There are many people today for whom the most important questions about human beings' relationship to the natural world do not easily fit under such labels as 'scientific', 'ecological', or even 'moral'. For some people, the most central questions belong to religion-such as 'Was nature created by God for our use?', and if so, are there limits to our justifiable use of it? For other, not necessarily religious people, it is nevertheless the spiritual aspects of nature which should be a central dimension of environmental thinking. Spirit of the Environment examines the environmental attitudes of the major religions and on other important traditions of religious thought, such as pantheism. Also, there are chapters on art and nature, nature as a source and object of wonder, the Gaia hypothesis and on non-instrumental values which have inspired environmental concern. The contributors to Spirit of the Environment come from a variety of disciplines including philosophy, comparative religion, education and social anthropology. Some are commentating on religious or spiritual traditions while others propose new ways in which our relationship to nature might be regarded.Some reflect on central concepts which shape our thinking about that relationship, while others draw on empirical research to challenge familiar views about people's environmental attitudes. Spirit of the Environment is designed as a textbook for courses in environmental studies, education, philosophy and religious studies, where study of the environment is not limited to examining the efficient utilisation of the environment, but includes reflection on nature as the source and object of deep human aspirations. His Holiness Bartolomeus, Ecumencial Patriarch of Constantinople, Purushottama Bilimoria, Deakin University, Australia, Stephen R.L. Clark, University of Liverpool, UK, David E

Spirit of the Environment and Aesthetics

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