Ken Kyte’s recent articles in the NZ Baptist have been asking, “What is the future of planet Earth?” This question has been prompted by considering the claims of contemporary climate science.

However, I have heard very few climate scientists saying that we are looking at the end of life on Earth. Instead, most are predicting that “business as usual” will cause the deaths of many millions of people over the next 50 years.

What does the Bible have to say about that?

Firstly, we cannot rely on God preventing such enormous suffering. I know of no biblical promises to that effect, and it is something that God has allowed in the past. For example, in the 14th Century he allowed the Black Death to kill around 15% of all people on the planet.

Secondly, the scientists say that this is a catastrophe that we can prevent by radically changing our lifestyles. Should we try to do so? Jesus calls us to love our neighbours as ourselves (e.g. Luke 10:27), and that anyone who is in need is our neighbour (Luke 10). We are also told that God has a special concern for the widow and the orphan (who were the most vulnerable members of society in biblical times) - e.g. Deuteronomy 10:17-18, Exodus 22:21-22, James 1:27. Such vulnerable people are the very people climate scientists say will be most grievously affected by a changing climate.

Surely then our biblical response to talk of climate change should be to do everything we can to prevent it, to reduce the carbon-intensity of our lifestyles in love for our neighbours in Bangladesh, the Pacific and elsewhere.

– Heather Roberts
Avondale, Auckland