Christian Colleges' Green Revolution
Flush twice. It's required at Calvin College's Vincent and Helen Bunker Interpretive Center's restrooms; once before, once after. The flushed water, which is the consistency of a bubble bath, washes waste to an underground room. There, preserve manager Cheryl Hoogewind and I climb up on a metal receptacle and look into a huge bin of waste that smells pleasantly of wood chips. This compost will eventually be spread as fertilizer on the college grounds.
Above us in the 5,000-square-foot building, a student-designed solar photovoltaic system generates electricity from sunlight; meanwhile, gray water from drinking fountains and sinks nourishes plants lining the classroom windowsills. It's all part of the Bunker Center's environmental sustainability.
Integrating creation care with academics is a growing emphasis on Christian campuses around the country. According to Paul Corts, president of the interdenominational Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU), about 40 of 105 North American member schools have adopted significant green initiatives. These vary considerably, from multimillion-dollar sustainable "villages" and student volunteer educational programs to majors in environmental studies and recycling pop cans in school cafeterias. There is also national action.
Last November, 30 Christian college students met in Washington, D.C., to present elected officials with the Evangelical Youth Climate Initiative (EYCI), signed by 1,500 Christian students. EYCI is an independent effort of young evangelicals to follow up on last February's Evangelical Climate Initiative (ECI), signed by 86 Christian leaders (including 39 Christian college presidents).
Amanda Benavides, a sophomore at Point Loma Nazarene University in San ...
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lensterling
I think it is great to see Christians getting interested in caring for our environment, God’s creation. We should have really been leading this movement and effort instead of standing by and criticizing the liberal minded activists for taking a stand. Though their methods and proposed solutions have been historically extreme and make no sense i.e. the desire to shut down entire industries, banning gas powered lawn mowers, etc. We have politicians producing movies claiming to be based in science and reality, but are just skewed messages with a soft side utilizing legitimate issues such as the environment as the vehicle to convey them to a well meaning, yet gullible public audience. It is time to use reasonable and intelligent thinking to address the concerns and solutions relating to environmental issues. Who better than believers to accomplish this? After all, shouldn’t we value God’s creation at least as much as those who simply worship the creation rather than the Creator?
Dale Dixon
I think Christians should set good examples in all we do including taking care of God's creation. However, Jesus told us to go into all the world and make disciples. This was not a suggestion--it was His last command to us. I think the best way to accomplish evangelism and Global care is to go all over the World and share the Gospel with the local and national leaders in an effort to lead them to the Lord. Then we can encourage them to help take care of the Earth and their own citizens. Consentrating on a few leaders of cities and countries will go along way toward cleaning and protecting God's Earth.
Joe
I always knew that eventually the Christian community would recognize the importance of the environment. As Jesus said in Matthew7:12. "whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets". In other words love your neighbor as yourself. And our neighbor includes our children and grandchildren who will have to live on this earth after we are gone.