Contradictory biblical stewardship verses let religious radicals deny environmental protection

Evidence

However, elsewhere the Bible advocates responsible stewardship of all of God’s creations. These contradictory verses provide grounds for radical followers to oppose, in God’s name, initiatives designed to curb environmental degradation. Some not only view resources as there for the taking but believe that God preferentially placed valuable ones in their homeland. As one tea party supporter said, “Being a strong Christian, I cannot help but believe the Lord placed a lot of minerals in our country and it’s [ sic] not there to destroy us” (Broder, 2010). At a political gathering, another adherent cited the Bible in arguing that global warming “is a flat out lie.” He continued, “I read my Bible. He made this earth for us to utilize” (Broder, 2010). — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 2516

Categorization

• SEED: Angle: how one ambiguous scripture (dominion vs. stewardship) gets weaponized by opposing political camps as moral disengagement’s scriptural ground — selective literalism.
• XREF: connects to: Biblical justifications supplied governing rationale for EPA regulatory rollbacks — Katherine Stewart, The Power Worshippers: Inside the…, 175