Rev. Jim Ball currently serves as the Executive Director of the Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN). He is an ordained Baptist minister with a Ph.D. in theological ethics from Drew University in Madison, New Jersey, USA, and a Master of Divinity from Southern Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. His dissertation focused on the evangelical Christian response to the ecological crisis. He is author of a primer for Christians on global warming, Planting A Tree This Afternoon: Global Warming, Public Policy, and Public Theology published by Evangelicals for Social Action. Before coming to EEN Jim worked in the energy and climate program of the Union of Concerned Scientists in Washington, DC, and taught at Montclair State University in New Jersey. Jim lives in Brunswick, Maryland, USA, with his wife Kara, Mugsy the dog, Emma, Midnite, and Spit the cats, and Iggy the iguana.