Evangelical Environmentalism and Environmental Mindfulness: The role of symbolism and beliefs within evangelical ideology and environmentalism

Item

Title

Eng Evangelical Environmentalism and Environmental Mindfulness: The role of symbolism and beliefs within evangelical ideology and environmentalism

Date

2017

Creator

Eng Kimmel, Sairah

Subject

Eng Environmental Studies

extracted text

Evangelical Environmentalism and Environmental Mindfulness: The role
of symbolism and beliefs within evangelical ideology and
environmentalism.

By
Sairah Kimmel

A Thesis Submitted in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree
Master of Environmental Studies
The evergreen State College
June 2017

2017 by Sairah Kimmel. All rights reserved.

This Thesis for the Master of Environmental Studies Degree
by
Sairah Kimmel

has been approved for
The Evergreen State College
by

________________________
Dr. Kathleen Saul, Ph.D.
Member of the Faculty

_______________________
Date

ABSTRACT
Evangelical Environmentalism and Environmental Mindfulness: The role of
symbolism and beliefs within evangelical ideology and environmentalism.
Sairah Kimmel
This thesis examines the relationship between symbols and their effects
when regarding evangelical environmentalism. Being ethnography, this work took
place over almost 6 months of attending evangelical church services at Westcoast
Baptist Church. Interviews, conversations and observations were categorized and
analyzed to come to the best conclusion possible pertaining to the
environmentalism within this church. Ethnographic methods were used to
approach study in a way in which individuals did not feel threatened or “watched”
including only writing notes privately and working to understand the ideology of
evangelical environmentalism through the eyes of those I observed. Images
pertaining to this thesis are also inserted where it seems best. The findings of this
research show that the church can be considered a liberal evangelical
environmentalist church and that many of the influences of nature and the
environment come from their senior pastor and his love of nature, potentially
influencing his congregation even when that was not the intention

Table of Contents
Introduction........................................................................................................................ 1
Historical significance......................................................................................................... 5
Background, Definitions and Concepts ............................................................................. 6
Evangelical Environmentalism (EE) ................................................................................ 8
Creation Care (CC) .......................................................................................................... 9
Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN) ................................................................. 10
Evangelical Climate Initiative (ECI), by the EEN .......................................................... 12
Interfaith Stewardship Alliance ................................................................................... 15
National Association of Evangelicals ........................................................................... 17
Earth Ministry ............................................................................................................... 17
Primary Research Questions ............................................................................................ 19
Theory ............................................................................................................................... 20
Literature review .............................................................................................................. 30
The Field Site .................................................................................................................... 41
The Fieldwork Experience ................................................................................................ 43
Methods............................................................................................................................ 44
Introduction .................................................................................................................. 44
Observations................................................................................................................. 45
Conversations ............................................................................................................... 45
Interviews ..................................................................................................................... 46
SYNTHESIS OF ALL DATA BEFORE CONCLUSION ........................................................... 104
Addressing Research questions ................................................................................. 104
Discussion ....................................................................................................................... 120
Works Cited .................................................................................................................... 124

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Introduction
“The trees bless the world. And that’s what we are supposed to be as a church too.”
--Senior Pastor Philip Miller, Westwood Baptist Church

Perhaps the last topic anyone expects to be caught up reading about in a
thesis for a master’s program is evangelicalism. However, this thesis does just
that. Evangelicalism, just like many religions, has in many ways fractured a bit,
creating a somewhat progressive branch and a more traditional branch. A review
of the literature will allow us to understand some of the complexities of
evangelicalism.
Evangelicals aren’t known to be active environmentalists. Many have
chosen instead to focus on social issues, as the gospel instructs. Still, there have
been increasing numbers of evangelicals who care for the Earth and want to
protect it. Unfortunately, people associated with the term “evangelical” have been
stereotyped as having only conservative beliefs in all realms of thought. Nonevangelicals often make the mistake of thinking that evangelicals belong to a
homogenous, conservative group, unwilling to accept science. They think that
evangelicals’ ethical and political beliefs are similarly conservative. As such, it
may seem there is no room for research into the link between evangelical thought
and environmental ideas within the evangelical circle. Research and a literature

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review opened my eyes and hopefully will yours, to the world of Creation Care
and Evangelical Environmentalism.
Within the broad term “evangelicalism,” some evangelicals are
Democrats, support pro-life, and also support environmental protection. Many
are Republicans who vote for morally conservative bills at the state level but
support various wildlife protection programs because they are also hikers or
campers or hunters. The variations are endless. As a result, this research attempts
to gain insight into evangelical beliefs about environmental issues, without
categorizing anyone except to the extent that they are indeed evangelical.
Within evangelicalism, a movement has been gaining more and more
momentum since the middle of last century: Evangelical Environmentalism (EE).
Within this group two additional two branches have split off: Liberal EE’s (LEE)
and Conservative EE’s (CEE), which will be looked at further in my literature
review. Both groups believe in climate change, and other environmental issues
like water shortages and pollution. Both read the same text usually the King
James Version (KJV) bible, but also the English Standard Version (ESV), yet they
can often have different takes on how to behave towards God’s creation. This is
an open invitation for anyone to attempt to examine the use of symbols within
evangelical environmentalism in order to understand the minds of evangelicals
and their thoughts towards environmentalism. Additionally, to get a better grasp
of why this movement is taking the world by storm (pun intended), we must try

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and understand the foundation of how and why the beliefs might differ between
LEEs and CEEs. In the end, we might be able to connect evangelical
environmental thoughts to that of conventional scientists in a unified effort to
conserve the Earth and combat anthropogenic climate change.
Interviews, research by attending services and a look into social
anthropological theory regarding symbolism will shed more light on why the
particular church I chose to research is attended by many EE’s, even if the church
could be identified as a CEE church because they have initially claimed to not
having participated in environmental activism. Just because people volunteer in
the neighborhood, have outdoor camps and recycle, doesn’t mean they necessarily
realize they are actually activists. In fact, I have happily pointed that out many
times while speaking with evangelicals during the course of the research for this
thesis.
In general LEEs choose to try and conserve the Earth by taking on an
intentional activist role while CEEs choose to focus on poverty and economics
and other social issues, as is expressed to them in the Gospel. A lot of the
ideologies embraced by both groups have been passed down from spiritual
leaders, teachers and grandparents. Interviews help determine who, if anyone,
influences congregation members’ beliefs about the environmental crises now
occurring. There have, of course, always been evangelicals who believe in
climate change or even just environmentalism, and argue in favor of supporting

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the environment, but now that this concept has grown into a very large movement,
more and more EEs continue to step out of the shadows and find their place in
organizations like the Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN) and the
National Association of Evangelicals (NAE).
The more evangelicals adopt environmentalist ideas in response to climate
change and worldwide pollution, the more important it will be for secular
scientists and evangelicals to work together to spread the knowledge of climate
change and science that combats it, and to find ways to live in the changing
world. I might even go so far as to say that we scientists are the ones who really
must improve our tolerance levels in regards to other people’s beliefs and
religion. EEs are not going to stop believing in the gospel but scientists can stop
letting it bother them that they do. It seems sometimes scientists are so upset that
others believe without science, it keeps scientists and evangelicals from working
together. What if we all just ignored the biblical account of creation and the big
bang theory of how the Earth came into being for a minute and focused on the
here and now? Right now our environment needs our help in many ways. The
first step in making that happen will be to help academics and secular scientists
come to a better understanding of evangelical environmentalism and of faith,
which cannot be logically argued against. It must be understood and tolerated just
as EEs will have to tolerate things liberals do like talk about evolution openly. We
must understand each other. I began trying to do just that in this thesis by

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submerging myself into the culture of an environmentally friendly evangelical
church and using ethnographic field methods to obtain research data regarding
EEs, their beliefs and the symbols forming substantial building blocks of their
church. Thus, the question driving the research can be written as: Are symbols
within evangelicalism affecting individuals’ relationships with and beliefs about
environmental affairs and climate change, allowing them to support the safety of
the environment?

Historical significance
“I don’t think God is going to ask us how he created the earth, but he
will ask us what we did with what he created.”
--Reverend Rich Cizik, vice president of the National Association of
Evangelicals, New York Times, March 10, 2005

Evangelicalism has been around since the days of the Greek empire. “The
term ‘evangelical’ comes from the Greek word euangelion, meaning ‘the good
news’ or the ‘gospel’. First Protestants brought the evangelical movement to the
United States; the Baptists and other smaller churches then adopted
evangelicalism in later years. It is important to understand that evangelicals are
often considered to be some of the most conservative people in our nation. Most
evangelicals are pro-life and in supportive of traditional marriage between a man
and a woman. Evangelicals may also be pro-environment and can take a less
conservative stand on other political issues. This demographic of evangelicals

5

cannot be grouped into one lump. Evangelicals started adopting environmental
concerns more publicly in the late 1980’s and the 1990’s—the movement has
moved slowly since that time. Certainly there were EEs before this, but this is
when the movement really came to light.
It is important to note that evangelicals do not want to be considered to be
worshiping nature or to be considered pagan. They will care for, love, enjoy and
preserve God’s creation though, as expressed in the ESV, imagery, weekly
sermons and in theory. As every year goes by showing scientists more and more
data concerning climate change, the frequency of studies similar to this thesis will
increase.

Background, Definitions and Concepts
“…and shouldest destroy them which destroy the Earth” (Rev 11:18, KJV).

There is an incredibly extensive list of verses from the bible related to
environmentalism which people have been known to interpret differently from
other people, based on their backgrounds, the time in history, their view of how
modern people should treat the words contained in the bible. This thesis will not
delve deeply into that debate, but will draw on examples in the pages that follow.

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As just indicated, the modern use of the term “evangelicalism” began with
evangelical Protestants and has since become trans-denominational as Baptists,
the Reformed, Pentecostals, Lutherans and Wesleyans have adopted the
evangelical faith and recently evangelical environmental beliefs. The generally
accepted definition of evangelical is that evangelical Christians believe in the
gospel of the King James Version Bible (KJV) or the English Standard Version
(ESV, same interpretations as the KJV but written as a story with translations of
hard to understand words) as instructions by which to navigate through life, as
inspiration for their lives, and as literal guidance from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Evangelicals want to find Jesus and want to help others do so as well. This belief
is derived from the KJV. Smaller sects have been known to occasionally use
other versions of the Bible, but because the church I chose for this research uses
the ESV I will from now forward refer to that one only.

The key component to being evangelical is to believe the words of the
ESV as being the words of God, written through man. It is the Gospel they should
follow. Words that are believed to be directly from Jesus in the New Testament
are written in red and the rest is in black. This allows for studying the
interpretation and symbols contained in the Bible, which in turn influence an
individual’s concern for or understanding of environmentalism. This type of
belief system inevitably requires a huge amount of trust in the particular teacher

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or pastor. The teacher or pastor serves as the connection between Earth and God.
The way the pastor translates scripture can mean the world to anyone who may
have learned a different translation from another pastor. A good pastor can inspire
and move a congregation. Most pastors in a given area may have come from
similar seminary schools, probably have similar relationships with the community
and the teaching of the gospel. Still, background also does not seem to matter as
the interviewee for this thesis Senior Pastor Philip was born in the Midwest,
attended seminary in Texas, then lived in Illinois before coming the Olympia,
WA.
Evangelical Environmentalism (EE)
“Evangelical environmentalism”, a growing environmental movement in the
United States, puts emphasis on particular biblical directives regarding humanity's
role as stewards of God’s creation, afterward making it their responsibility for the
care taking of Creation (http://nae.net). This thesis research will explore these
ideas and how they came to be. Did their church leader influence them?
Television? Is climate change awareness making these individuals more
environmentally aware? Have evangelical groups adopted rituals and ideology
based on a series of symbols which support the care of that which was created by
God.

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Creation Care (CC)

Creation Care is a term that has been used by several evangelical leaders
over the last few decades to establish a knowledge base concerning the support
and care of God’s creation; Earth and its animals. According to Sabrina
Danielsen, in her article “Fracturing Over Creation Care? Shifting Environmental
Beliefs among Evangelicals, 1984-2010”, the Creation Care movement gained
momentum in 1988 (Danielsen, pp. 9). She explains that that small movement
then grew rapidly with “discussions of nuclear winter, ozone holes, and the
drought of 1988” (Danielsen, pp. 9). Apparently this is when “global warming”
was introduced and according to Danielsen it seemed to be on the same playing
field as these previously mentioned disasters, according to people and the limited
data available at the time.
The actual term “Creation Care” (CC) has been adopted by the
Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN) and it seems to enhance the
understanding of their goals. Creation care, caring for creation, is simply what
they are aiming for because they support the idea that they should care for
everything God created. It is reflected in scripture as well and it is public
knowledge that the EENs web address is Creationcare.org. Since the origin of
EEN in 1988, the idea of creation care has grown within groups of evangelicals.

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Senior Pastor Philip of the Westwood Baptist Church in Olympia, WA, suggested
a search for CC to me for research and was excited about this movement.
Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN)

The Evangelical Environmental Network has people and groups involved
in placing “creation care”, or the stewardship of God’s creation, at the center of
their work; whereas CEEs not in this network place poverty and spreading the
gospel as their main focus, making environmentalism fall behind in priority. The
EEN has over 100 partners and exists to facilitate activities, outreach and
education about environmentalism, especially climate change awareness. The
website ‘CreationCare.org’ contains all the information one needs to become
active in environmental protection through creation care.
Specifically, under the “declaration” link the EEN website why the
organization believes God’s environment should be preserved. Some of these
reasons under the EEN declaration include:
--“We and our children face a growing crisis in the health of the
creation in which we are embedded, and through which, by God's
grace, we are sustained. Yet we continue to degrade that creation.”
--“These degradations of creation can be summed up as 1)
land degradation; 2) deforestation; 3) species extinction; 4) water

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degradation; 5) global toxification; 6) the alteration of
atmosphere; 7) human and cultural degradation.”
--“Many of these degradations are signs that we are pressing
against the finite limits God has set for creation. With continued
population growth, these degradations will become more severe.
Our responsibility is not only to bear and nurture children, but to
nurture their home on earth. We respect the institution of marriage
as the way God has given to insure thoughtful procreation of
children and their nurture to the glory of God”
(creationcare.org/evangelical declaration on the care for creation).
There is evidence that these same types of beliefs are increasing among
the general population of evangelicals (Danielson, p 212); additionally there are
many more websites for churches claiming to support CC today than there were
ten years ago, as discovered by my own research, when the topic was just gaining
speed. This implies that more and more are joining the movement and perhaps
reaching a more informed understanding of the meaning of the words of the ESV
in regards to environmentalism. More and more conservative, republican and
anti-liberal evangelicals have found the desire to join the environmental
movement can be buttressed by Christianity, and that their Christianity can be
better practiced and more appropriate to God’s intended behavior if they protect
His creation.

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In sum, evangelical environmentalism seems to be increasing. The cause
for general environmentalism can be explained in part by the increasing flow of
information about the environmental crises, but there are still those who doubt
those facts. The cause for boosts in evangelical environmentalism is much deeper
than facts; it goes deep into their ideology and belief system containing the entire
world, which makes the facts important but not the motivating factor for action.
Otherwise, they would have joined the cause long ago. Now, with scientists such
as Dr. DeWitt relating scientific issues to Christianity in an ideological manner
related to values and faith, LEEs are able to work towards a common goal: to
slow the destruction of our environment by caring for creation.
Evangelical Climate Initiative (ECI), by the EEN

The Evangelical Climate Initiative (ECI), a movement started by
evangelical church leaders and organizations in the United States promotes
economically sound responses to alleviate global warming (ECI, p. 1). The ECI
has four “claims” which support its existence and guide evangelicals are looking
for answers to the climate change phenomenon.
According to the actual ECI document itself,

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For most of us, until recently this has not been
treated as a pressing issue or major priority. Indeed,
many of us have required considerable convincing
before becoming persuaded that climate change is a
real problem and that it ought to matter to
Christians. But now we have seen and heard enough
to offer the following moral argument related to the
matter of human-induced climate change (ECI, p.1).

These claims are listed as such:
1. Human-Induced Climate Change is Real.
2. The Consequences of Climate Change Will Be
Significant, and Will Hit the Poor the Hardest.
3. Christian Moral Convictions Demand Our Response
to the Climate Change Problem.
4. The Need to Act Now is Urgent. Governments,
Businesses, Churches and Individuals all Have a
Role to Play in Addressing Climate Change-starting now.
(www.christiansandclimate.org/statement/)

Within the ECI, the four claims are used to press forward very important
facts related to the ‘claims’ so that those interested in becoming active may do so
independently through volunteerism and prayer or in groups which reach out to
those all over the world affected by climate change. As is seen in this thesis’
synthesis, many CEEs care about the environment but do not wish to promote
their church actively or to actively participate in environmental activities for fear
of being grouped in with those who support other liberal, moral views. Having
such a large organization with an initiative might help CEEs warm up to the idea

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of environmentalism because it would be coming from other evangelicals instead
of scientists
The fact that the first claim acknowledges humans are causing climate
change is very progressive and important in understanding what the ECI stands
for. Many CEE churches admit climate change exists but claim it is caused by
nature or by God and not humans. This belief can prevent activism and curtail
climate changing behaviors. With ECI, evangelicals have a legitimate place to go
and seek out information about climate change, and the first claim they see is that
climate change is in fact human-induced This is something that even some
scientists find difficult to swallow because of an anthropocentric view or
“humans are the center of the world” mentality towards humanity.
The second claim describes climate change as hitting the poor the hardest.
This claim strikes at the hearts of evangelicals. Traditionally, evangelicals have
been concerned with spreading the gospel, and when it comes to reach out or
activism they prefer to work with poverty- in our country and other more social
issues. This claim appeals to those who care a lot about impoverished peoples
and participate in outreach to them.
The third claim supports Christian moral with three very moving excerpts
from the ESV which support the concept of helping others and protecting God’s
creations. At the end of the third claim it reads, “Love of God, love of neighbor,

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and the demands of stewardship are more than enough reason for evangelical
Christians to respond to the climate change problem with moral passion and
concrete action” (ECI, p. 1).
Finally, the fourth claim explains the urgency with which climate change
mitigation must happen. It describes certain actions or behaviors in which anyone
can partake, it explains the ocean levels rising and why, and it explains that we
must make long term goals and realize that “much of the climate change to which
we are already committed will not be realized for several decades” (ECI, p. 1).
We have to work to even if we may never see the results of that work and despite
the fact that climate change has progressed to the point that we won’t know all the
effects until decades from now. The only way for us, as a society, to succeed and
for our future generations to succeed is to make long term decisions that affect
every bit of life.
Interfaith Stewardship Alliance
An extremely conservative evangelical group which does admit to the
reality of climate change is the Interfaith Stewardship Alliance (ISA). According
to the ISA’s website:

1.

Foreseeable global warming will have moderate and
mixed (not only harmful but also helpful), not
catastrophic, consequences for humanity–including
the poor–and other species.

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Natural causes may account for a large part, perhaps
the majority, of the global warming in both the last
thirty and the last one hundred fifty years, which
together constitute an episode in the natural rising
and falling cycles of global average temperature.
Human emissions of carbon dioxide and other
greenhouse gases are probably a minor and possibly
an insignificant contributor to its causes.
3. Reducing carbon dioxide emissions would have at
most an insignificant impact on the quantity and
duration of global warming and would not
significantly reduce alleged harmful effects.
4. Government-mandated carbon dioxide emissions
reductions not only would not significantly curtail
global warming or reduce its harmful effects but
also would cause greater harm than good to
humanity–especially the poor–while offering
virtually no benefit to other species.
5. The most prudent response is not to try to prevent or
reduce whatever slight warming might occur. It is
instead to prepare to adapt by fostering means that
will effectively protect humanity–especially the
poor–not only from whatever harms might be
anticipated from global warming but also from
harms that might be fostered by other types of
catastrophes, natural or manmade.
2.

(http://www.archive.cornwallalliance.org/2006/08/0
2/global-warming-mainly-natural-and-notcatastrophic-says-new-study-from-interfaithstewardship-alliance/)
These points indicate that a major factor for the ISA is linking climate
change to human actions. The ISA stresses that climate change is happening but
that it will not be catastrophic or even very harmful. The followers of the ISA
would be categorized as CEEs because they understand and believe the science of

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climate change, but they do not think they should become climate change
activists. They seem to feel they should focus on the more critical social issues
like eradicating poverty, under the false conception that climate change isn’t
going to cause very much harm. They are not environmentalists really except that
they admit climate change is real and do want to be stewards in their own way.
The ISA is calling their plan a “call to truth” in response to the ECI’s “call to
action”, indicating that this continues to be a subject about which religious
groups are torn and to which scientific groups cannot connect because they aren’t
even unified as religious groups when it comes to a position about climate change
(Cornwall Alliance, 8/2/06).
National Association of Evangelicals
The National Association of Evangelicals represents all
EEs--their logo is seen to the right. The Association is] very
conservative, but the leaders and the website lead you to
environmentalist activities, insight and links to research. Interestingly, they do
believe that climate change is anthropogenic. Is this a sign that the tides are
changing? Only more research into these and other EE’s will inform us.
Hopefully, this movement can gain momentum with a snowball affect… because
we already know that climate change is doing exactly that.
Earth Ministry

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I classify Earth Ministry as an LEE
organization. Their logo is quite symbolic of
their mission and their goals. With some
long grass, supporting a white bird and the
entire logo colored like the Earth, these folks
portray themselves in a liberal manner in
their expressions about the environment.
Earth Ministry seems to be all about environmentalism from their website and
flyers and welcomes anyone of faith to join in the work. They accept Christians,
Jews, Muslims and all other religions who wish to care for the earth which they
believe God created for us to do so. The website is packed with tools to protect
creation without going against their other conservative principles. There are
articles, games, links, events and much more on their site.
Additionally, this group is very politically active. I learned about Earth
Ministry by running into one of the leaders at a lobbying event for carbon tax
policy at the Washington State Capitol. You can find an Earth Ministry contact in
nearly every state. Locations are listed on the website. The group also posts all
relevant policies and legislature they support on their website and dates on which
you can lobby with them. The main issues they support and advocate towards
include “Climate and Energy, Environmental Health, Food and Farming, Green

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Building and Grounds, Habitat Restoration, Recycling and Composting,
Simplicity, Transportation and Water” (earthministry.org).
The imagery on the Earth Ministry website speaks to their environmental
attitudes, also seen in the image in the logo and ads. The most appealing aspect of
Earth Ministries is the way it functions. They accept people of all faiths and this
assortment of folks with different faiths all come together to protect the planet
that God gave man. They work together because of the underlying belief that they
all worship the same God and they all want to be stewards of the Earth instead of
ravagers of it. I have concluded from mingling and chatting with evangelicals in
Earth Ministry and other evangelicals that members of Earth Ministry may feel
like they can’t join other groups because their religion doesn’t support
environmentalism. For example perhaps a conservative Muslim woman wants to
contribute to something environmental but those in her close network and religion
don’t agree. She could join Earth Ministry and be active while retaining her
familiar status with her faith at home. Earth Ministry welcomes any faith and
focuses on building their group and being activists in the environment. Below is
another image that was printed on a leaflet.

Primary Research Questions
Christians from an assortment of denominations possess a common set of
basic symbols. According to the theory of Clifford Geertz (Geertz, pp. 87-90),

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symbols create a chain of thoughts and initiate processes in end with a particular
worldview. The question then becomes, how do people with similar original
fundamental beliefs, such as God, Jesus and the concept of divine creation, end up
with two different environmental worldviews?
Varying translations and interpretations of biblical works can provide the
path to answering this question. So too can making contact with those who
understand the Bible best…the Pastors and church members. How do they
interpret various passages in the Bible that refer to the environment? Do they
choose environmental stewardship or dominion over it? Why?
In this research I examine how LEEs at Westwood Baptist Church (WBC)
have been able to combine their religious ideology with environmental ideology
in order to obtain agency in their society while establishing identity as a group.
How does the ideology of LEEs or CEEs place them in a position to best serve
their environmental habitat? How are they now able to work with secular
environmentalists?

Theory
Anthropologist Clifford Geertz explains his theory of religion as a
cultural system in his book “The Interpretation of Culture.” With tactful criticism
which allows us to separate ideas and build the basic concept of religion, Geertz
writes:

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A religion is a system of symbols which acts to
establish powerful, pervasive, and long-lasting
moods and motivations in men by formulating
conceptions of a general order of existence and
clothing these conceptions with such an aura of
factuality that the moods and motivations seem
uniquely realistic (Geertz, p 9).
Geertz’s theoretical framework implies that Christianity, as with any
religion, also has a system of symbols that establish moods and motivations
within society. The moods and motivations of members or small groups form the
basis of an ideology. Members come to see this ideology as fact, because of their
participation in framing it. The ideology also creates a path leading to their
worldview.
Examining Geertz’ work more in depth reveals his theory of religion as a
cultural system as having five components. In the context of this research,
Geertz’s framework can be applied to see if the EEs who I interact with, have a
system of symbols that establish moods and motivations that shine light on them
being CEEs or LEEs and why. As seen above, Geertz elaborates on five main
points when discussing the foundations of what religion actually does for people.
According to Geertz, a religion is:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

A system of symbols which acts to…
Establish powerful moods and motivations in individuals…
Formulate a general order of existence…
Make concepts and ideas appear as fact and…
Make moods and motivations seem uniquely realistic (Geertz,
p. 90).

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I think that if everyone closed their eyes and thought about it, they would
realize that whatever their particular culture, they can name several symbols in
their lives. From a crucifix to the millions of logos with which we are bombarded
daily by advertising, to the necklace your grandmother gave you as a symbol of
eternal and unconditional love, Geertz asserts that there are systems of symbols
that form a religion. These symbols emerge from the human mind and we can
start to be more aware of these “hidden in plain sight” symbols which affect us
and our moods and motivations.
This is not a negative thing. In fact, it will help us understand religions and
religious practices better. In Geertz’ essay, chapter three particularly, he states
that,
The number 6, written, imagined, laid out as a row of
stones, or even punched into the program tapes of a computer, is a
symbol. But so also is the Cross, talked about, visualized, shaped
worriedly in air or fondly fingered at the neck, the expanse of
painted canvas called "Guernica" or the bit of painted stone called
a churinga, the word "reality," or even the morpheme "-ing." They
are all symbols, or at least symbolic elements, because they are
tangible formulations of notions, abstractions from experience
fixed in perceptible forms, concrete embodiments of ideas,
attitudes, judgments, longings, or beliefs (Geertz, p 91).

Evangelicalism does have the power to influence moods and motivations
through song and emotional displays of prayer as well as the way a pastor projects
him/her self and the gospel. Over the last 4 months that I have been attending
service at WBC. I was moved by particular sermons which involved nature.

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Secondly, within this research, I have witnessed the pastor explain the human’s
place on this earth just by simply saying “humans have a little thing inside them
that God put there. Animals don’t have it and it causes us to be aware” (Pastor
Philip, Convo, 3/5/17). Pastor Philip also places human existence in relativity to
others and to God in many sermons; leaving me feeling like this congregation has
a notion of what their place is in the world, based on the gospel. This is exactly
what Geertz meant.
Geertz’ third point about formulating a general order of existence
compares to the pastor’s proclamation that the words of the bible are “true” or
“real”. Sometimes the most powerful way to influence others is to present your
words as if what you know to be true is true without argument. Certainly I
witnessed this on more than one occasion, and it all seems to have to do with trust
and confidence. A relationship gets built between the pastor and the members of
the congregation that strengthens the trust between them. In this way, when the
pastor preaches on Sunday, the members trust that he understands the gospel and
is able to interpret it for them. They don’t need to then check that he has done
this correctly, that he has not led them astray. When I first started this research I
was looking for blatant occasions when the pastor might make concepts and ideas
appear as fact when they are not, then I realized that the spiritual leaders in a
church like WBC already have authority and influence over people. Not in some
negative way but in a moral leadership way. It isn’t about making a falsehood

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seem true, it’s about knowing that their pastor is honestly speaking from his/her
truth and understanding of the gospel. Even when Pastor Philip speaks
nonchalantly, he makes the concepts appear factual by attaching them to the
written word of a book that millions connect to spiritually as well. Its a brilliant
web of sharing a specific set of knowledge; the gospel. In this way, what the
pastor and evangelical environmentalists do/does each week parallels Geertz’
interpretation of religion as a cultural system.
Evangelical environmentalists move from the original religious symbols
into moods and motivations which involve environmentalism and what I referred
to earlier as Creation Care. In doing so, new symbols get created reflecting
creation care. Since many, such as Calvin DeWitt, read the same verse in Genesis
the as do the CEEs:
God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and
increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule
over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and
over every living creature that moves on the ground
(Gen 1:28, KJV).
They interpret the term “dominion” to actually mean stewardship of God’s
creations, including the domain he made for man, rather than the domination of
them, it becomes obvious that this is still a point of difference between LEEs and
CEEs. In a similar way, the different EE groups endow Christian symbols with a
different environmental interpretations enabling them to participate in the

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environmentalist movement based on their own faith and religious beliefs.
Basically, leaders and members who believe in “dominion” and understand that
to be their “domain” of which you would care for and keep clean and nice,
without polluting your water or breaking your things (Pastor Philip, convo,
3/5/17). As he mentioned, you would keep animals safe in your home, domain,
this Earth is everyone’s domain. LEE’s see this as a call to clean up our domain,
being the Earth which God provided for them.
Anthropologist Mary Douglas evaluates the importance of symbols and
rituals, as well as anti-ritualism in her book Natural Symbols. After examining the
idea of anti-ritualism, Douglas finds that certain symbolic acts relay information
concerning intentions. She asserts, however, that this is a one-sided view which
leaves out the realm of expression and deep meaning.
Ultimately, Douglas explains the importance of being able to look at
symbols and rituals as meaningful to the actor in order to understand the many
layers of motivation for their actions. Most importantly, though, it is possible to
apprehend that people do in fact feel motivated to participate in ritual and believe
in symbols. In addition, people tend to follow others; we walk on the beaten path.
Even so, people can adapt and develop new, unique rituals and symbols based on
existing beliefs and newly forming ideological perspectives. This means that, for
the last ten years, more and more followers have gone down the EE path. This

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doesn’t mean the ESV was “wrong” or they were misunderstanding the Gospel. It
simply means that as the world changes, and people have to adapt to those
changes, scriptures that may have always been meant to portray stewardship are
now coming more to the forefront.
As we change our world, and our world changes around us, evangelicals
are looking to see what parts of the ESV can help guide them through it. They are
continuing to follow the Gospel, continuing to spread the gospel, and all the while
developing an understanding of these environmental issues. Essentially, people
may be learning that believing in God and taking care of your domain are not
mutually exclusive.
The assumption, is, that evangelical environmentalism will continue to
grow as environmental issues increase. Already, there are countless ways which
EE’s can become active in their local communities, or even ways in which to
influence your congregation through images and symbols.
Douglas uses the example of abstinence (not eating meat) in the Catholic
Church to make this point. She describes that Friday abstinence in the Roman
Catholic hierarchy is generally taken seriously, but that it is not highly regarded
by the actual clergy because it has become an empty ritual (Douglas, p. 4).
Applying this to the evangelical environmentalism movement we see that
although there has been a long tradition of ritual and symbols within

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evangelicalism that urges actors to participate in “moral” issues (including the
resistance to homosexuality, abortion and other social controversies) and even
things like communion can become empty. But that LEE’s are Christians who
find environmental rituals to be necessarily placed in the forefront of their
campaigns and they do not continue to fight for causes which they do not see as a
priority just for the sake of conformity.
LEEs still hold similar beliefs, such as pro-life and anti-gay marriage, but
it is believed by the evangelicals I have spoken with that these cannot be
sufficiently addressed until the environment is in healthy working order to support
life. Douglas writes that “if a people takes a symbol that originally meant one
thing (dominion for example in this research) and twists it to mean something else
(stewardship rather than domination), and energetically holds on to that subverted
symbol, its meanings for their personal life must be very profound” (Douglas, p.
40). This also works in the reverse order. According to Douglas’ theory, people
could have taken the idea of dominion and twisted it to mean something else
(domination) and energetically held onto that A similar twisting of meaning can
explain the way in which misunderstandings of lessons about caring for creation
can be found throughout history. Although EEs may take some offense to being
told they are “twisting” a symbol, that is not the intent or meaning of this thesis
and there is definitely an interpretation which allows for more liberal thoughts.
To fully understand Douglas’ point requires understanding that the reason we

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hold on to the symbols we have “twisted” or, differently, “energetically” is
because we hold on tightest to what we were raised with and taught growing up
and surrounded by as an adult. These become part of our social environment and
we decide to hold them in our hearts, and to fight fiercely to protect their truth.
For example, Reverend Leroy Hedman, from the Georgetown Gospel
Chapel, in Seattle, WA, stated in an article written by Blaine Harden, for the
Washington Post in 2005 that “Such ‘creation care’ should be at the heart of
evangelical life, along with condemning abortion, protecting family and loving
Jesus” (Harden, p. 1). Hedman also uses the term "creation care" when speaking
to other evangelicals that may be interested in EE because he says, it does not
annoy conservative Christians for whom the word "environmentalism" connotes
liberals, secularists and Democrats” (Harden, p. 6). This portrayal of evangelical
environmentalism shows the firm belief that this interpretation is defining a way
of life, not just “twisting” scripture for personal use. There is a sense of obedience
and devotion to previously learned symbols which instill fear in those who revolt
against them. Therefore, any group or individual who dares to oppose and change
these symbols must be deeply involved with the ideology behind them.
Douglas also points out that symbols and ritual can be transformed and
adapted according to changes in beliefs and ideas (Douglas, pp. 3-5). When
looking at LEE’s, the previously expected rituals and symbols attributed to

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evangelicalism have been changing and adapting to suit the desires of the
participants rather than vice versa. Currently and throughout history, animals
have often been viewed solely as products for human use by the general
population as well as within evangelicals reading the gospel. LEEs also viewed
land as property to do with as humans pleased, regardless of pollution,
displacement of animals from their homes or the invasive species and illnesses
that resulted. Now, LEE’s are adopting symbols which include stewardship and
CC; going directly against what they most likely were raised to believe about the
environment, and deriving a deep sense of duty to their interpreted religious
beliefs (Douglas, p. 9). Groups of people are not blindly following prescribed
rituals but instead adopting ones in which they are able to communicate their
beliefs and desires to engage in the stewardship of God’s earth. They are bringing
science and evangelicalism another step closer together.
A profound sense or connection with the natural world could be what
draws LEE’s to environmentalism. Using Douglas’ interpretation of the necessity
of symbols and rituals allows us to see that humans are not robotic shells obeying
the ritual behavior imposed on them by society. In fact, their ritual behavior and
religious symbols help them to express their worldviews in a meaningful and
particular way. The research for this thesis will show the strong associations with
anthropological theory and symbols within WBC.

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Literature review
“And the Lord God took the man, and put him into
the Garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it” (Gen
2:15, KJV).
We could list pages and pages of quotes from KJV that support or refute
environmental stewardship. Instead, I am only inserting verses which are spoken
to me via conversation or interview. These two quotes are the most often used
from the King James Version Bible (KJV) to support both sides of an evangelical
environmentalist argument. Each group takes them to mean something different.
But first, how do we identify exactly who falls into which category of
evangelicalism? According to Brian McCammack, in his article “Hot Damned
America: Evangelicalism and the Climate Change Policy Debate”, there are two
types of evangelical environmentalists; liberal and conservative (McCammack,
p.647).

As mentioned earlier, LEEs “generally accept the scientific claim that
climate change is occurring in part due to anthropogenic effects and interprets
biblical mandates to mean that action should be taken to reduce manmade carbon
emissions and mitigate environmental impacts” (McCammack, p. 647).
Conservative evangelical environmentalists (CEE’s) differ because they “remain
skeptical of scientific evidence supporting anthropogenic climate change theory
and interprets biblical mandates to mean that no action should be taken to reduce

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emissions, even if climate change is occurring” (McCammack, p. 647). CEE’s
may not want to be active in the environmental movement is described by Leith
Anderson, the president of the NAE: “Evangelicals emphasize evangelism, and
pastors often avoid controversies that might take priority over the gospel message.
Most pastors I know don’t want to endorse politicians. They want to focus on
teaching the Bible” (Anderson, www.nae.net). From these two descriptions, it is
clear that the key word is interpretation and the concept which must be sought to
overcome these differences is stewardship. However, both groups still place God
and the gospel first on their list of importance and what is to be addressed first.
Many environmental activists have appeared in public media in the last
few decades, such as Al Gore, who is specifically named by McCammack. Being
a prominent evangelical environmentalist in the US government and now as a
private citizen, McCammack values his work as he states, “Gore and the news
media have largely failed to acknowledge that a brewing sea change in the
traditional political engagement among an unlikely group—evangelical
Christians—Perhaps represents America’s greatest hope for instituting climate
change legislation” (McCammack, pp. 645). McCammack is arguing for the
joining of evangelicals of all categories, as well as everyone else, together to
protect our environment. As a side note, I might go too far as to say that after
having read all of Al Gore’s books, I would disagree with McCammack about
Gore’s failures. McCammack’s notion of liberal and conservative is not relative

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to politics, though, because evangelical political views vary greatly. Instead it
affects their ethics and values (McCammack, p. 646).
The Bible itself is the central truth of evangelicalism and has been called
“the bedrock” (McCammack, p. 647). E. Calvin Beisner is a CEE that
McCammack describes as an Interfaith Stewardship Alliance (ISA) spokesperson
as well as a professor of theology and social ethics at Knox Theological Seminary
(McCammack, p. 647). According to Beisner, “Linking these two commissions
(Genesis 1:28 and Genesis 2:15) together—cultivate and guard the garden, and
fill, subdue and rule the Earth—implies that God intended, and still intends,
mankind to transform the Earth from wilderness into garden” (McCammack, p.
648). This interpretation allows for humans to develop every square foot of Earth.
However, this is not what most evangelicals in pursuing the research for this
thesis I have encountered believe. Instead, many feel these verses express God’s
wish for man to keep and tend to the rest of nature. In this case the LEEs hold to
the belief that God wants them to care for the Earth and be stewards of it, while
the CEEs accept that God wants them to develop it, make it a garden and spread
economic wealth by using the resources. He has given them. Why such a different
interpretation of the same text? Is it possible that individuals are ‘converting’ their
beliefs and understanding a more environmentally aware way of living? What
symbolism can be found to support CEE thoughts about the environment?

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According to McCammack, Beisner has alluded that “because of
Christianity’s reverence of God as Creator, any attempt to worship anything other
than God--in this case the Earth—is antithetical to scriptural teachings”
(McCammack, p. 649). In essence those who consider themselves conservative
evangelical environmentalists are acting against their own interest. Honestly
though, anyone who isn’t actively trying to slow or halt climate change is acting
against their own interest, because human beings are not well-adapted for a
transformed environment. Interestingly, Beisner assumes that because a person
wants to protect the rainforests and animals or other parts of the natural
environment, it means they “worship” it. This sort of rhetoric gives EEs anxiety.
As indicated earlier, EEs do not want to be labeled as nature worshippers..
Appreciation and love are different from worship and more communication and
understanding between CEEs, LEEs. Scientists and the broader public can help
clear this up.
A common theme throughout the literature regarding evangelical
environmentalism is the notion that CEEs have more of an interest in economic
growth and poverty than conservation or preservation of the environment.
According to McCammack, the beliefs CEEs have that “Rather than attempt to
mitigate environmental impacts, a prohibitively costly proposition, they argue—
conservative evangelical environmentalists believe the more sensible approach is
to promote economic development aiding adaptation to environmental changes”

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(McCammack, p. 647). These types of sentiments are not only expressed through
the works of McCammack. CEEs tend to support addressing the issue of poverty
over environmental affairs because these are the issues they feel the Gospel tells
them to worry about. The concern that we have possibly gone past the point of no
return regarding global warming creates a sentiment for some CEE’s that they
should promote economic development and provide aid to those in need
immediately rather than fight global warming. Two descriptions fully support
these ideas.
Noah J. Toly wrote in an article entitled, “Are Evangelicals Warming to
Global Environmentalism?” that there are two belief systems related to the two
groups of evangelical environmentalists discussed by McCammack (Toly, p. 55).
According to Toly, some [LEEs] believe that regulating of greenhouse gas
emissions—whether through the establishment of market-based mechanisms or
other means—will serve both the planet and the poor. Others [CEE’s] believe that
regulating greenhouse gas emissions is an inefficient interference with economic
activity that would otherwise result in the gently rising tide of economic growth,
floating yachts and lifeboats alike (Toly, p. 55).
Furthermore, Toly explains, CEEs argue that economic growth will
provide the financial means for adaptation to any ill effects of climate change,
should such change prove to be as burdensome as many predict” (Toly, p. 55) To

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reiterate, LEEs believe that protecting nature and God’s creation absolutely will
lead to positive results for poverty and the poor. Toly expresses that CEEs
believe that it isn’t their place to judge what to do with the environment or its
inhabitants, so they interpret Genesis to mean that they have basically free rein to
do as they please with land, plants and animals—a concept also known as
“dominion” (Toly, p. 57).
Some CEEs suggest that the use of renewable, clean energy
“fundamentally undermines economic growth”—a claim unsupported by Toly (p.
55). In fact he calls this a “plain overstatement” and suggests that these types of
changes and developments have the “potential to stimulate economic growth,
support local labor markets and boost struggling sectors, such as agriculture,
through the production of biofuels and the siting of renewable electricity
generation” (Toly, p. 55). Transitioning to clean energy could supply more jobs
in new fields, adding to economic growth. For example, I would argue, rather
than spending manpower on clearcutting a large forest, the government could
instead provide jobs in forest conservation and environmental justice issues.
Those loggers know more than anyone about the forest, the trees and the
sometimes endangered species which struggle to hold on there. This is simply to
accentuate the need for more environmentalists in all forms and religions,
especially evangelicals.

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Roger S. Gottlieb, a professor of Philosophy at the Worcester Polytechnic
Institute and the author of, describes the “five faces of religious
environmentalism”. One of the faces is Calvin DeWitt. Gottlieb explains that
although LEEs, such as himself, have many differences, there are basic
similarities among them which should be noted. He claims that a “wide-ranging
commitment to care for the human and non-human alike, a faith in the possibility
of deep change, and a refusal to despair” are commonalities among LEEs
(Gottlieb, p. 193). He explains ideas which coincide with those of DeWitt:
religion and environmentalism must form a marriage in order for any EEs to form
a functioning relationship (Gottlieb, p. 39). Gottlieb, through his book, and
DeWitt, through his work as a biologist and evangelical have expressed publicly
and representatively the ability and necessity for religion and environmentalism to
work together for the benefit of the environment.
Calvin Dewitt has become one of the top names in evangelical
environmentalism. Much of the newer research on LEE’s refers back to Dewitt.
His work forms a solid foundation of the origins of evangelical environmentalism.
Dewitt explains that when the Bible states, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the
earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds
of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth” (KJV, Gen 1:32)
the context of the word dominion has been misinterpreted for centuries (DeWitt,
p. 5). Dewitt, one of the founders of the EEN and an evangelical environmentalist

36

activist, wrote in his book, Caring for Creation that throughout the Bible the term
dominion as domination is false. Of the two extreme definitions of dominion, one
being domination and the other being stewardship, DeWitt and his supporters
indicate that the verse intends the latter (DeWitt, p. 5). In comparison with this
interpretation of dominion, LEEs look to Gen 2, which describes God as creating
humans first and then giving them all the plants and animals as companions along
with a garden to tend. Gen 2 states, “The Lord God took the man and put him in
the Garden of Eden to till it and keep it” (KJV, Gen2:18). In this passage the word
dominion should be interpreted as meaning DOMAIN not “to dominate”.
Additionally, although the verse states to till the earth, according to DeWitt.
Tilling does not mean mankind will exploit and destroy the Earth; rather, they will
use it while caring for it (DeWitt, pp. 32-47).
Throughout DeWitt’s writings there is a sense of understanding that in
order for humans to flourish, they must maintain an environment healthily. This is
crucial to evangelicalism because making the gospel available to everyone is the
number one mission. To continue carrying out that mission, EEs must be alive, so
there must be an environment fit to support human life. Those living in nice
apartment in a city in America with access to pretty much anything they want may
forget that resources of the world are finite. Consuming them will leave less and
less for others. The CEE viewpoint emerges where they understand environmental
destruction is happening but they don’t feel their place is to fix it, instead trusting

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God and Jesus will either come and cleanse the Earth, or the rapture will occur
and they will be saved.
Laurel Kearns’ research on LEE’s touches on the connection between
religion and environmental concern in her essay “Noah’s Ark Goes to
Washington: A Profile of Evangelical Environmentalism” (Kerns, p. 359).
Kearns explains that many evangelicals were involved in secular
environmentalism prior to the EE movement, but that they felt that they had no
way to express their moral and religious beliefs on the topic (Kerns, p 359). Part
of the struggle for evangelicals who want to be environmentalists, to be sure,
stems from the belief that religion and science must always contradict each other.
Evangelical environmentalists can help change that.
Kearns also states that Evangelical environmentalism “provides the minor
retooling of a conservative religious worldview that enables some [CEEs] to
respond to the ecological crisis” (Kearns, p. 360). By adopting symbols and
beliefs which include the ecological crisis within the evangelical beliefs, more
Christians are able to combine religion and environmentalism in harmony. In
turn, by becoming a part of the environmentalism movement, LEEs bring a
“needed moral voice” to the movement (Kerns, p. 360). Kearns also found that
people who participate in the secular environmentalist movement have a desire to
combine it with their religious, spiritual or moral beliefs. In this way, as Kearns

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elaborates, environmentalists are more often listened to and understood by
religious society than their secular counterparts (Kerns, p. 361). This movement
appears to have some very serious value to the entire community any given
church is in.
As with DeWitt, Cizik, the founder of EEN, uses biblical interpretations to
support his ideas of religious ecology. He also refers to the “dominion” argument
when explaining the re-interpretation of the bible (Cizik, p. 44). When asked
about the term dominion and its alleged meaning of domination he explains:
That is a deeply flawed interpretation. Dominion
does not mean domination. It implies responsibility
-- to cultivate and care for the earth, not to sully it
with bad environmental practices…The Bible also
teaches us that Jesus Christ is not only redeeming
his people, but also restoring God's creation.
Obviously, since the fall of man and entrance of sin
into the world, all of creation has yearned for its
redemption from sin and death and destruction. That
will occur with the Second Coming of Christ. But in
the meantime we show our love for Jesus Christ by
reaching out to and healing the spiritually lost and
by conserving and renewing creation. Christ's call
to love nature is as simple as his call to love our
neighbors as ourselves (Cizik, p. 44).
Once more, the common thread that emerges between LEE representatives
that the interpretation of these scriptures means that we should partake in
stewardship rather than domination over the Earth. Having such a pronounced

39

figure representing evangelical environmentalists can help persuade people and
potentially spread the mentality that we all must preserve the environment.
Another public figure in the LEE movement has been previously
discussed, and the former Vice President, Nobel Peace Prize winning author,
business man, philanthropist and evangelical environmentalist Al Gore. Although
Gore was accused by McCammack of not doing enough to help earlier in this
paper, he has been a true champion for the Earth and an evangelical as since
before he was in the public sphere. In his book, Earth in the Balance: Ecology
and the Human Spirit, he gives a very personal account of his understanding of
nature and God and the gospel. He explains that he is a Baptist who in his own
religious experiences has learned his “duty” to care for the earth; an idea “rooted
in the fundamental relationship between God, creation, and humankind” (Gore, p.
244). As we will see later, this connection to God in nature will resurface in the
pastor’s interview. Gore, too, goes on to explain that dominion, from an LEE
perspective, does not mean to dominate but rather to take care of what “belongs to
God” and not humankind (Gore, p. 244). Gore also describes that the failure of
Evangelical leaders to react to the ecological crisis is disturbing because “the
Christian Scriptures carry such a strong activist message” (Gore, p. 246). It soon
becomes apparent, when reading his book and other articles, that there are some
distinct symbols which public representatives of the LEE movement share, such
as stewardship and responsibility.

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A very thorough description of some of the shared beliefs of EEs can be
found within the EEN website. In their mission statement the EEN identifies as
“a non-profit organization that seeks to educate, inspire, and mobilize Christians
in their effort to care for God’s creation, to be faithful stewards of God’s
provision, and to advocate for actions and policies that honor God and protect the
environment.” It goes on to describe the importance of caring for creation and
supporting the interpretations of the Bible which lead to stewardship rather than
dominion, in the same nature portrayed by DeWitt, Cizik and Gore.

The Field Site
Westwood Baptist Church was chosen as the field site for this exploration
of the nature and the beliefs a congregation and church leader have towards
environmentalism. I selected the site after first testing the waters by attending
service in August. After service I spoke to the Senior Pastor. His name is Phillip
Miller and after I explained my research, he gave me a very brief description of
how he teaches his congregation to view the Earth. We had such a short amount
of time I quickly wrote down his words then, finding them completely enthralling,
I knew I would be returning to learn more at this church. His responses led me to
believe that I had in fact found an LEE church because he stated that dominion
means domain and that we should be steward of the Earth, and I knew we would
speak more in an interview. (Explained within the “Conversations” and
“Interviews” section of Data).

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There were also two types of evidence of physical symbols at WBC
influencing individuals to be more nature loving: the building itself is surrounded
by tall fir trees, the inside of the structure has been decorated with wooden framed
pictures of different plants and flowers, with the church’s saying, “Jesus is
Renewing You to Renew the World” over them. The hallways are decorated with
trees, plants and birds which lead the children to Sunday school in a forest-like
classroom painted with trees. Pictures and a more developed analysis will occur
further in this research.
In addition to the Senior Pastor, Phillip Miller, other pastors work at WBC
as well and have different specialties like missions or the musical aspect.
Everyone works together to keep the church functioning and expanding
internationally. This unifies and strengthens the message being sent by the
church. In attending services at WBC I have found the same message revealed in
the sermons, conversations with attendees and within the music and imagery on
the big screen. Also, with a busy schedule of events and classes, I knew I would
have plenty of opportunities to learn about the environmental values being
advocated by the church leaders and congregation and talk to as many people as I
choose if I needed to work around any scheduling.

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The Fieldwork Experience
Being accepted into the community evangelicals at WBC is not a difficult
task. Everyone is friendly and courteous, I get asked all the time if I am new and
if I need anything. I’ve been offered a free coffee cup five times and it seems the
church almost always has a delicious giveaway or a coupon for free espresso. In
addition, the people I met at WBC have the general mindset that to follow the
Gospel, and therefore God, you must help as many people as possible learn about
Jesus and the Gospel. Perhaps if I had walked in wearing an Evergreen shirt and
started telling people I was there to teach them science and about climate change,
and want to know why the Christians aren’t helping fight climate change, people
may have been thrown off. Instead, I utilized my training in anthropology to
caringly and deliberately getting to know the others and become a part of what I
am studying. This approach is actually very enjoyable.
I have respect and admiration for the leaders who do their best to interpret
the Gospel and the members who have devotion and faith in a world where that is
less and less common. I started attending WCB’s 10am services on a regular
basis. Everyone really made me feel welcome which makes it much easier to
strike up conversations and take notes. I completed many conversations and
learned much from the many sermons. My final interview with Senior Pastor
Philip Miller tied the notes I scribbled and the pictures I had taken all together.

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Pastor Philip makes himself available in the lobby after every service. I
had seen him a few times but it took a while for me to speak to him one-on-on.
Initially I spent time grabbing short bursts of time he had, just speaking to him
about one question or so at a time; always too deep to finish fully in time. The
first time we met, he asked me about my story and I told him everything about my
thesis, plans afterwards, why I chose evangelicalism and what sort of project I
wanted to do with his church, and I expressed what my personal interests are. In a
nutshell, there is always more than one journey happening at a time.
Pastor Philip was thrilled. From then on I felt very comfortable every
Sunday talking to him and other members of the congregation in a true interest of
getting to know them; taking pictures of painted nature and other symbols, and
just investigating being a part of everything. One thing I did try to do was to take
part in the things they ask you to do in service. Singing, praying, and communion
were the three symbolic behaviors which I truly tried to focus on and feel and be a
part of. I only took communion once.

Methods
Introduction
I conducted the qualitative, ethnographic research for this thesis in six
major categories: (1) An historical look at evangelical environmentalism and it’s
movement over several decades; (2) Observations of people, behaviors, symbols,
environmentalism and activism within the Westwood Baptist Church (WBC): (3)

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Conversations with members of the WBC occurring naturally and randomly: (4)
Interviews with Pastor Phillip at the WBC and with Jessica Zimmerle from Earth
Ministries (EM): (5) A synthesis of data collected from these previously
mentioned research methods: and finally (6) Social Theory by Clifford Geertz to
aid in analyzing and understanding the motivations behind the symbolism and
belief systems of WBC and EM.
Observations
Observations are entries based on services I have attended, time spent
within WBC and my observations of the settings and connections that may or may
not exist there. I spent time observing symbols including signage, literature and
décor. I observed the demographics of the setting including race, gender and age.
I also noted clothing worn because outdoorsy people generally have particular
brands of clothing--for example REI brand, Columbia, The North Face and so on.
These were the individuals with whom I wanted to spark up conversation. I also
took my notes as “a fly on the wall” to see if any environmentalism poked
through the hustle and bustle of the church (i.e. watching some folks drinking
coffee, noticed they threw the paper cups away and there didn’t seem to be a
recycling bin anywhere).
Conversations
Conversations, in the context of this work, are any instances I have had to
chat or otherwise communicate with individuals at the church and any of the

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pastors. During these brief conversations I strove to get a sense of overall
environmental stewardship support. Some of these conversations began by me
saying “Hi! I’m new here and I’m a student at Evergreen State College. I’m in
the graduate program there and I am trying to find a church where the people are
nature fans! I really want to talk to people about stewardship versus dominion.”
Most conversations began by me sitting alone in the large, always filled, lobby. I
would be sitting and someone would see me and ask if I needed anything. They
were really nice. I would say, “No I’m okay, I am new here though and any info
you can give me about this church would really help me decide if I will be
returning.” After I had had many little “hello and go” conversations, I started
coming earlier and staying later to talk to folks. It was very difficult because of
the nature of church and its seriousness. It is really important to have
conversations as part of my research because based on my training (B.A.
Anthropology); I have learned that being friendly and honest is the best and most
ethical way to understand others who you may be observing. I know that this
method allowed me to understand the overall beliefs about environmentalism at
WBC and why members of the congregation feel as they do.
Interviews
I had the opportunity to engage in two distinct interviews. My first
interview was with Jennifer Welch, an MES student at Evergreen State College,
who identifies as evangelical while also identifying as a scientist who supports

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climate change action and environmentalism. This interview was casual but also
crucial to this research. In this interview, I learned how none person follows the
Gospel wholeheartedly also conducts research to finish a degree in Environmental
Studies. She shared her thoughts and feelings freely, making it very easy to piece
together her ideas and to help see what other evangelicals might be struggling
with.
My second interview was with Pastor Philip Miller from WBC. I prepared
a formal list of questions to ask, but kept the tone light to encourage him to add to
anything he felt comfortable discussing. Pastor Philip’s teachings and
interpretations of the Gospel have set the tone for environmentalism within WBC.
This interview also focused around the various symbols I found around the
church, the point being that symbolism surrounding a group of people may have a
strong influence on their environmental beliefs.

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Data entry from Observations, Conversations and Interviews:
Date: 2/12/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Observation 1
Description of activity:
I have begun my research and am attending with a different outlook than I
have been doing for the past several weeks. Today I am on a mission to discover
images and symbols which reinforce environmental ideas within this
congregation. Walking in to the Westwood Baptist Church, I had no expectations.
No day was the same in the lobby there, making it a lovely and exciting place to
meet people and get to know them a little. I slowly entered the main lobby; I was
instantly surrounded by people of all ages and appearances. Most of the people
were Caucasian but there was no real group I could classify everyone into;
especially when you have income class, age and gender to consider too. Overall,
the members are mostly white older families. Yet, it is a fact that the population
was diverse. People were mingling and seemed to say hello to passerby every
couple of minutes. I could tell that most of the folks knew each other already, and
weren’t shocked to see a newbie wandering around. And I’m sure I did look like a

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newbie wandering aimlessly, as I had no idea what to go or what to do except to
just take notes and sort it out later.
As I walked through the building, different individuals handed me things
related to their positions within the church. First I approached the “I’m New!”
sign hanging by the café and entry to the church. There I was given a little book
with a story of triumph from the bible, a free bag with snowflakes all over it, free
literature about the church, a free “English Standard Version” bible, coupons for
free lattes and a free coffee mug with the Westwood Church Logo on it; which is
a group of Douglas Firs encompassing the logo. Immediately I noticed the natural
symbols peeking out through the churches welcoming of a guest or new member.
It was almost time for the contemporary service (11:00am-12:30pm, the
end time is flexible) to begin so I headed in and was guided politely to a seat. The
lights were low and the stage was lit in a bright neon blue design. The website
informed me before I came that this service played more guitar and soft rock
sounding songs than the earlier “traditional” service which only played hymns
and the organ. As I looked up from setting all my swag down, I saw a full band
setup including a drum set, mics for 3 singers, a guitarist, bassist and
pianist/keyboarder. As I sat and more people came in, the band began singing a
Christian rock song. I asked someone sitting next to me what the topic of the day
was and they informed me that this would not be a normal service because they

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are spending today discussing missionaries, how to help them and how to sign up
to be one. So during this service they had a panel of volunteers who have
traveled to “bring Jesus to those who have not found him yet”. I was given prayer
postcards with families on the front who were missionaries and asked us to use
the card to focus our prayers towards them. The way it was described was quite
interesting as they spoke of sending intent and good energy with their prayers,
where they described prayer being when you sit and focus on the intent and pray
to Jesus for those who need Jesus’ love. The pastor’s use of concentrated intent
is remarkably similar to meditation, which is interesting because eastern thought
is somewhat more nature centered than wester philosophy.
Additionally, there is a lesson here about the success of the church to
insert missionaries all over Asia and Arab countries as well. If they can spread
their work this successfully, perhaps they can spread the idea of stewardship as
well; with the take away being that if we don’t save our environment, we won’t be
able to spread any words, gospel or otherwise, because we won’t be able to
survive.
During the service the director of outreach, spoke about reaching out to
small populations of Asia which have no single God or place to worship. He
explained that they build churches and they teach the bible in these places. They
want to reach “Unreached People Groups”, which are described by Pastor Philip

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as populations of people who have not been introduced to Jesus and are usually
Muslim or Buddhist. Pastor Philip stated that many Muslims have weak spiritual
backgrounds and should be focused on as a major group to convert. The outreach
director explained how sometimes they will get a regular job in the country they
are visiting, and then use that time to create missionaries. Overall, missionaries
seem to be this church’s main agenda as I document on day one. This is not
unusual; anyone who follows the bible knows Jesus wants people to share the
bible with everyone. I began to wonder…If evangelicals can recruit people all
over the world to support their beliefs, they are in all corners of the Earth
spreading the word of salvation, and if they support the belief that we should care
for creation, they could stand to make a great impact on the environmentalism in
these areas of the world. If they integrated the stewardship of this earth as an
important message in their teachings, then environmental awareness could spread
like wildfire everywhere.

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Date: 2/19/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Observation 2
Description of activity:
This day was devoted to observing the “traditional” service at 8am.
Immediately I could see a difference in who was attending this service, versus the
later “contemporary” service. I noticed that the majority of attendees were much
older than the contemporary service attendees. Not only much older but probably
70+ would be a good age range for most of the attendees.

They were dressed up

much more and the folks I happened to speak to were a little less inviting as were
those I encountered in my previous experience. For example, when I went to sit
down I noticed a program sitting on the bench I wanted to sit on. Not knowing
that this meant that space was reserved, I moved the program and sat there. Now,
during the contemporary service, everyone squeezes together to fill up the
benches. But when I sat down I heard the woman behind me state, “I’ve sat there
for years! I reserved it like usual and this girl with the purple hair just sits there
anyway”. Not wanting any conflicts or negative interactions with anyone there, I
decided to turn around and speak to her. I told her I was new and I was sorry; I
did not mean to take her seat. I told her I would move. But her friends interrupted

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and told me if I was new I could sit anywhere I wanted! All the women involved
were over 60. So I stayed so I could speak to them after service, as this was now
my foot in the door.
While studying this first set of information I have begun to establish a
very important difference between the two services. That is, the traditional service
is mostly made up of elderly or much older individuals than the contemporary
one, the individuals at the traditional service are less flexible than the
contemporary service where the younger more “progressive” population allows
for a more open mind. That is to say, it is possible that if the contemporary
service is more easily going and flexible, it might be that they are more
progressive with environmentalism too.
When the service was over I turned to the women behind me and
apologized again. I took this opportunity to tell them I was a graduate student at
Evergreen and I was hoping to learn how people here felt about the environment.
Immediately the three women chimed altogether that they loved the outdoors,
they believed that God created plants and animals for us to enjoy and care for, not
to destroy or abuse, and that they believed what Pastor Phil has mentioned, which
is that “animals weren’t given the gift which people were. We were given a give
of awareness, a gift of responsibility and it is our responsibility to care for our

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domain” (Convo, 2/19/17, ladies). All three ladies preferred to remain anonymous
but told me I could come ask those questions any time.

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Date: 2/19/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Conversation 1
Description of activity:
When the service was over I turned to the women behind me and
apologized again (Because earlier I had accidentally taken her seat). I took this
opportunity to tell all three of them that I was a graduate student at Evergreen and
I was hoping to learn how people here felt about the environment and our role in
it. Immediately the three women chimed altogether that they loved the outdoors,
they believed that God created plants and animals for us to enjoy and care for, not
to destroy or abuse, and that they believed what Pastor Phil (would soon be
mentioning to me that day in another conversation), which is that we were given
something special inside by God which makes us special and worthy of attaining
Earth’s fruits, and we are responsible for the care of Earth. There was a long
pause before the lady whose seat I accidentally stole said, “But we still don’t like
gay marriage or abortions”. All three ladies preferred to remain anonymous but
told me I could come and ask them questions any time.
It didn’t seem as though environmentalism is very high on these women’s
list of priorities, yet they definitely were pro environmentalism. Because they

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made sure to inform me that they do not support pro-choice or gay marriage, I got
the idea that these issues were much higher on their radar than environmentalism.
These women did not imply or hint in any way whatsoever that they make extra
efforts in environmentalism or that they intend to participate actively in the
climate change issue or other environmental issues; but they did imply that they
don’t want climate change to happen. I began to theorize that these individuals
were basically saying that they do understand and acknowledge climate change
and its repercussions, but they aren’t afraid of it. Salvation is an incredibly
enticing feat, even as a contradicting solution to the woes of climate change
(which many believe is God’s doing anyway so we should roll with it).
I would like to find the same three women and ask them my emerging
questions. It will be very beneficial to understand when and how they became
environmentally supportive. They may have changed in their later years or
maybe in their early years. What is affecting environmentalism in evangelical
churches?

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Date: 2/19/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Conversation 2
Description of activity:
After the traditional service, I waited in line to speak to Pastor Philip about
whether or not this church supported environmentalism and whether or not they
considered themselves evangelical. I approached Pastor Phil and introduced
myself to him and his wife Krista. Then I took the opportunity to ask him a
somewhat heavy question before my turn was up in line. I asked him, “How do
you feel about environmentalism, and how have you decided to interpret the
somewhat conflicting entries in the Bible that speak about dominion vs.
stewardship?” Then I quickly presented two passages that seemed to conflict and
which I had been focusing on and studying for the last several weeks or more. (I
showed him the two passages from Gen1 and Gen2)
I told Pastor Philip, In Genesis 1:28 the Bible reads, “And God Blessed
them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the Earth
and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the fowl of the
air and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth” (KJV, Gen1, 1:28).But
then in Genesis 2:15 it reads, “And the Lord God took the man, and put him into

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the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it”(KJV, Gen, 2:15). I asked, “How do
you reconcile these two very opposing ideas within the gospel? Which is correct?
Pastor Philip’s response was very unexpected.
He replied, “They aren’t opposing actually. Here’s why…” From there he
explained his beliefs to me. HE said that the words dominion and domain are
being interpreted incorrectly. He said to me, “Think about your home. It is your
‘domain’. So what do you do? Do you trash it, abuse the animals there and pollute
the air so you can’t even breathe easy in your own home? No, you CARE for your
domain. Your dominion is your responsibility to care for the space that is yours.
To care for God’s creation”. So, according to this evangelical pastor, the bible is
not contradicting but rather supporting stewardship and others have interpreted
domain and dominion to mean something very different.
As I pondered, Pastor Philip said, “Just look at our mission statement on
those pictures”. I looked and I saw two beautiful pictures one stating, “Jesus is
renewing us” then another next to it that stated, “To renew the world”. Both
pictures were in black print over a background of a forest with many trees, plants
and the sun shining through over the lettering. I commented that they were
amazing and before I stepped aside for the next person in line to speak to him. He
told me I could contact him any time for questions. I thanked him and moved on
to look around, searching for symbols that represent nature. The pastor knows the

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bible and its modern interpretations inside and out. He was going to quote
scripture but I was not going to be able to keep up so he said to save it for a
different day. I think going and speaking to him informally is a good way to start
building rapport. It is a good idea to do this at every service, even if it is to say hi.
I am enjoying meeting people and learning their thoughts about the bible.

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Date: 3/5/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Observation 3
Description of activity:
It may have been the experience from last week that affected my senses
this week, or it may have just been luck, but today, as I strolled around the lobby,
I noticed a lot of teens and twenty somethings. This week I was attending the
contemporary service again, and the previous week I had attended the traditional
service; and I bet you not a single one of the attendees had their cell phones out in
the church itself. This week was a stark contrast to last week. There were
definitely cliques of younger individuals and then couples here and there of their
parents socializing and watching their children socialize.
When I sat down I was able to get a full view of the amount of people, of
all ages, that had their heads down and their face lit with low level cell phone
lighting. It was quite amazing. I sat stage right in the front row so when I looked
to my right, I could see down the entire aisle and if I looked back I could see
people’s faces and details. Most everyone was Caucasian. There was one Latino
family and no other minority races as far as I could see. There were also a few
individuals near me who had the Bible out on their IPad or IPhone. So, I reasoned,

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I am dealing with a group of people who are somewhat progressive with
technology at least, and are possibly more liberal, or accepting of
environmentalism because they are playing or texting during service which is
traditionally very disrespectful and now seemed commonplace. This is just a
supposition. This would have been a great survey to take if that were the research
we were doing right now. But overall, it shows a more laid back group who
probably support recycling at the very least.
Notably, this was the second time that Pastor Philip noted something from
the gospel that resonated with Buddhism or other eastern philosophies. He spoke
about “spiritual intent”, “dense wisdom”, “civil disobedience”, “non-retaliation”,
and how these things lead to a good life. These powerful words provoked
powerful images within my mind of Gandhi and of Buddha because of the similar
non retaliation mindsets. He spoke with passion and reason and if this is the way
he teaches his congregation, I am beginning to understand why they are
environmentalists. I can imagine a person of any age approaching Pastor Philip
and asking “should we protect the environment?” and Pastor Philip immediately
replying with vigor, “YES!”
Most everyone who walks by Pastor Phil between services greets him or
says good morning. Couples at all times come up and say hi and exchange
pleasantries about their children. Teenagers who walk by make sure to say hi as

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they pass him. It definitely alludes to the idea that Pastor Philip is an authority
figure or at least an elder to be respected and looked up to. This has appeared in
all observations thus far. If this is the case, it would be another mechanism for
environmentalism to seep down into the community from the Pastor’s proenvironment beliefs.
This week the program announces the “Summer Hummer”, an event
where members go to a week long day camp. I would like to find out more about
the activities they partake in at this camp and how much nature they are educated
about. I would like to ask all the attendees if they supported environmental
protection.

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Date: 3/5/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Conversation 3
Description of activity:
I approached the coffee stand and said hi to the gentleman working
(volunteering) there. He was polite and he asked me if I needed a Westwood
reusable mug. I showed him that I brought the one I was given and I ordered a
coffee. While he was making it I asked him, “What kind of coffee do you use?”
He replied, “Um, I’m not sure the name, but I know it’s organic and its fair trade”.
Ooh this is off to a good start…. “Cool, so, do you guys recycle here?” I asked
as he finished steaming my soymilk (soymilk, another green choice). “We used to
but then the city started charging the church as if it were a business instead of a
not for profit and we couldn’t afford the costs, it’s just cheaper to throw it all
away…unfortunately”. I saw his disappointment and I definitely understood from
what he said that it’s probably a popular opinion among the rest of the church too
that recycling is important. (I would find out later from Pastor Philip that they
have tons of paper and really should be recycling and that he would work on that).

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Date: 3/26/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Observation 4
Description of activity:
Today I came thirty minutes early so I could walk around and look for
imagery or symbolism anywhere. I remembered to bring my reusable coffee mug
they gave me on my first day (a green choice indeed), so I headed first to the
coffee stand. Here I had a great conversation which is documented above. After
gaining some substantial insight and some facts from the gentleman at the coffee
stand, I walked up and down the two main halls.
I found that the halls in the building leading to the kids rooms was
decorated with pictures that had faith based words (renew, pray, hope etc.) laid
over ferns or other types of trees and leaves. Some of these pictures will be
presented in the synthesis of this research. Additionally I noted this day that the
parking lot is surrounded by very large fir trees and the entire place feels removed
and in nature even though it’s just on Kaiser and Harrison. All the colors are earth
tones and all the décor is earthy themed.
After service I approached Pastor Philip and had a brief conversation as is
presented below. During this conversation he agreed to email me some

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information and discuss any potential for interviews. I think I have realized
during this observation, that our surroundings, our environment and everything
that happens in our lives affects us in ways that nobody understands yet. It seems
that when people are exposed to a common theme or color or title every day, it
becomes important to them. They start to care and tend for it. This relates to
Douglas. It may be that the surroundings at Westwood influence people to care
for nature and to believe that God wants them to tend to the Earth and not destroy
or dominate it.

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Date: 4/2/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Observation 5
Description of activity:
Today’s service did not present much data; Although, I did learn about
“summer hummer”; a summer camp for the church. When the pastor brought up
Summer Hummer everyone, even the teenagers on their iPhones, cheered. This is
a summer camp with all activities and content focused on Jesus and the gospel,
but to my understanding the children go outdoors. This is another presentation of
the WBC involving its members in nature and supporting the environment, as a
secondary effect of wanting to do church camp. Some churches I have
investigated do slumber parties with families and things that can take place in the
church or a rented space. This church actually going camping and being in
nature, even if it is just for the day for some, is not common. This is another factor
at WBC that shows how environmentalism can be engrained within the
congregation, even if the first goal is to always know Jesus, and allows them to
support their conservative political views as well as supporting environmentally
healthy policies.

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Date: Palm Sunday 4/9/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Observation 6
Description of activity:
Today’s service was centered on Palm Sunday. There were children who
put on a recital about Palm Sunday and the sermon was very short so I didn’t have
much to observe. After the service, I used this day to walk around and down the
hallways that I had not seen yet. There I found a library, a bottom floor in the
basement with many classrooms and prayer rooms, and a hallway leading to the
daycare and children’s classes that was entirely painted with trees, birds and other
nature oriented themes. These images will be presented in the synthesis of these
observations.

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Date: Easter 4/16/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Observation 7
Description of activity:
This week I observed the sermon and traditions that WBC provides. I
attended the second service, which is titled, “Contemporary Service”. I think the
main takeaway I have with this day is that it was much more serious, quiet and
less rock and roll. Additionally I thought the way Pastor Philip presented Easter
and the bible’s description not by referring to Christ’s crucifixion in Luke 23:32,
and resurrection but instead referring to a woman who was sick and died and was
resurrected. I did not catch the name or number of the scripture but Pastor Phil
spoke of a girl who was saved similarly to Jesus, only she wasn’t a holy spirit or
daughter of God.
This service was pretty solemn and did not really portray any of the nature
and environmental aspects which I am looking for. I will continue to attend
though, as I know there are environmentalist undertones and I find the service to
be soothing and educational.
Additionally I was approached by a woman and her daughter with CP
today when I was sitting at a table waiting for service and just watching the scene.

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I explained that I was just hanging out and looking around for my thesis and they
were very interested. We had a great conversation just based on getting to know
each other and discussing environmentalism. I explained I used to work with folks
who were developmentally disabled and the daughter started to open up to me.
Then explained that they had been to several services at churches around here but
this is the only one they enjoyed. She said that Pastor Philip was in a pool of
30,000 and was asked to explain one particular piece of scripture. (In my
interview with Pastor Philip he explained the true tale) She said that was how he
was chosen to lead this congregation. I will definitely ask Phil about this when
we interview. I expected the theme to be more about resurrection and the
blossoming of life and the rise of spring but they were very traditional when it
came to Easter Sunday.

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Date: 4/30/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Observation
Description of activity:
Today Pastor Philip gave a sermon that was very connected to earth and
the other symbols which I have witnessed over time while attending WBC.
Within his theme “Multiply” he said to us,
“The goal is making a difference and mobilizing locally then
globally…Look at this piece of wheat (he held up a golden, large piece of wheat
and kept it in his hand while he spoke), there are three things you can choose to
do with it”. From there he explained that we can “Hold it…Eat it…Or let it fall”
to the ground to be buried and able to multiply when the seeds grow. He spoke
about the wheat “dying” and then coming back to life which was very
ecologically symbolic. He spoke of basically living a modest, humble life. He
said, “If you’re rich, give it away, if your happy make others happy” and that to
live like Jesus you “Don’t need a huge church just to get followers in the seats”.
Takeaway: Renew Oly should be a lifestyle and think of the grain and how
you can consume it right away, you can keep it close and not use it, you can eat it
and then it’s gone, or you can let it fall and allow it to multiply from the Earth.

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This was a very LEE sermon and very connected to nature. It is apparent
that the Pastor is very close to nature and supportive of the environment.

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Date: 4/11/17
Filename: Jennifer Welch
Title: Interview
Description of activity:
Female, Lutheran, 29, attends Reality church which is a non-denominational
church. In an email discussion we clarified that Jenny is an evangelical, meaning
she believes the bible is the word of God and that she should live according to the
gospel. Grew up hanging out with the pastor’s kids and they were always
outdoors and very green, they had land and a play area. She grew up hiking and
being outdoors.
When I met with Jenny, a self-proclaimed evangelical, I began our
interview by explaining what sort of symbols I was looking for at WBC. I
explained the “Renew Oly” program and how it is about beautifying our
community and helping those who need help, even if it through gardening,
landscaping and power washing… and how the flyer for the volunteer program
had butterflies and grass on it (this way she will know that when I say ‘symbols’ I
mean the imagery and behaviors which are present throughout the church.) I went
on to explain the way in which WBC is decorated and how I’m exploring how
consciously or subconsciously these images being placed are.

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I began by asking Jenny to please express her thoughts on what her
religion is. Jenny explained, “I guess I was raised Lutheran, but if someone asks
me what my religion is, I just say Christian and that… encompasses my core
belief. But when people ask if I’m religious, I usually don’t consider myself
‘religious’ but I have a strong faith. This is because I kind of gather that
‘religious’ usually comes with some tags of the institution and that can have
negative connotations”. I said to jenny, it must be hard being on both sides and
she replied,
“I understand why people kind of have that thought around religion, my
mom grew up catholic with rules and laws and you got to do this etc.”
I said that I really think that Evergreen State College is full of people who
are all so environmentalist or so atheist. Then I asked, do you ever feel like you
maybe don’t want to say things or talk about your beliefs because it IS so secular
here? Jenny replied,
“I do feel like that, I’m definitely not outspoken, but if someone asks I do
just say Christian”.
I clarified and established that ‘religious’ is more representative of actions,
behaviors and attendance ...

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I asked, “What made you want to go to somewhere so liberal (Evergreen)
and what are your thoughts on climate change and environmentalism?” Jenny
replied that she “wanted to do a master’s program and I was doing work here.”
Then she explained that she really just learned so much in the MES program, so
she’s glad she took it, but it sort of presented itself as an opportunity that wasn’t
planned…so she took it.
I asked, “Can you tell me how you felt while earning your biology degree, when it
contradicts your religion?”
Jenny said sure… “I took an evolution class for my biology degree and my had a
professor who was really nice about like, coming out and saying if you have
beliefs and stuff that’s fine, and he really believed in evolution and all the facts
about it and he really believed in it, but he was just really, he taught it really well,
so during that class it was sometimes a struggle for me because we had to write
this paper… almost proving that evolution was right. And so, I knew he was just
looking for us to take everything he’s shown us and just put it on paper to kind of
thing to show we understood the evidence. He didn’t want us to come out and say
what we believe.” I understand this statement to mean that the professor wants
you to understand the mechanics of a scientific theory, not proclaim your belief in
it. That is a great way to teach.

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At this point the recorder malfunctioned and the rest of the interview is on paper,
and transcribed below.
I wanted to understand Jenny’s background a little bit and her ideas about
climate change and religious beliefs. Some of her replies include,
She definitely believes that climate change is anthropogenic, but she
believes that God has a bigger plan, which is similar to another interviewee I’ve
spoken with. Jenny explained that she feels like “positive things that happen are
given from God, and all bad things that happen are from Satan.”
Jenny explained that “my parents are democrats and I grew up with
animals and pets and we had a very caring attitude towards thee environment. So
yeah, I guess we had a stewardship mentality”.
I asked Jenny to close her eyes and think of her faith, then tell me what images
come to her mind. She closed her eyes and after a brief pause, she said, “The holy
spirit, Noah’s Ark and the dove with the olive branch, the flood, animals on the
Earth and the green world after it. Rivers and streams, flowers and plants, water
for baptism”. I told her that she definitely seems to be and evangelical
environmentalist and that the symbols she expressed to me show that her faith is
directly connected to nature. Jenny agreed. She explained that there are things
she is still grappling like how evolution can be real when she believes in creation.

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We spoke about “teleological evolution” which is the idea that God created
everything then let it go to evolve on its own. I don’t think this became Jenny’s
philosophy but at least we had a great conversation about it.
Finally, is it our place to fix our mistakes or will God care for us?
Jenny replied that because climate change is “anthropogenic, it is our
place to remedy that”. This idea is common, that we should remedy our own
mistakes. Other evangelicals feel that Jesus or God will remedy these mistakes.
Even more think we need to do our part so Jesus can do his part. I think this
shows that Jenny is an LEE. I think the interview made the solid point that her
upbringing influenced her environmentalism as well as a church whose leaders
liked nature as well.

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Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Interview follow up answers
Date: 4/1/17
Description of activity: Questions for Interview


How do you identify religiously?
Evangelical (from email interactions), Lutheran, Christian (often just
says Christian so she doesn’t have to explain the details of her
thoughts or explain her actions or non-actions that may be expected by
a judgmental individual).



Age, Gender, background
29, Female, white, Lutheran background, mother was catholic, parents
are democrats.



What is your scientific viewpoint regarding the environment?
She cares about it and feels we should not damage it or allow the
damage to go on uncorrected.



Thoughts on anthropogenic climate change?
She believes in anthropogenic climate change and that it is against the
gospel and should be corrected.

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

Before your knowledge of climate change did you think of the world
as something to be a steward for or something to dominate?
Jenny expressed that she had a fairly nature supporting mindset from a
young age and this was mentioned as being influenced by her parents.
She stated, “My parents were democratic, we had pets and were
around animals…I grew up caring about nature and animals…”



Close your eyes and think of your faith…tell me the first symbols you
see.
Jenny closed her eyes and thought for a second or two then said she
first thinks of the holy spirit, Noah’s ark and the dove and the olive
branch, the flood, animals on earth, flowers and plants…then water for
baptism” (such as rivers or streams we added later). When looking at
this response it is clear that Jenny being brought up in a household that
cared about nature and taught her to care about animals and plants etc.
has now as an adult reflected to me her first images…and they were all
about animals and water and the earth PLUS her faith when she spoke
of baptism and the Holy Spirit.



What do you feel your pastor’s role in shaping your opinions is?
Jenny expressed that she “hung out with the pastor’s kids a lot and we
were friends…we…were always outdoors, very green, they had land
and places that were play areas”. This tells me there is a high chance

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that her pastor probably did have an environmentally positive
impression on her. Jenny and I spoke about this for a while and we
seemed to agree that her pastor and her parents had a big part on
influencing her environmentalism.


Thoughts on climate change?
Jenny listed off some of her thoughts as they came to her which
included: Anthropogenic, negative, no solutions. Then she expressed
how dolphins adapt and learn so we should too, it is our place to
remedy that. Even her analogies had to do with animals and nature. I
might go so far as to call Jenny an evangelical environmentalist



Do you think evangelicals are becoming greener because of the dire
circumstances which the environment is in?
Yes Jenny replied but it is “not a priority (to evangelicals) because it’s
like, you do all you can and if you have faith in God…” She went on
to say if you have faith in God you trust he will be there basically to
save us. This was very similar to what Pastor Philip expressed when
he said that he does all he can and there is a point where you just know
that it’s in God’s hands to take care of the rest.



How do you see evangelicals and science working together?
Jenny said yes, this would be a great thing and that she felt more
Christians need to be exposed (to science and environmentalism).

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

Gen1 vs Gen1?
Jenny did not feel that the two scriptures contradicted each other, she
felt that domain meant to care for your domain, not dominion, again
similarly to Pastor Philip.



How do you support the environment as God’s creation without being
a nature worshipper or pagan? Is this an issue for you?
This did not seem to be an issue for Jenny, she doesn’t think that
environmentalism goes against the bible nor is pagan. We did not go
in depth into this.

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Date: 4/12/17, 4/14/17
Filename: Email with Jenny
Title: conversation
Description of activity:
After Jenny and I met and had our casual interview, she graciously
emailed me with follow up thoughts and beliefs relating to the questions we
discussed previously. The emails are as follows:
“I did a brief search for "stewards" of the Earth in the Bible and didn't find
these exact words, so you're right, it must have come from over-arching themes I
have been exposed to about preserving the environment in the Bible. I did,
however, recall the verses speaking about using the activities of nature as
examples for daily living. For instance, the birds of the air don't worry about
where their food will come from, but live day to day "trusting" God will provide
these things (Matthew 6). Personally, a part of this means (to me) using nature's
resources as they are provided and not stripping the land for extra
gain. (Environmentalist attitudes and motivations)”
Also, in Job 12, God speaks of viewing nature as an example of how to
live: “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and
they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the

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sea inform you." I think about how the things we create to help our species
function are basically trying to do what nature already does best. For example, I
remember learning during my undergrad about how giant redwoods get huge
amounts of water to their leaves without the help of pumps, but rather a process
called 'transpiration'. Also, that spider webs are stronger than steel, but are
"manufactured" in the tiny bodies of spiders! Humans try to emulate these
processes using our intelligence and I think God is aware. He created these
organisms with these innate capabilities from which we need to observe and use
as examples, not dismiss as inferior.”
First, I believe it is because of sin that some people are not supplied with
resources necessary to sustain biological life because we (humans) see the pain
and suffering in those who do not have food and water etc. In other words, I think
most people would view starvation and homelessness, for example, as a negative
thing that others go through.
Second, I think our logic is different than God's "logic" (if one could call it
that). So we can contemplate and interpret natural, earthly processes one way the human way. This makes sense because it's the only way we know. However,
as a Christian, I have accepted that God has a different "logic/way/understanding"
of his own creation that we cannot fully understand. (Supporting the idea that we
can only do so much before the rest is in God’s hands.)

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Third, I believe nothing on earth occurs apart from the will of God. So,
since Satan and sin are present in the world, humans would say God "allows bad
things to happen". This makes sense to humans in our definition of what is bad
based on our own experiences (ex: pain is bad, death is bad, disease is bad, and
starvation is bad - because they are tied to our human emotions and wellbeing). This makes perfect sense! Yet, when one holds the Word of God (Bible)
to be true, that person believes that all we actually need is God's love - something
we all have, but all do not recognize or believe in. If someone does not recognize
that they are loved by God, the "bad" things of this world may seem more of a
burden than what they truly may be.
I am only human and a sinner like every other individual in the world. I
can't know exactly how God is working in the world, but to help directly answer
your question (does God have His hand in natural extinctions or natural
population controls?) - I would say yes.

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Date: 5/10/17
Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Interview with Senior Pastor Philip Miller
Description of activity: Today I interviewed Senior Pastor Phillip in his office at
WBC. When I went into his office I was instantly impressed. There was an
assortment of great books on gorgeous shelves built in a corner/wrap around
design on the walls. There was a very large print from the Teton Mountains and
wooden décor in several places. It felt cozy and Earthy. We sat down to talk on
soft leather chairs and I told myself, “Remember this office, this is the kind of
office you want!” We sat down and I wanted to first inform him what my goal
was and what common ties I was looking for. I let him know that I think the
environmentalism his congregation seems to have, comes largely from him. I said
I wanted to understand where the symbolism comes from. I said it was a positive
place that I love to come to. Then I asked my first question, “did you decorate all
of this office or was it like this when you got here? Pastor Philip explained he
had to have it built to accommodate his height. So right there was a confirmation
of his influence on environmentalism in the church. He said he chose the décor
and decorated it so again, this shows that some symbols in his office were
evidence of a sort of creation care.

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So I asked Pastor Philip if he had some beginning thoughts about
environmentalism and he replied that “One of the best places that I connect with
God is in nature. There’s nothing better than a mountain range with snow on it, or
the beach, especially Ruby Beach.” We chatted about Ruby beach for a bit. Pastor
Philip is really familiar with the Hoh and the entire coast, as well as the Olympics
it seemed. These implications endorse an outdoorsy attitude and fondness of
nature. Then Phil explained that for him, “connecting with God has always been
connected with nature.” This was a great platform to jump off of. So, then we
talked about when he came to WBC. Phil came to work here 4 years ago and
explained that there are three groups he works with 1. Top level leadership (also
referred to as elders 2. Staff and 3. Sermons. He humbly stated, “That’s really all
I do” and “we’ve modernized”; so when I asked if it was he who was responsible
for the environmental symbolism around the church, Pastor Philip humbly stated
that he did a lot of it but he consults or at least takes into consideration the elders,
staff and even the congregation’s opinions. But then Phil did go further to explain
that they he wasn’t fully responsible for everything, but he chose the fir trees in
the logo and based them off of the amazing Douglas Fir trees that are so special to
us Pacific North westerners. As I was sitting and chatting I was also noticing so
many different earthy symbols which I planned to bring up at the chance.
I expressed to Pastor Philip that I agreed with him that there is this
trickledown effect and even though he hasn’t come forward loudly as an activist,

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his nature and environmentalism is showing through in the beliefs of his
congregation and as we carry on our conversation. This sparked a great
expression of his feelings about beauty in nature. He stated, “The bible is very
transcendent but also very Earthy…So it’s about God and his glory …but there’s
also a great sense of which there’s a great beauty and delight in what God has
made. It’s his creation. It reflects his glory. So, Psalm 19 talks about the heavens
are declaring the glory of God…”
“This is one of the things that blow my mind” Pastor Philip explained,
“The beauty that is in excess of function”. This led us to an intriguing
conversation about how many plants and animals have intrinsic beauty and lavish
beauty which probed the question by Philip, “why is there such lavish beauty in
these things? Why are there neon fish in the bowels of the ocean? Painted neon
colors and there’s no light that gets down that far…Why are they there?” Phil
went on to explain the feeling of smallness and spirituality when in beautiful
natural places. I had to agree that universally people agree that certain types of
natural beauty are unarguable as beautiful.
Philip said, “The Christian understanding of that is that Nature is not just
functional, but it’s a gift, it’s beautiful, it’s made by God, he’s put his creative
work into creation and therefore it is to be prized and taken care of. It has that
intrinsic dignity and beauty and value. Right? It does! And I think people have

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always observed that, that’s why even people who don’t believe in God ,or
whatever, (open-mindedly “whatever” not flippantly) they still love the mountains
and that sense of the sublime, and that feeling of smallness when I stand on that
precipice and I’m just overwhelmed...there’s something spiritual there. So my
thinking is that its God has embedded elements of his being into the Earth as a
reflection of Him.

God and his glory are revealed in all of these sorts of

places”. To summarize, Pastor Philip expressed that “When I’m in these spaces,
it’s the easiest way for me to connect. It’s not in a building or a chapel it’s on a
beach, on a mountainside, looking at a flower. I find incredible transcendent
beauty and glory in those things that feed my soul. So it’s pretty deep.” Deep
indeed, I could definitely connect to that mindset…I think this deep connection
with God and nature has allowed him to lead his congregation and live his life in
an environmentally sound manner. This led me to ask about the beautiful picture
hanging behind him. It was a picture of the Teton Mountains which he professed
is his favorite mountain range. We discussed how even atheists see the beauty in
Nature and it is intrinsic everywhere. It’s quite peculiar that every person sees
certain things as beauty and nature and we done even all have to discuss it. I
think this is when Pastor Philip started to understand my search for symbolism.
As we spoke Pastor Philip explained that all the things in nature that he
finds beautiful help him to connect with God. He explains, “Everything was
created for God’s children and…everything, the mountains, the air, the rain, it all

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is a gift.” Here I interrupt and state that, “this is such a positive way of thinking”.
Pastor Philip agreed.
Then out of nowhere Pastor Philip pulled out a handful of polished rocks
and tossed them on the table. He said the staff has a set of core values and when
he sees them accomplishing them, he gives them a polished rock. If this is not a
symbol of connecting God and environmentalism, I don’t know what is! Luckily,
I was offered a stone! I will use it for stress fidgeting. I asked Philip, “Do you
polish them yourself?” Phil replied yes, “this is me finding delight in these
things…nature”. As soon as I chose a rock Phil continued expressing his feelings
on stress and Jesus and worry… (This was more in depth but not necessary for
thesis as much as for my own knowledge.)
After having a fascinating discussion about the marks the reincarnated
Lord still carries and an explanation that those who will return to Earth will be
recognizable, better than he is now, but there is a connection, I moved on to the
environment. Pastor Philip proclaimed, “No matter what you do for Jesus, it is an
eternal act and that the recreation of all things… is to totally redeem. Restore,
renew, what is. So what I’m saying is theologically this gives you all kinds of
reasons to work for the renewal for this planet right now…
“I think that everything we do for Jesus, whether that’s digging in your
garden, planting a garden, or feeding the poor, I believe everything we do for

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Jesus is ultimately an eternal act, and that the re-creation of all things will come
and God will bring Earth back to its former beauty, and make it even better. As
well as our human bodies…restore and renew…” “This means that everything
God wants to do is my marching orders now”. This mentality and understanding
of the gospel is all about renewal and life and taking action to care for creation. ,
Philip explained that some of my questions were similar to, “Can we save
the earth” and that he did not think that we necessarily can, in fact he stated, “I
think ultimately only Jesus can save the Earth. BUT…having said that, I think
everything that Jesus loves and wants to see happen are my marching orders right
now. “
“So I’m going to do right now, something I know I can’t finish. But I will
do it knowing it’s his heart and one day he will complete the task. , and that’s a
different theology you see what I’m saying? Because that means I do plant trees,
and that means I do pick up litter that means we shouldn’t be dumping oil and we
should recycle and I should work for the sustainability…it’s a beautiful gift that
God has given us, we should do everything we can to lovingly care for it and to
bring out its best, and we are part of the ecosystem so we are going to consume
resources but we try to do so responsibly…and knowing even that there are
broken things in the world that we should try to interrupt”.

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I decided to bring up the degradation that has been going on in the world. I
explained that Hanford just had a major collapse in their underground, depleted
uranium storage. Pastor Philip added there that, “hindsight is 20/20. People just
use this and sell that and don’t realize a half a century later how harmful these
things are”.
We began talking about symbols and renewal. Pastor Philip reminded me
that nature is in his heart, which includes all of his creation. Pastor Philip
explained how he acts as he thinks Jesus would. Then we went off on a tangent
about animals and their treatment (an easy thing to do when two nature/animal
lovers get talking)… So then I turned the conversation another direction by asking
about the KJV vs. ESV.
Wonderfully, Pastor Philip was very educated about the history of the
bible and the fact that it was written in Latin and Greek and Aramaic by different
interpretations. He explained how the scripture so interpreting it into English is
simply to make it easy for everyone to read and understand and he also explained
that English translations keep being translated. I think Pastor Philip feels the ESV,
which was there when he arrived, is a good translation for his church. I then
brought up that I learned in anthropology the books are relative to culture and that
some of the issues we have today are hard to apply because they didn’t exist when

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it was written, such as transgender issues. Pastor Philip explained how he
addresses issues like this including environmentalism:
“My understanding of the bible is that it was written in a specific time,
place, culture…so the task in understanding the bible is kind of …(if you think of)
two shores, this shoreline is the original audience, so 1st Century Imperialistic
Rome, overshadowing a small minority of Jewish people who are
oppressed…that’s the context. Over here we have the 21st century with all of our
questions…and the question is…if I can get back over here and try to understand
what God is saying in this context, there are principles, right? Transferable
principles… which become the bridge, and that’s the theology piece”. Then this
other piece over here is what they call Exegesis in academia:
“Exegesis or getting back to the original culture, theology is the task of
what are the universal principals and truths that are transcendent above cultural
expressions. And then how to I apply that right here right now.” He went on to
explain that a lot time it’s more of an art than a science, which is why you find
disagreement within Christianity as how to exactly how to apply those principles.
And we’ll probably never get rid of those disagreements about how to do it, but
that’s the task. This was a great depiction to explain how we can look at
extremely old texts to understand ideas and responsibilities we have with nature.
They may not have spoken about climate change when the bible was written but

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there are basic concepts in which to follow a good life which also apply to
problems like climate change. It seems to me at this point of the interview I
began presenting more and more symbols that Pastor Philip didn’t really think of
as environmental.
I asked Pastor Philip if it is okay to express in my work that I felt this
place, WBC, is special and unique. He said he was honored and that I had
probably sensed that, because it is in his heart…but he hasn’t really done too
much proactive fighting for it. He said he was responsible for the Douglas Fir
tree emblem and the entire renew theme…”I think when we picked the imagery
for the trees, even the word ‘renew’ which is in our mission statement: Jesus is
renewing us…to Renew the World, which is both world of humanity and I think
there’s a whole theology of wherever we go we go as Christ representatives to
love what he loves which includes ALL of his creation.”
Pastor Philip began to explain that he has a robin’s nest in his back yard
and he had to tell his children to stay away and be careful with it. I cut him off but
will continue this story in a little while…
“I think...let me just list some biblical issues: the bible holds a more
traditional understanding of marriage, prolife you know we believe just how you
don’t step on a baby turtle egg or a robin egg you don’t step on a little baby in a
womb”. He discussed the hypocrisy in prolife issues and that you can be fined for

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hurting animals but not abortions. This was a full and interesting conversation,
even if it does not address environmental issues.
“Racism is a sin. Black lives matter. Poverty, education, special needs, I’m
just listing things here on purpose because all of these the bible has very clear
directives for, how to treat and love people, I think…WWJD? If there is a way,
even if it costs you so much money, to ensure that every human being had access
to quality healthcare…what would you do? And what I’m suggesting here is that
single voter issues, and that’s my party, is not the way of Jesus. I think the more
Jesus centered you are, the more you actually can see the blind spots in your own
political party, and it makes you less polarized.”
Pastor Phil explained that Christianity can help depolarize these issues
better than most because of the cross. He stated, “He’s there for JUSTICE and
he’s there for MERCY. And the cross brings these two together. And the problem
is that the RIGHT seeks justice (they came here illegally, kick them out) and the
LEFT seeks mercy (but they mean well…let them in!) and so you have these two
parties and I’m telling you the cross brings them together.” This allows us to not
just tow the party line. Capitalism has evils in it and education needs help…but
it’s all…the cross that can bring them to the middle. This was very interesting
coming from the Senior Pastor at a very large evangelical church. Officially,
stereotypes have been dropped. Importantly, at this point I realized we truly can

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work together. Because if he believes the cross can bring the right and the left
together, that ideology will certainly be passed down as his environmentalism has
been.
We continued to have a fascinating and fun conversation about
Christianity, politics, forgiveness, and Jesus.
Once we were back on track I asked about the WBC logo. Pastor Philip
explained that they created the tree logo, the previous one before he got there, was
a large sweeping W. I then began to show him which flyers I wanted to use to
show the images of nature and how much more environmental this church was
from others I looked into. I showed him the activism he didn’t really think of as
activism at first which was first of all, a flyer advertising “Renew Oly” (a
program they do to help out the community) with grass and butterflies on it. Then
I explained that they weren’t just doing yardwork, they were beautifying the
environment. Phil included, “There’s a park up here and one time we went out
and planted a butterfly garden”. I almost shouted with excitement, “Oh really?!
Did you bring in butterflies too or just the plants?”
He said, “We planted the bushes, but someone brought in the butterflies. It
was a lady trying to just beautify a little corner of her neighborhood. And you
know, it’s funny that you’re picking up on all of that because I (I interrupt,
because it was natural right?) I think it just flowed out of our being, rather than

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being completely intentional, but when I created the renewing language that was
intentional. And the renewing trees were very intentional. We used Coastal
Douglas Firs and they are a unique species (knowledge of trees impressive). They
don’t form a taproot, they create a root mat and so we talked about how in our
faith we root in the ground but we root together and we need each other and we
are interdependent and then we grow together…little ones need more shade, so
they grow in the nursery of the forest like how we grow together in society. We
flourish and there are all these interdependencies and our name is West Wood and
so we are a forest and we are meant to root into the gospel and Christ and be
mutually supporting growing together sheltering the young ones then we are
meant to then bring renewal to the world.”
“The trees bless the world. And that’s what we are supposed to be as a
church too.”
How about the kid’s wing with the paintings on the wall? Pastor Philip
said, “Someone from before we got here painted them but I decided to keep them,
the puppy sticking his head out is so cute”. I asked next if he feels these images
influence the members and he replied, “I don’t want to take all the credit, but I do
think that it’s helped to help leadership sort of thinking that way”.
“And there was a time when we had composting and recycling and then
the city made it really difficult. It became so difficult; it all had to be perfect. And

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if it wasn’t they would just dump all the recycling into the trash, but we are going
to try again, because it’s silly, we generate enough paper we should be recycling.”
“We have nature to appreciate so we appreciate nature. So maybe it’s less
pressing for people in the Midwest because they don’t have the same nature”
Pastor Philip proclaimed.
We finally came to a point when Pastor Philip said, “You’re giving me
perspective on stuff I wouldn’t know but its subconscious to me and your
anthropology skills are pulling these out and its great”
This part is great. I begin to ask Pastor Philip about his missions and if he
thought it was appropriate to add some sort of environmental component. The
first obvious answer was that in the places they go, people are so poor or have
such other daunting issues, it is difficult to conceive that they would care about
environmental issues such as climate change (even though it is certain that the
poorest people on the globe will be affected the most by climate change). He
really seemed to not think he or his missionaries were spreading
environmentalism. Then he began to recall several things they have done on
missions related to environmentalism!
I asked Pastor Philip if he would ever consider adding an environmental
component to missions and he replied, “I think it comes down to your own sense

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of what’s the most pressing thing. So you walk into a culture and obviously we
believe all human beings are created for eternity and that we are meant to be with
God. And we want people to know that story. Right? So that’s right on the front
burner.”
“The other thing is you globally assess, do they even have clean water?
For example, we have a team going to a rural part of China next month. And we
raised $20,000 for new water filters to the villages. (At this point I’m freaking out
and tell him this is environmentalism and it’s activism!)” So we continued to
discuss the social and health issues at these sites in addition to his environmental
contributions. He has basically made it perfectly clear that his heart (which must
be quite sizeable) is wrapped around God, Jesus, all people, animals and the
environment and that they help while on missions wherever it is needed first. He
said, “I think we are trying to make a difference in small sort of ordinary ways
and we think that matters so…”
My next question asked was whether or not he believed that climate
change is Anthropogenic. He replied, “I’m not a scientist so I really don’t know
much, I hear the news and banter and I think it’s grossly over politicized the
whole thing. So I don’t weigh into that too much. What I would say is that I find it
hard to believe that the entire industrial revolution and the technical revolution
could be accomplished without side effects. So I think we certainly have created

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part of the problem at least. I don’t know how much is us and how much is natural
I’m not a scientist I done know, but when I look at the stats it becomes fairly
evident to me that something is changing and I think it’s very likely that the
exploitation of all the resources that have been utilized and released in the last 150
years will have some affect.” I let him know that’s really good to know. We
discussed gasses and carbon and common sense.
Pastor Philip continued, “I think the big difference between a pure
environmentalist and where I come from is, I don’t put all of my chips of hope if
you will, in humanity to save our future”. For example, “Stephen Hawking stated
just the other day that if we don’t colonize another planet in the next 100 years we
will face extinction, just this week. So, okay he might be right I don’t know. But
the rhetoric that’s like only humanity can save itself…sort of like the Elon Musk
Gospel, just that humanity has the power to destroy itself or save itself, what are
we going to do? That’s the sort of gospel that says its ‘all on us’ its ‘all on our
shoulders’ and I think the bible gives us hope that there’s a savior from outside
the world, not just us, but who will come and make this place our true home
again, and that’s Jesus. In the mean time I work for everything that Jesus loves.
Which means I work for humanity, health, wholeness, holistically spirit, mind
body soul, everything that we are, including our environment, where we live, the
creation that God’s given to us is a good gift for us to steward and take care of
and watch over. We are here to cultivate and make it good”.

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And I do all of that, not believing that it is all on my shoulders to fix it. I
do it knowing Jesus will one day come to make all of that right, including all
humanity has done to mess this place up. Including murder and moral sins and the
abuses towards ecology, so Jesus will set it all right. That doesn’t make me
passive like Oh Jesus will do it so I won’t” That’s lousy, that’s like abandonment.
It’s like well, okay, so Jesus will take care of it so I will treat it like crap. Well
listen, if God loves it why are you treating it like crap? You know what I mean?
Like if he loves it enough to want to make it all new and shiny and beautiful
again, don’t you want to do what he wants to do? So the call, I think, I can’t take
responsibility for finally fully fixing it. I can’t do it; it’s too big for me. Jesus can
do that. He will one day make the world right. What I can do is not step on the
eggs in the back yard; I can beautify my little corner of this earth knowing that is
in the heart of God that his heart is to redeem not just humanity for humanity’s
sake but humanity for a renewed creation.”
We spoke some more about evangelicalism and our place here on Earth,
and letting God protect the robin eggs, but he is still going to do his part. We
spoke some more about the return of Christ and the idea that we need to do our
part but not to feel fully responsible for the Earth because Jesus is the savior not
us.

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We spoke about Pastor Philip’s fish tank. This was another clue into his
mind. He explained his fish tank as a metaphor for everything we were
discussing. He described the ecosystem and how he can renew them and clean
and flourish them, because it’s an extension of God’s working in me that is then
cascading out.” Reflecting this was such a wonderful metaphor because of the
complexities that come with a fish tank and the mirroring of those components to
society for humans.

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Filename: Westwood Baptist Church
Title: Questions for official interview
Date: 5/10/17
Description of activity: Questions for Pastor Philip Miller


Is the ESV the version you have always used?
This is the version that was here when he got here so he kept it. He
explained thoroughly that basically no matter what translation you use,
there is a deep and eternal meaning in the bible itself. He explained
the languages it has been translated from.



From your understanding of the ESV bible, which is used in your
services, is environmentalism something people should care about?
What about your personal knowledge and intuition about
environmentalism?
He discussed a polarization politically which spreads to polarization
culturally or religiously. He explained that we can do what we can to
care for creation, and at some point its God’s decision what happens
beyond our own actions.



There are a lot of images in your church which display nature and the

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environment. (Walls painted down the hallways with trees and birds
and such, prints framed with statement “renewing us to renew the
world” with ferns and plants in the background, the list goes on and it
really is beautiful…Were these chosen by you? Random?
Pastor Philip chose the Douglas fir trees for the Westwood logo, he
created the whole idea of RENEW. The reason he chose the Douglas
fir was because of the way it grows. He said there is no tap root but
there is a branching out mat of roots that all function together, like us.
He said that the painting on the walls in the children’s areas were
already here when he arrived too and he wanted to leave them.


From speaking to new friends here at Westwood, I get the idea that
everyone is very pro Earth and feels that we should respect the planet
which God gave to us to tend, after the gospel. Do you feel that you
help them to reach that mindset?
Philip expressed that he felt partially responsible but that he couldn’t
take all the credit. This means that the others he works with most
likely have the same ideas and expressions of nature or the
environment as well.



Do you believe it is possible or appropriate for churches like yours to
spread the idea of protecting God’s Earth while on missions? I know
that spreading the gospel is the number one mission. Could

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evangelical environmentalism be a side mission that we spread?
(Because if we don’t have air or water, we will die?)
This brought up a great discussion where we talked about missions and
Philip told me they don’t do environmental activism. Yet, he then told
me how they raised a great amount of money to buy water filtration
devises in China. I told him “that’s environmentalist!” and he said,
yeah I didn’t think of it like that I just thought of it as what we do.
(Very humble and committed).


Do you believe that if we can come to a mutual agreement about what
to do with the environmental issues that are happening, scientists and
religious leaders can work together to save creation ?
Pastor Philip explained that evangelicals have certain basic beliefs
when it comes to society and politics, and they are what are stated in
the bible. He stated them as: pro-life, traditional marriage between a
man and a woman, and issues to concern with are poverty, racism,
education and mental health. These are social issues, less
environmental ones. But, as is clear from his interview, there is plenty
of room for environmentalism in evangelicalism.

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SYNTHESIS OF ALL DATA BEFORE CONCLUSION
Addressing Research questions
How do people with similar original symbols end up with two different
environmental worldviews? Simply put, it really depends on how one is raised in
addition to gaining environmental insight from your pastor. Those who find
beauty in nature or God in nature often support nature no matter if they are atheist
or evangelical.
Do my subjects for this research choose stewardship over dominion? To
ask it more openly, how do they view the environment and the passages in the
Gospel that address how you should treat it? Both Jenny and Pastor Philip believe
that we should do what we can for creation and the environment but in the end the
fate of the Earth and all of humanity really in God’s hands. They both understand
‘dominion’ to mean actually stating to care for your surroundings, your domain,
rather than domination which is of the same root word but not the same meaning.
In this research I have questioned how LEEs have been able to combine
their religious ideology with environmentalist ideology in order to obtain agency
in their society while also establishing identity as a group. This combination is
apparent in the décor at WBC and behaviors exhibited by Pastor Philip. There are
images of nature in almost every artistic medium in the building. These
demonstrate that WBC has been enacting environmentalist roles without really
trying to do so. In fact, in our interview, Pastor Philip began to tell me about
$20,000 worth of water filtration devices they raised money for and helped

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implement in China, at one of their missions. The focus was on helping the
people of rural China and yet the project also demonstrated environmental
activism!
How does the religious ideology of LEEs or CEEs place them in a
position to best serve their environmental habitat? There are two very clear
mindsets within evangelicalism which created the LEEs and CEEs. CEEs believe
that climate change is happening, maybe even believe it is anthropogenic, but they
don’t think we are responsible for cleaning up the Earth or ‘fixing’ it. They often
state that job creation and the economy are more important than climate change,
which they don’t believe to be something that will harm us. Additionally, CEEs
tend to think that a warming trend should actually help humans grow more food
and raise more animals, creating better economies. This is based on the Gospel,
not based on science. Some believe that God has caused climate change: others
blame Satan. At the end of the day, what matters is the divide between CEEs and
LEEs. Cees must continue to work with LEEs and scientists must learn to be
tolerant and not condescending to either group of evangelicals. (I believe that
happens a lot out in the world because scientists get frustrated with those who rely
on faith, not scientific evidence).
How are they now able to work with secular environmentalists? From this
research that the truth is mixed groups like the Earth Ministry or entire
congregations that have LEE pastors are accepting the science that is obvious,

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such as the idea that if you release all this carbon from the ground and release it
into the atmosphere, it will change the atmospheric conditions. However,
evangelicals are much more comfortable among other evangelicals, so finding
non-denominational groups that support creation is important, and a group like
Earth Ministry would be perfect. In addition, going to a church like WBC is
exactly what an environmentalist who follows the Gospel would want.
Does the evangelical environmentalism movement sustain and support
Christianity for these groups? Based on this research, the answer would be yes.
Even the most liberal of the individuals I spoke with still believe that social issues
and their relationship with Jesus is first and foremost on their list of things that
need action taken from them.
Are symbols found within evangelicalism affecting individuals’
relationships with and beliefs about environmental affairs and climate change,
allowing them to support the safety of the environment? While focusing on this
one church, I was able to ascertain that there were symbols of environmentalism
that adorned the lobby and programs, and that Pastor Philip used in his sermons.
If we look at Geertz’ theory we can see how many of the symbols I found
in this church, probably do establish powerful moods and motivations, as well as
influence the members in an environmentally caring way. First, though, let’s look
at Jenny’s reflections. All in all, she had some very insightful data to contribute.
We both agreed that her upbringing had the biggest impact on her life and

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spirituality. For her, living an outdoorsy life and being taught to respect animals
and the environment, were probably symbols which she associated the most with
nature and her faith throughout her childhood. Additionally, her pastor
encouraged outdoor play and she really got the idea that she should respect
creation.
Since Jenny was so influenced by the symbols she saw growing up and
she expressed a stream of consciousness for me describing “symbols” she thought
of in her faith (The Holy Spirit, Noah’s Ark and the dove with the olive branch,
the flood, animals on the Earth and the green world after it. Rivers and streams,
flowers and plants, water for baptism), it was clear at the end of our interview that
her childhood influences made a big impact on her current environmentalism. If
this was true for Jenny, imagine the influence a young adult might get if their
parents are outdoorsy folks like Jenny’s parents, in addition to also being
influenced while at church. Church is the place we learn to trust most besides our
own parents. This can make for quite a stewardship filled congregation.
Mary Douglas explained how rituals and symbols are meaningful, how
self-motivated and people develop new symbols all the time, but that doesn’t
mean evangelicals’ beliefs are wrong, only that humans are adapting to changing
times and changing conditions. I think that this can be directly applied to the
WBC. Four years ago, when Senior Pastor Philip Miller came to work at
Westwood, he did what he described as “modernized” the building and décor.

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This is what you see when you first approach the entrance to WBC. You see trees
surrounding a sign in Earth tones. From there you drive in and can see that the
church has a huge rolling lawn, many trees on the property and everything is in
earthy hues.

.

The first thing they did was to keep hallways full
of beautiful nature-centered art. As Pastor Philip

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explained in his interview, when he arrived at WBC the hallways were already
painted with all kinds of nature scenes. He said a woman who attended
previously painted them all. He really liked the quality and the content so there
are many rooms and halls decorated like this. These are just some of the wall

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paintings.

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Reinforcing the importance of trees,
birds and water through painted imagery is
surely effective in influencing the minds of
everyone who walks those halls. They did not
create these pieces when they took over four
years ago, Pastor Philip’s desire to keep them and also speak so highly of them
shows his environmentalism and the potential for others to care more about
nature. The next thing Pastor Philip worked on with his elders and staff was the
logo. They changed the logo from a large swooping W that just read Westwood,
into a beautiful logo with meaning and love behind it. He stated,
The renewing trees were very intentional.
We used Coastal Douglas Firs and they are a unique
species. They don’t form a taproot, they create a
root mat and so we talked about how in our faith we
root in the ground but we root together and we need
each other and we are interdependent and then we
grow together…little ones need more shade, so they
grow in the nursery of the forest like how we grow
together in society. We flourish and there’s all these
interdependencies… and our name is Westwood
and so we are like a forest and we are meant to root
into the Gospel and Christ and be mutually
supporting growing together sheltering the young
ones…then we are meant to bring renewal to the
world (Pastor Interview 5/10/17).
Making this logo was not done in any sort of rush or absent minded fugue: it was
meant to represent the congregation as the trees in the forest, which is the church.
This second picture more easily displays the Douglas Firs. This fascinating story

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and explanation will surely be having people wonder about the logo for years to
come. But what about inside the church? I was given permission and I made sure
to document the most beautiful and probably influential symbols in the building.
First, I brought up the framed wall art that states, “Jesus is renewing us” “To
renew the world”.

Pictures were created from Pastor Philip’s mind where he had nature and
renewal on his mind while forming these images. The un-offensive text and soft
lettering against a warm sunrise in a familiar forest not only makes one think of
nature, but it makes one think of regrowth, life, energy and peacefulness. These
types of things that were
probably the desired
effect.

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Pastor Philip proclaimed,
“No matter what you do for Jesus, it is an
eternal act and that the recreation of all things… is
to totally redeem. Restore, renew, what is. So what
I’m saying is theologically this gives you all kinds
of reasons to work for the renewal for this planet
right now…I think that everything we do for Jesus,
whether that’s digging in your garden, planting a
garden, or feeding the poor, I believe everything we
do for Jesus is ultimately an eternal act, and that the
re-creation of all things will come and God will
bring Earth back to its former beauty, and make it
even better as well as our human bodies…”restore
and renew”…This means that everything God wants
to do is my marching orders now” (Pastor Interview
5/10/17)
These words speak to renewal and life and taking action to care for creation.
From here we were able to discuss renewal and his concept of renewing ourselves
to renew the world. At this point we have come full circle regarding these specific
symbols. But there are many more which represent and environmental adoration
by Pastor Philip.

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To continue building theory with symbols, and to connect it to Geertz’
theory that religions make certain ideas appear as fact, it is important to display
the physical literature and symbols that were passed out each week I attended
service during this study. Just to clarify, the imagery has been chosen based on
my interviews and research as presenting symbols which do affect the moods and
motivations of the members because the ideas are stated as fact. That is not a
judgement on to what is fact. It is simply an explanation that the pastor’s role is to
present scripture and interpret it to you in order to understand the religion, the
gospel, and it is not presented as a question or a demand, but merely true scripture
which members should think about.
When I first attended for research, as
was stated previously, I arrived on a day that the
director of outreach was speaking about the
missions and the folks out there who need
support as well as opportunities for others to
serve. This is a huge part of evangelicalism
because it states in the Bible that they must do
so, and it is the first and for most goal from what
I understand. The program from this day shows
social support and multiple ethnicities, clearly

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supporting the phrase on the front, “Renew the World.” Now that we know how
Pastor Philip feels about “renewal” it isn’t difficult to understand why this would
be on the literature. Additionally, it is an earthy blue that summons ideas of
oceans and seas…across the planet.
After this service a new series of sermons began that was called “Exiles:
In a World That’s Not Our
Own”. The cover of this was a
vast desert that meets up with a
cool, teal blue lake with land
behind it and a crystal clear dark
blue sky.
“In a world that’s not our
own” means in the world that the
creator made, we are here, but it
is the creator’s planet. That is the
LEE way to interpret it and
Creation Care supporters would
agree. Then they would agree
that being the Creator’s planet is exactly why we should love and value it. Pastor
Philip explained in his interview that to him, “One of the best places that I

115

connect with God is in nature. There’s nothing better than a mountain range with
snow on it, or the beach, especially Ruby Beach.” (Pastor Interview, 5/10/17).
Also supportive of my understanding, he stated, “The Bible is very transcendent
but also very Earthy…So it’s about God and his glory …but there’s also a great
sense of which there’s a great beauty and delight in what God has made. It’s his
creation. Glory.” Finally, Pastor Philip stated that “The Christian understanding
of that (why everyone sees beauty in things like sunsets and mountains etc.) is
that Nature is not just functional, but it’s a gift, it’s beautiful, it’s made by God,
he’s put his creative work into creation and therefore it is to be prized and taken
care of. It has that intrinsic dignity and beauty and value. Right? It does! And I
think people have always observed that, that’s
why even people who don’t believe in God can
see” (the beauty He has put for us in nature).
I did speak to Pastor Philip about the
Renew Oly program. When I signed up to
possibly help, I was told that the program goes
and helps people in all sorts of ways, including
outdoor work. (I remember telling the Pastor
SEE? You’re an environmentalist!). Just looking

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at the flyer indicated there were natural symbols seeping in from everywhere in
this church.

Palm Sunday and Easter were the
last two scheduled research days
and the programs didn’t let me
down. On Palm Sunday they
passed out a beautiful program
with palm fronds, a spider web
with dew drops all shining in the
sun.

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The Easter the program cover did
not portray the stereotypical
Easter images like the crucifixion
or the crown of thorns. Instead it
was splashed with watercolors,
looking vibrant and fresh for
spring rather than held back by
more traditional and conservative
services. The interesting thing,
then, about this literature is
almost the lack of any symbols.
There were also some images
which I was able to capture and show here. The beauty of nature comes through.
Just as the Pastor’s words have been resonating throughout this paper.

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Below are additional examples of environmental imagery at WBC.

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Discussion
“The nations raged, but your wrath came, and the time for the dead to be judged…for destroying
the destroyers of the Earth” (ESV, Rev, 11:18)

Since evangelical environmentalism is a fairly recent movement, the
preliminary studies can only be added to in the future. Studying the progression
in this movement will not only reveal the success or failure of its goals, but it will
also give future researchers insight as to how U.S. residents identify themselves in
relation to environmental crises and religion. Perhaps LEE groups will converge
with secular environmentalists in some way. Or maybe they will somehow
convert CEEs and enlist their numbers to help achieve their goals. It seems
unlikely that LEE groups will combine with other groups that currently exist but
perhaps other groups will join with them instead.
Just because EEs aren’t scientists, doesn’t mean they don’t understand the
impacts of climate change. People catch on. Even if they surround themselves
with a particular point of view, like conservativism or evangelicalism, they still
see the science and are making up their own minds. If they are going to continue
spreading the gospel and living the life they believe God wanted for us all, they,
like scientists, must be involved with doing what we can to include this major
global factor, climate change, and to make connections with environmentalism
and the bible. Because the Bible preaches lessons we can and should learn
depending on your beliefs, often this includes environmentalist ideas. Around 100

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groups like the EEN have sprung up over the last few years and representing at
least a small part in nearly every state
(http://fore.yale.edu/religion/christianity/projects/evangelical_envt/).
It has been taking time gaining momentum but it is clear that evangelicals
are becoming more open to environmentalism. To have an impact on protecting
the Earth and reducing their impact on the changing climate; they must play
stewardship role rather than the dominating way people have been justifying
environmental destruction for hundreds of years. So you can see, there are
players of every type in this task of addressing serious policy changes to support
environmentalism and slow or reduce climate change.
This research is not attempting to state that religion or religious
evangelical beliefs are pushing people to make up scripture that supports
environmentalism. In fact I would say that this research supports environmental
scripture that has always been present, but was not addressed for a very long time,
and now that the Earth’s climate is in jeopardy, a lot of religious groups are
looking to the bible for an understanding of what is happening and what, if
anything, they should do about it. So at LEE churches, members are being shown
that the meaning of these texts is to care for everyone AND the Earth. It’s that
these themes were always in the Bible, but climate change wasn’t a threat so they
were not emphasized. The most important thing was spreading the gospel, but

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maybe that meant the work to remain as stewards of the earth as well so that we
would survive global warming.
Using Geertz and Douglas’ theory to apply to the WBC made it very clear
to me that there will always be symbols and rituals which influence us. My work
at the WBC applies as well because the church fits into Geertz’ theory, it has new,
modernized symbols and equipment, which create new rituals according to
Douglas, and we can clearly see evidence of environmentalist or even nature lover
passed through into the programs, art, sermons and community outreach. WBC is
an LEE church because (even if Pastor Philip didn’t realize it because he was so
invested and concentrating of the event) they do in fact participate in activism
from building a butterfly garden in town to supplying 2000 water filters to poor
Chinese people near one of their missions. This research is important because we
need larger numbers of people who agree on climate change in order to fight those
who would press on, selling coal and oil, so they can continue to be billionaires,
while we fail to have clean water. Evangelicals want to care for God’s creation,
even if they don’t feel it is their place to try and “fix” it. Pastor Philip made that
clear, that they are not trying to save the world; only Jesus can do that…Jesus
saves. However, we can try to keep the world from dying. We can beautify our
world and we can certainly work for causes that protect nature. This is for
evangelicals, atheists or orangutans for that matter. We all want to live on this
planet and we all have the end goal sight. Environmentalists need to work on

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understanding evangelicals so we can ignore our differences and protect the water
and earth and animals and other people together for the same reason…because it’s
right and we are in this tougher. WWJD? “Jesus is Renewing us…To Renew the
World”. It seems this church, the WBC, has gotten a lot of things right that
secular environmentalists can respect. You don’t have to be evangelical to
understand what Jesus would do, even as a fictional character, we all know what
Jesus would do. And the idea that we should feel renewed and go out and renew
the world perfectly summarizes the ideology which is trickling down from Pastor
Philip’s sermons and into the hearts and souls of his congregation. As we will see
an increase of studies it is important because we can look all across time and
watch environmentalism seep into various, previously unconcerned, groups such
as evangelicals.

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