Relating Ecological Wisdom & Apologetics to the Mission of God in Creation Care

In a world facing unprecedented ecological challenges, the search for sustainable relationships with our planet has never been more urgent. Three perspectives—Biblical stewardship, common ground in apologetics, and indigenous ecological wisdom—offer profound insights that can transform our understanding of humanity’s role in caring for creation. While emerging from different cultural and religious contexts, these perspectives share remarkable commonalities in their vision of responsible human-nature relationships as a means of gospel-centered witness.

This exploration bridges Biblical principles of creation care with indigenous approaches to environmental stewardship as a means of common ground in an apologetic approach to gospel-centered witness. It reveals how individual Christians across various vocations can integrate these insights into faithful Christian practice. By engaging in this intercultural dialogue, believers can discover transformative approaches that honor God’s creation and the Scripture, while addressing today’s pressing environmental vulnerabilities, and while simultaneously bearing witness to the truth of the gospel.

 

The Biblical Foundation for Creation Care

Genesis and the Original Mandate

The Biblical narrative begins with humanity’s sacred responsibility toward creation. Genesis 1:28 famously grants humans “dominion” over the earth, while Genesis 2:15 clarifies this relationship: “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it” (NIV). The Hebrew words used here—avad (to serve) and shamar (to keep/protect)—reveal that dominion was never meant as exploitation but rather careful tending and protection.

This caretaking mandate positions humans not as owners but as stewards accountable to God for their treatment of creation. As theologian Norman Wirzba notes, “Creation is not primarily about power but about relationship…God creates a world in which creatures can flourish together” (Wirzba, 2015). This relational understanding of creation care directly challenges modern extractive paradigms that have led to environmental degradation.

The Sabbath Principle and Creation’s Inherent Value

The Biblical concept of Sabbath further illuminates creation’s intrinsic value beyond human utility. In Exodus 23:10-11, God commands that fields lie fallow every seventh year, allowing the land to rest and the poor and wild animals to eat from it. Similarly, Leviticus 25 outlines the Jubilee year, where land returns to original stewards and debts are forgiven.

These practices acknowledge creation’s worth independent of human productivity—a revolutionary concept in both ancient and modern contexts. The Sabbath principle demonstrates that God values creation for its own sake, not merely as a resource for human consumption.

The Prophetic Tradition: Environmental Justice

The prophetic tradition repeatedly draws connections between environmental degradation and social injustice. Jeremiah 2:7 laments, “I brought you into a fertile land to eat its fruit and rich produce. But you came and defiled my land and made my inheritance detestable.” Similarly, Hosea 4:1-3 directly links moral corruption with environmental decline: “There is no faithfulness, no love, no acknowledgment of God in the land…Because of this the land dries up, and all who live in it waste away; the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky and the fish in the sea are swept away.”

These passages establish a Biblical framework that sees environmental devastation not merely as a practical problem but as a spiritual and moral failure—a theme that resonates deeply with indigenous perspectives.

 

Understanding “Common Ground” in Apologetics

In Christian presuppositional apologetics, “common ground” refers to the shared reality between believers and unbelievers, which exists not because of autonomous human reasoning but because all people live in God’s world, created in His image (Genesis 1:27). Unlike classical, evidential apologetics, which often seeks a neutral foundation for discussion, presuppositional apologetics—particularly as developed by thinkers like Cornelius Van Til—rejects the idea of neutral common ground. Instead, it argues that the only true common ground between Christians and non-Christians is the inescapable reality of God’s existence and the imago Dei (image of God) in all people.

This means that even unbelievers, though they suppress the truth (Romans 1:18-21), cannot escape the reality of God’s revelation in creation, conscience, and Scripture. The apologist’s role is to expose the unbeliever’s reliance on borrowed capital—truths that only make sense within a Christian worldview—while demonstrating that only the biblical God provides a rational foundation for knowledge, morality, and meaning.

 

Indigenous Ecological Wisdom: Ancient Knowledge for Modern Challenges

Relational Worldviews: Creation as Kin

Many indigenous cultures worldwide maintain worldviews that see humans as relatives of, rather than rulers over, the natural world. For example, the Lakota phrase “Mitákuye Oyás’iŋ” (“All Are Related”) captures this kinship ethic that extends moral consideration to all creation (LaDuke, 2016).

This relational understanding bears striking resemblance to the Biblical concept of creation as God’s household (oikos), from which we derive words like ecology and economics. In both traditions, human exceptionalism—the notion that humans stand apart from and above nature—gives way to a more humble positioning within a larger community of creation.

Intergenerational Sustainability

Indigenous cultures typically embrace decision-making frameworks that consider impacts seven generations into the future—a temporal horizon that industrialized societies rarely contemplate. The Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy’s “Seventh Generation Principle” exemplifies this forward-thinking approach to environmental stewardship that prevents short-sighted exploitation (Lyons, 2008).

This intergenerational ethic parallels Biblical passages like Psalm 145:4: “One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts.” Both traditions recognize that faithful stewardship requires caring for lands and waters that will nourish future generations.

Cyclical Rather Than Linear Understanding

Many indigenous approaches to ecology embrace cyclical patterns rather than linear progress narratives. Traditional ecological knowledge often emphasizes returning nutrients to soil, sustainable harvesting practices, and living within natural cycles—principles that industrial agriculture and resource extraction frequently violate.

This cyclical understanding resonates with Biblical imagery of sowing and reaping, seasons, and the circle of life and death, offering a corrective to modern assumptions of unlimited growth and extraction.

 

Finding Common Ground: Shared Principles in Biblical and Indigenous Creation Care

Sacred Value of Creation

Both Biblical and indigenous traditions recognize creation’s inherent worth beyond utilitarian value. In Psalm 19:1, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands,” we find a Biblical echo of indigenous perspectives that see divine presence throughout creation.

Indigenous teacher and scholar Gregory Cajete (Tewa) explains that many Native traditions understand “the natural world as a foundation for spirituality” (Cajete, 2000). While Christian theology maintains God’s transcendence and the uniqueness of human creation in God’s image, it also affirms creation’s capacity to reveal God’s character and its inherent goodness independent of human use.

Christian apologists have the opportunity to build on the sacred value of creation as a basis for demonstrating that only the biblical God provides a rational foundation for understanding the Creator.

Reciprocal Relationships Rather Than Exploitation

Both traditions emphasize reciprocity rather than one-sided extraction. Indigenous harvesting practices often include rituals of thanksgiving and careful protocols ensuring sustainability—taking only what is needed and giving back when possible.

This mirrors Biblical principles like those found in Deuteronomy 22:6-7, where even small acts like taking eggs from a bird’s nest require respectful practice: one may take the eggs but must release the mother bird, ensuring future generations. Both traditions understand that humans both depend upon and are responsible for creation’s flourishing.

For indigenous peoples, discussion of reciprocity in our relationship to creation opens the door for a dialogue about the biblical view of humanity and creation. 

Ecological Wisdom as Spiritual Practice

For both Biblical and many indigenous traditions, careful treatment of creation reflects spiritual maturity and right relationship with the Creator. In Proverbs 12:10, “The righteous care for the needs of their animals,” we see ecological care linked directly to righteousness.

Similarly, in many indigenous traditions, respectful treatment of plants, animals, and landscapes reflects spiritual alignment and proper relationship with the Creator. These shared connections between ecological practice and spiritual faithfulness offer powerful correctives to secular environmentalism that lacks a biblical, spiritual foundation for lasting change.

The biblical link between our relationship with the creation and our spiritual relationship with the Creator demonstrates a deeper, more profound, understanding of the nature of the Biblical God and nature of humanity as created beings. As Biblical scholar, Terence Fretheim states: “Creation is not simply past; it is not just associated with “the beginning.” God does not cease to be the Creator when the work of Genesis 1-2 has been completed nor is God thereafter reduced to the role of creative manager.” Thus the linkage between God, creation and spiritual practice continues as God actively participates in and with his creation. This enables Christian apologists to speak biblical truths in the context of dialogue with indigenous peoples related to our spiritual relationship with creation through our Creator, God himself. 

 

Tensions and Distinctions: Maintaining Theological Integrity

Monotheism and the Creator-Creation Distinction

While affirming the valuable perspectives indigenous traditions offer, Christians maintain distinctive theological commitments, particularly regarding monotheism and the Creator-creation distinction. Biblical faith affirms one sovereign God distinct from creation, while some indigenous spiritualities may view natural elements themselves as divine or inhabited by spirits.

Christians can appreciate indigenous ecological wisdom without adopting all aspects of indigenous spirituality. As missiologist Randy Woodley (a Keetoowah Cherokee) notes, Christians can practice “critical contextualization”—adopting cultural practices compatible with Biblical faith while respectfully declining elements that conflict with core Christian commitments (Woodley, 2012).

The Gospel’s Universality and Particularity

While Creation Care is a universal calling for all humanity, Christians also affirm the gospel’s particularity—that reconciliation with God comes specifically through Jesus Christ. This distinctive claim need not prevent genuine appreciation for ecological wisdom found in other traditions.

As theologian Richard Bauckham writes, “The biblical metanarrative places human life in the context of God’s whole creation, and thus at once relativizes humanity as one part of creation and particularizes humanity as the creature specially commissioned by God to exercise a caring responsibility for other creatures” (Bauckham, 2010).

The Mission as God’s Mission, Not Ours

The Missio Dei (Latin for “mission of God”) refers to God’s redemptive work in history, calling people from all nations to Himself (Genesis 12:3; Matthew 28:19-20). The relationship between common ground in presuppositional apologetics and the Missio Dei lies in the reality that, while fallen, all people still bear God’s image and live in a world that testifies to Him. Since all people are made in God’s image, they have an inherent (though suppressed) knowledge of Him (Romans 1:19-20). This makes every encounter in apologetics and mission an appeal to what the person already knows deep down. The Missio Dei seeks to restore fallen humanity to its rightful worship of God. Presuppositional apologetics, in turn, calls people to repent of their rebellion and acknowledge the Lordship of Christ over all thinking and life (Colossians 2:3-8). This provides the basis for evangelism and apologetics within the mission of God.

The Missio Dei is ultimately God’s work, not a human effort (John 6:44). Presuppositional apologetics aligns with this by affirming that faith is a gift of God (Ephesians 2:8-9), and no amount of human reasoning alone can lead to true belief without the Spirit’s regeneration (Titus 3:5). The apologist, therefore, does not attempt to persuade on merely human terms but presents the truth of the gospel as the necessary foundation for all understanding.

The Missio Dei involves confronting false worldviews that suppress the truth of God. Presuppositional apologetics serves this mission by exposing the internal inconsistencies of non-Christian thought and showing how only the Christian worldview provides a coherent foundation for knowledge, ethics, and salvation (Proverbs 1:7). The apologist does not seek to build on non-Christian assumptions but to challenge them, pressing the need for regeneration through Christ. However, to the extent that some aspects of non-Christian worldviews align with biblical truth, those aspects provide “common ground.” This is part of God’s mission—to bring people from darkness to light (Colossians 1:13).

The Missio Dei extends beyond individual salvation to the transformation of cultures under Christ’s rule (Matthew 28:18-20). Presuppositional apologetics, by asserting Christ’s Lordship over all thought, challenges non-Christian worldview ideologies and calls for societies to recognize God’s authority in every sphere of life.

 

Practical Integration: Creation Care Across Vocations

Agriculture and Food Systems

Christians working in agriculture can integrate Biblical stewardship with indigenous agricultural wisdom through practices like:

• Implementing regenerative farming methods that build soil health rather than depleting it
• Growing diverse, region-appropriate crops that support local ecosystems
• Practicing water conservation and protection
• Honoring Sabbath principles through crop rotation and allowing fields periodic rest

Many indigenous agricultural systems, such as the Hopi dry-farming techniques or the “Three Sisters” companion planting of corn, beans, and squash, demonstrate sustainable practices that have stood the test of time (Nabhan, 2013). These approaches often align with Biblical principles of careful tending and sustainable yield.

Natural Resource Management

Christians in resource management fields can apply creation care principles by:

• Advocating for sustainable harvest rates below natural regeneration
• Implementing landscape-scale conservation that maintains ecological connectivity
• Incorporating traditional ecological knowledge in forest management, including controlled burning practices developed by indigenous communities
• Protecting watersheds and aquatic ecosystems

Biblical passages like Ezekiel 34:18 (“Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet?“) provide strong theological foundations for such responsible management.

Urban Planning and Development

Christian urban planners and developers can honor creation care through:

• Designing communities that preserve natural spaces and native plants
• Implementing green infrastructure for stormwater management
• Creating walkable neighborhoods that reduce transportation emissions
• Incorporating principles of environmental justice that protect vulnerable communities from pollution

Indigenous concepts of place-based community design, with their emphasis on living within the ecological capacity of a region, offer valuable insights for sustainable urban development that honors biblical stewardship.

Education and Advocacy

Christians in educational roles can advance creation care by:

• Teaching Biblical foundations for environmental stewardship
• Introducing students to indigenous ecological knowledge with appropriate cultural respect
• Connecting theoretical learning with hands-on creation care practices
• Developing curriculum that integrates scientific, theological, and traditional ecological knowledge

Through such integrated approaches, Christians in educational roles can help form a new generation committed to faithful stewardship across cultural boundaries.

 

Addressing Global Ecological Vulnerabilities

Ecosystem Degradation & Depletion

The Biblical command to “shamar” (keep/protect) creation provides clear direction for Christians facing ecosystem degradation. Practices like sustainable forestry, wetland restoration, and regenerative agriculture directly fulfill this mandate while addressing biodiversity loss.

Indigenous approaches to ecosystem management often demonstrate remarkable resilience. For example, research shows that indigenous-managed lands frequently maintain higher biodiversity than conventional protected areas (Garnett et al., 2018). Christians can learn from such approaches while grounding their work in Biblical stewardship principles.

Pollution & Climate Change

Climate change presents perhaps the most significant global environmental challenge, disproportionately affecting the poor and vulnerable—those whom Scripture repeatedly emphasizes God defends.

Christians can respond through:

• Reducing personal and institutional carbon footprints
• Advocating for just transition policies that protect vulnerable communities
• Implementing climate adaptation strategies that protect creation and human communities
• Challenging theological interpretations that minimize human responsibility for creation care

Indigenous communities have often maintained low-carbon lifeways for generations and offer valuable perspectives on sustainable living. Their traditional knowledge frequently provides valuable insights for climate adaptation (Nakashima et al., 2012).

Overpopulation & Waste Management

Biblical wisdom offers guidance for addressing waste and consumption challenges through:

• Embracing principles of sufficiency rather than endless consumption
• Practicing circular economy approaches that echo Biblical and indigenous cyclical understandings
• Supporting fair distribution of resources rather than concentrated overconsumption

Many indigenous cultures demonstrate waste minimization practices where all parts of harvested plants and animals are utilized, and resources are shared communally—practices that align with Biblical principles of justice and stewardship.

Natural & Man-made Disasters

Both Biblical wisdom and indigenous knowledge offer resources for disaster resilience:

• Building with local, appropriate materials and designs that withstand regional challenges
• Maintaining community mutual aid networks that respond to disaster
• Preserving ecological buffers like wetlands, mangroves, and floodplains that mitigate disaster impacts
• Heeding traditional knowledge about safe locations for human settlement

Such approaches honor both the Biblical call to care for creation and the practical wisdom embedded in indigenous land-management traditions.

 

Toward a Holistic Creation Care Ethic

Learning with Humility

For many Western Christians, engaging with indigenous ecological wisdom requires a posture of humility—acknowledging that Western Christianity has often failed in its creation care mandate while indigenous communities have frequently maintained more sustainable relationships with their lands and waters.

This humble learning aligns with Biblical values. Proverbs 11:2 reminds us that “with humility comes wisdom,” while Philippians 2:3 instructs believers to “in humility consider others better than yourselves.” Such humility creates space for intercultural learning while maintaining theological integrity.

Reconciliation and Healing

Creation care offers opportunities for reconciliation—between humans and the Creator, between people groups with histories of conflict, and between humanity and the broader created order. This multi-layered healing reflects the comprehensive reconciliation described in Colossians 1:19-20: “For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”

For many indigenous communities, environmental degradation is inseparable from histories of colonization and displacement. Christian creation care must therefore acknowledge these painful histories while working toward just relationships that honor both people and places.

Practical Next Steps for Individual Believers

Individuals seeking to integrate Biblical stewardship with indigenous ecological wisdom might:

1. Learn about the indigenous history of their local bioregion and its traditional ecological practices
2. Study Biblical passages on creation care with fresh eyes, seeking applications for contemporary challenges
3. Practice Sabbath principles of restraint and rest that honor creation’s limits
4. Support indigenous-led conservation initiatives when appropriate
5. Examine consumption patterns in light of both Biblical stewardship and indigenous values of sufficiency
6. Advocate for environmental justice that protects vulnerable communities and ecosystems
7. Integrate creation care practices into workplace and vocational settings

 

Conclusion: A Shared Path Forward

While emerging from different cultural and religious traditions, Biblical stewardship and indigenous ecological wisdom often converge in their vision of responsible human-ecological relationships. By engaging these perspectives with both reverence for Biblical authority and respect for indigenous knowledge, Christians can develop more robust creation care practices that address today’s pressing environmental challenges while using this common ground in an apologetic approach to a gospel-centered witness. 

This intercultural dialogue doesn’t require abandoning theological distinctives but rather enriches Christian environmental ethics through thoughtful engagement with diverse wisdom traditions. As we face unprecedented ecological vulnerabilities, such integrated approaches offer hopeful paths toward healing our relationship with the created world while also reaching indigenous peoples with the gospel.

The prophet Micah’s famous question—”What does the Lord require of you?“—receives the answer: “To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). In our environmental context, this calling invites us to just relationships with both human and non-human creation, merciful consideration of future generations and vulnerable communities, and humble recognition that we have much to learn about caring faithfully for God’s world.

By integrating Biblical foundations with respectful engagement of indigenous ecological wisdom while developing common ground to facilitate a gospel-centered witness, Christians across vocations can participate more fully in God’s mission of redemption, reconciliation and renewal for all creation.

 

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