Dominion and Stewardship: Imaging God in Creation
16 Pages Posted: 19 Feb 2015 Last revised: 2 Dec 2023
Date Written: December 14, 2013
Abstract
Does the Book of Genesis authorize human beings to ruthlessly exploit nature? Many environmentalist critics of Christianity, and some Christians who are overly skeptical of environmentalism, think so. However, a careful reading of the key passage where God gives human beings dominion over creation—Genesis 1:28—reveals this to be a misunderstanding. Human dominion is meant to mirror God’s, and God creates life and delights in what he has created. Genesis depicts God as creating human beings to exercise good stewardship for creation. Human nature, too, shows that human beings flourish from doing so. Dominion should not be understood as tyranny over creation, but as love for it.
Keywords: theological anthropology, Genesis, image of God, imago Dei, Josef Pieper, stewardship, dominion, creation, flourishing, relation, environment, environmentalism, ecology, eco-theology
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation