April is an important month for most religions and it’s worth considering what our various religions say about humanity’s relationship to nature.
Christianity (Easter 7-10 April): Many bible verses talk about protecting the environment. Christians have environmental responsibility and should encourage behavioural change for the good of the future (OpenBible.info). “Do not pollute the land where you are. Bloodshed pollutes the land, and atonement cannot be made for the land on which blood has been shed, except by the blood of the one who shed it.” (Numbers 35:33); “When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, ‘Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” (John 6:12)
Hinduism (Hanuman Jayanti 6 April): The sacred texts often refer to divinity as related to nature, such as rivers, mountains, trees, animals and the earth. “There is an inseparable bond between man and nature. For man, there cannot be an existence removed from nature.” (Amma, 2011)
Islam (Ramadan 21 March – 21 April): Hundreds of Qur’an verses support the protection of the environment and humanity’s responsibility to protect and ensure the unity (Tawheed) of God’s creation. Islam prohibits the excessive consumption of resources (Qur’an 7:31, 6:141, 17:26-27, 40:34) and the Qur’an mentions wasteful consumption as the thirty-second greatest sin. “Devote thyself single-mindedly to the faith, and thus follow the nature designed by Allah, the nature according to which He has fashioned mankind. There is no altering the creation of Allah.” (Qur’an 30:30); “Do not strut arrogantly on the earth. You will never split the earth apart nor will you ever rival the mountains’ stature” (Qur’an 17: 37).
Traditional African religions regard nature as a gift by a supreme Creator God. A host of nature spirits associated with animal and tree species and sacred forests, rivers, lakes, and mountains remind communities of their need to respect the environment and use it sustainably. Water is recognised as both an essential life force and a source of strong spiritual power. Skills in healing, sacred knowledge, psychic abilities, and medicinal plants are gifts imparted to those chosen by the water spirits.
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