Science Gateway: Extinction and Its Causes
October 20, 2008
by Kyle S. Van Houtan, from Creation Care magazine Issue 37, Fall 2008
Extinction
A key word scientists use to describe the biodiversity crisis may surprise you. “Extinction” literally refers to putting out a fire or light, and some of its early uses appear in Christian texts. The 1549 edition of the Book of Common Prayer, for example, petitions Christ to “grant that all sin and vice here may be so extinct” and so extinguish the fire of one’s sin. Other uses of the word are perhaps more familiar. In the King James Bible, an exasperated Job cries, “My breath is corrupt, my days are extinct, the graves are ready for me” (17:1), and the Oxford English Dictionary declares “the dodo went extinct.” This last example is what we might recognize. The passenger pigeon, ivory-billed woodpecker, or any number of other creatures come to mind. But a scientific account of animals and plants cannot by itself describe the significance of extinction. Driving an entire group of creatures to oblivion is more than a biological act: it is the extinguishing of a light kindled by the One whom James refers to as “the Father of lights” (1:17). Extinction is a theological act.
What Is a Species? How Many Are There? Read more
A Covenant with Creation
October 20, 2008
by Peter Illyn, from Creation Care magazine issue 37, Fall 2008
Fifteen years ago I cut my teeth as an environmental activist by building theological support for the protection of species and biological diversity. My story is simple. After 10 years as an evangelical minister, I bought two llamas and went on a 1,000 mile hike up the spine of the Cascade Mountains. During the four months of hiking, I developed a heart-felt relationship with the mountains, the meadows, the groves of trees, the songbirds, and the elk. Day after day, I sensed the praise and worship that Scripture says all parts of creation are offering to God. It was a sacred time.
Extinction Isn’t Stewardship
But it was also a conflicted time. Read more
