Environmentalism: Does Religion Play A Role In Society

Religion is hardwired into humans. It provides an individual and/or group of people a framework to understand the world that they are living in and how to respond or behave to experiences. Furthermore, religion does not require ones belief in a high power or supernatural being. It just requires a belief in something that a group or individual deems sacred.

Religion fills an essential role in society because it is the framework that groups of people use to understand the world around them. Every group has a common framework that they use to make sense out of life and guide their behaviors. It is an essential part of everyday life that shapes the experiences of a group. Religion and its symbols motivate and inspire the values that a group holds and it tells them how they should respond to and feel about the world. (Chernus, 1965).

Human nature demands an order and meaning (Garreau,). Critchen believed that, if religion were suppressed in one form, then it would re-emerge in another form. This is because humans need something to believe in. They need to know
that their life has meaning. They need religion to help them make sense of the world around them. This is evident in today’s society, where traditional religion is being rejected and creating a void. In order to meet society’s need for order and meaning this void is must be filed. (Garreau, ).

Religion has re-emerged in the form of Environmentalism backed by an urban atheist following in the Western World. In this form of religion, Earth is viewed as The Garden of Eden, and the fall from grace is viewed as the pollution caused by mankind, the result of mankind’s sins is the Day of Judgment or doomsday. Since religion does not require facts because it basis its framework on the beliefs of its followers, Environmentalism talks about an Eden a perfect world where there is unity with nature. However, if past history is reviewed the facts will show that there has never been unity with nature. Disease and famine are imbedded through out the history of man. There was a time when four out of five children died before the age of five due to disease. When Mother Nature showed us her wrath by wiping out villages of people in huge natural disasters (Critchen, ).

I believe that environmentalism is indeed a religion because its beliefs are not troubled by facts.
Therefore agreeing with Crinchton, Plimer, Garreau, and Nelson’s view of Environmentalism as a religion. Environmentalism velieves that Earth is sacred and needs to be protected from the pollution sinners that are leading mankind to the judgment day. That human have a purpose to take care of Earth through conservation of nature and creating a unity between mankind and the Earth. Environmentalists ignore historical facts that prove there has never been unity between mankind and Earth. They are feeling a void of order and meaning by believing in the concept that we are here on Earth to conserve the planet and create a harmonious relationship with nature. Religion does not require ones belief in a high power or supernatural being. It just requires a belief in something that a group or individual deems
sacred.