FRIENDS OF MOUNT ATHOS BOOK REVIEWS

© 1995

So That God's Creation Might Live: The Orthodox Church Responds to the Ecological Crisis. Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, 1992. 118 pages. Price p/b £10. No ISBN. Copies available from Dr Dimitri Conomos, 4A Northmoor Road, Oxford.

This book of essays represents the proceedings of the historic Inter-Orthodox Conference on Environmental Protection held at the Orthodox Academy of Crete in November 1991. For the first time ever, representatives of all the Orthodox Churches came together to discuss the ways in which Orthodox tradition, both theological and practical, could respond to the environmental crisis. Addressed by HRH the Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in his capacity as President of the World Wide Fund for Nature International, it also marked the strengthening of ties between the Orthodox Churches, especially the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and secular conservation bodies.

The essays in the book cover two areas, the first theological, the second ecological. The conference attracted some of the best thinkers from both disciplines, and their interaction under one cover is what makes this book such a fascinating and stimulating one to read. Two papers in particular stand out for me, not because they are better than the others, but because they demonstrate the dialogue between disciplines and the fruits that emerge from this. The opening keynote lecture by Metropolitan John of Pergamon on 'Orthodoxy and the Problem of the Protection of the Natural Environment' offers an illuminating overview of different perceptions of nature arising from diverse traditions, both Christian and post- or non-Christian. It is an intellectual tour de force, illustrating the interaction between concept and action. Take, for example, the list of spiritual implications of the ecological problem which Metropolitan John gives on pages 22-3. To take just one, he explores the 'eudaemonistic concept of life. The search for individual happiness becomes an “individual right”.' He looks at the impact of this on both the use and the abuse of the natural world and at its impact upon spirituality and morality.

The second paper I would highlight is that of Oliver Rackham of the University of Cambridge on 'Conservation in the Historical Landscape: The Historical Context and the Story of Crete'. Dr Rackham takes us on a journey in time and in ideas. He shows how human notions of being and relationships with both the Divine and the rest of Creation manifest themselves in the very landscape that lies around us. Although focusing upon Crete, the way of seeing which he outlines opens our eyes to look anew at any landscape and to realize that it can be read almost as easily as a book. The message he sees in this 'Book of Nature' is a dire warning about human stupidity and abuse over against traditions of sustainable use.

The essays range from liturgy to water pollution; from climate change to Byzantine iconography; from Orthodox monastic tradition ('The Monk and Nature in the Orthodox Tradition' by Fr Makarios of the Monastery of Simonopetra on Mount Athos) to the economics of the environment. It is perhaps a testimony to the implications of such a vast and rich tradition as Orthodoxy becoming involved in environmental issues that a book entitled So That God's Creation Might Live should cover such a range. It is without doubt one of the most useful and thus potentially important resources available for Orthodox reflection upon nature, and for conservationists wishing to understand the role of religion. It deserves a wide readership; but, even more importantly, its insights need to be urgently applied.

Martin Palmer

Manchester