The Patristic-Augustinian Contributions to the Contemporary Environmental Crisis

Abstract

Summary: This research consists of two distinct yet related parts. The first seeks to demonstrate that the ecological problem is a contemporary reality that emerged in the second half of the last century. In the field of theological studies, it is no different, with Ecotheology being a recent focus. Furthermore, the entry of theology into the ecological debate also has an apologetic dimension: for some environmentalists, the current ecological crisis has its roots in the Judeo-Christian tradition. The second part addresses the Patristic-Augustinian contributions to the debates surrounding the contemporary environmental crisis. The research is bibliographic, using primary and secondary sources. Given the impossibility of finding extensive and specific treatises on Ecotheology in the writings of the Church Fathers, it is nonetheless possible to find in patristics philosophical, ethical, and theological principles that regulate the relationship between humans and nature, which are not only reconcilable with current models of sustainable development, but also underpin and confirm them. Since a comprehensive approach to the ecological thought of the Fathers is impossible, this research work will focus on some points of the doctrines of Irenaeus, Basil, and, especially, Augustine.