Monday, December 28, 2020

Right Mindfulness: Managing ecological stress

God be in my head, and in my understanding; God be in mine eyes, and in my looking; God be in my mouth, and in my speaking: god be in mine heart, and in my thinking; God be at my end, and and my departing.   - John Rutter (b. 1945)

This is the final installment in the series the Eightfold Path of Environmental Action. It is a companion to The Seed, a short film created by the Stewardship of the Environment Committee in the Anglican Diocese of Montreal.

Many Christians are troubled by climate change, biodiversity loss and ecological degradation. Despite the emotional weight (or perhaps because of it) many of us feel called by our faith to address these environmental concerns. As Anglicans we are called by the fifth mark of mission. However, our failure to heed the call to be good stewards of the earth has caused many Christians to experience what is known as ecological anxiety (eco-anxiety) and ecological grief (eco-grief). 
  
The stress, anxiety and fear associated with ecological awareness can be painful and even debilitating.  This pain is amplified by the failure of many faith leaders to prioritize climate action. While faith traditions are well positioned to be environmental leaders, in many instances they have been slow to act.  Despite sincere efforts from some church groups, and leaders like Pope Francis, many church leaders are not prioritizing creation care.  This is certainly true in the Anglican Church of Canada and in dioceses across the country.   For some this failure of leadership is the cause of disinterest in or estrangement from the institutional church.

There are a wide range of Christian responses to eco-anxiety and eco-grief. Some Christians have advanced approaches to managing climate stress that are compatible with established psycho-social techniques while others are dismissive.

Earlier this year a Christian conservation biologist by the name of Xandra Carroll described her experience with eco-grief and eco-anxiety.  She has researched and written extensively about the spiritual dimensions of eco-anxiety and hope. In a May 2020 article, titled Eco-Anxiety and Christian Faith, A Christian Response to Eco-anxiety Carroll wrote about how many in her community were “politely reversing” her environmental efforts.  This spawned what she describes as a, “debilitating grief at our environmental crisis”. 

Carroll argues for a “facts first feelings second approach”. She points to efforts being made to take stock of environmental damage and she suggests that grief can be a motivating factor encouraging people to engage in efforts to address this damage. She says: “God himself is grieved at abuse and corruption of the natural world, often correlated with human wickedness.”   And she cites the call to repentance in Joel 1: “All the trees of the field are dried up and gladness dries up from the children of man…Even the beasts of the field pant for You because the water has dried up.”  Biblically speaking, she states that “rebellion and wickedness led to a corruption of the natural world” (Genesis 3:17) and repentance or ‘turning back’ to God leads to a restoration that also affects the natural sphere (Romans 8:19-23).

While she believes grief can be an effective impetus to act, she does not think it is helpful to be anxious or fearful.  She explains that the scriptures are “replete with passages exhorting us to stand firm and not succumb to fear.”  Quoting 2 Timothy 1:7 she writes: “God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”  She suggests we transcend our limited understanding and put our faith in the peace of God and in Jesus. 

However, she clearly states that this does not justify ignoring these crisis.   Carroll says our faith “allows us to march with confidence into any storm.  When we cast our fear on Jesus we are dressing ourselves in His perfect love.  Thus, we are equipped to face any problem with confidence and faith instead of debilitating fear and timidity.”

She characterizes concerns about ecological destruction as valid but adds that “some of the fear we feel around a broken landscape stems from anxiety about our own impermanence and brokenness…. Even if the natural world was perfect, it could never be a source of our ultimate security.” Carroll says, only “the person of Jesus offers us that foundation…Therefore, let us face our ecological crisis head-on, knowing how deeply loved we are by the Creator of all.  His heart is surely grieved by the destruction of our natural world, and it grieves us also because we share His heart.  Praise God that we can face this crisis without the anxiety that catastrophises, and without the ignorance that perpetuates the problem.  We can march into our generation’s hardships with truth, love, and confidence in Christ.”

Some Christians are more fatalistic and eschatological. They see pollution as a result of the sin of a fallen world. As such it is incurable by education, politics, or any other man-made reform.  Such apocalyptic narratives see all of creation as intended for destruction, “the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire”. (2 Peter 3:7).  In this narrative God is cast as using the climate catastrophe as a way of bringing about his final judgement. So, in response to eco-anxiety these people would council us to look beyond this world filled with sorrow and wait “for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:-13). However, some who harbour such views are concerned enough about this world to be apologists for the fossil fuel industry which (the primary driver of climate change).  These people commonly support the burning hydrocarbons often by referencing the jobs that this sector provides (even though clean sources of energy like renewables provide far more jobs). 

Others are less fatalistic about eco-anxiety, seeing it as more of a aspiritual challenge than an intractable reality. So while some Christians wait for God to install a new heaven and a new earth, others are acting. Such action may hold the key to being good stewards and managing eco-grief and eco-anxiety.  Coming together with people who share our environmental concerns can contribute to our health and well-being. “Where two or three are gathered, the presence of Christ is strengthened” (Matthew 18:20).

Christians in 80 cities across 33 countries have participated in nonviolent, climate actions as part of the ‘Extinction Rebellion’ (XR). In 2019 XR member Panu Pihkala posted a couple of articles in which she explores the emotional side of the environmental movement from a Christian perspective.   

In an article titled “Eco-anxiety: The psychological and spiritual toll of the environmental crisis,” she points to the high burnout rate of environmentalists and environmental researchers.  She explains that part of the problem is the way that we speak (or our failure to speak) about our emotions related to our environmental concerns.  Pihkala makes a plea for us to honor the wisdom of the so-called negative emotions (grief, anger, and fear) and channel them in non-violent ways.  She makes the claim that grief can “lead to purification and a restoration of joy” while anger can be “a key source of energy for non-violent activism”. She suggests we should talk about our fears and work together to counter them.  

In another article Pihkala argues that negative emotions are destructive when they transform into anxiety. She says to avoid anxiety we need to avail ourselves of resources that can help us process negative feelings. She advocates a way of living with grief and despair that may ultimately give way to a “new determination to practice hope”.  

Consistent with the often-repeated refrain from psychologists that we must make room to mourn and give ourselves permission to grieve, Pihkala says despair is part of life and she points to the Biblical history of despair among believers and in Scripture (eg Psalms and Jesus in Gethsemane). She draws an important distinction between hope and optimism as follows: “With optimism, people make estimates of likely outcomes. But it is possible to hope without calculating probabilities. There is ‘hope against hope’ (Rom. 4:18).” She says this type of hope is about meaningfulness. She cites Vaclav Havel who said, “Hope is not the conviction that something will turn out well; but the certainty that something makes sense, regardless of how it turns out.”

Pihkala distinguishes between despair and hopelessness saying that despair can be a catalyst for action, but hopelessness is the “true danger” because it reflects a “total lack of meaning.” She says we cannot turn away from the deadly impacts of our way of life, nor can we ignore the emotions of those who are anguished and cry out. As she explains, “we have a duty of mutual spiritual care.” 

Hope and love are defining features of the Christian faith and they are to essential to managing the psychological strain associated with the multiple crises we face.  The hope that we can create a better future can inspire us to work towards realizing it.  Being hopeful may come in part from being able to articulate a vision of a new Eden in which we restore the Earth’s biodiversity, protect nature, and preserve the beauty of this planet.

Love may be the most powerful tool Christians have in our efforts to be good stewards and be psychologically heathy. Love not only offers a powerful impetus to act, it is also an effective way of combatting ecological stress (eco-grief and eco-anxiety).  As we endeavor to make life livable for future generations, we realize that we acting because we care about something bigger than ourselves.  It may start with love for our children, but this love can expand to include all of creation. Love gives us the strength to keep going and it helps us to live with pain and uncertainty.   

For more information click on the following link: Managing Ecological Anxiety and Grief

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