four most important biblical passages for a Christian enviromentalism, The

Trinity Journal, Fall 1998 by Bullmore, Michael A

By these two more casual references to the goodness of certain parts of creation the author of this account gives us some understanding of God's design for creation. God intended at least some parts of creation to be specifically for human nourishment and use and these parts are good in that they are what God intended them to be.23

The third significant contribution of Genesis 1-2 begins to move us in the direction of defining man's unique role in creation. While we will deal more fully with that specific role below it is necessary here to establish the distinctiveness of human creation. Robert Meye, in his essay "Invitation to Wonder: Toward a Theology of Nature,"24 observes several details from the Genesis accounts which serve to highlight the uniqueness of man.

1. Creation on the sixth day, after all other creative work had been accomplished (Gen 1:31).

2. The unique language with which the divine decision to create [man] is announced. Instead of the impersonal imperative "Let there be," there is a divine statement in the first-person plural: "Let us make man in our image. . . " (Gen 1:26).

3. The creation of humankind in the image of God (Gen 1:27).

4. The special emphasis upon human creation as community: "Male and female he created them" (Gen 1:27).

5. The unique manner in which humans, male and female, are formed-the former from the dust of the ground, with the breath of life breathed directly into his nostrils (Gen 2:7); the latter with a rib taken from the side of Adam (Gen 2:21-22).

6. The granting to humankind of dominion over all things including all animals, no matter how strong or grand they might be (Gen 1:28).

7. Humankind's being granted the responsibility of naming the animals, which are brought before Adam by God himself (Gen 2:19-20).

8. Above all else, God's direct relationship with and address to humankind as the unique crown of creation (Gen 1:28ff.; 2:16ff.).25

It is by virtue of this uniqueness and distinction, especially as represented in the imago Dei, that man finds himself "a little lower than God and crowned with glory and honor" with "all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air and the fish of the sea" put "under his feet" (Ps 8:5-8). To the implications of this position we will return momentarily.

But first a brief word about the fourth contribution of Genesis 12. It has already been observed that God's command to "be fruitful and increase in number" was spoken not just to man.

And God said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky." So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them and said, "Be fruitfitl and increase in number and fill the water in the seas and let the birds increase on the earth." And there was evening and there was morning-the fifth day.

And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind." And it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. (Gen 1:20-25)