Peter Illyn, Restoring Eden

Peter Illyn is executive director of Restoring Eden, a nonprofit working to make environmental stewardship a core Christian value.

Today I awoke to another cold day in southeast Alaska. I feel slightly repentant because last night the Northern Lights appeared, but it was too cold to enjoy the view. I lasted less than five minutes outdoors before I retreated back to my room to get warm. My need for comfort was greater than my willingness to be inspired by the shimmering light. An apt metaphor for our ecological condition: Personal comfort wins out over the appreciation of nature.

The students from Palm Beach Atlantic University began work on the totem poles yesterday, but the weather was so cold that they didn't last long. They all brought the warmest clothes they could find in South Florida, many of them scouring the thrift stores for jackets, hats, and gloves. But 10 degrees is cold no matter what you wear. The cold front came with a positive payoff, however: The sky is crystal blue and the mountains crystal white. We'll try again today.

I am preparing myself to host a community outreach in the town library tonight. I will become a traditional evangelical evangelist -- come to town, lay down the Word of God, stir up some passion, and call the people to action! Called the "Theology of Wild," my message takes a look at biblical Christianity and the stewardship of nature.

Haines has a population of 1,200. Small town Alaska is an intimidating place to try to build grassroots support for the environment. Many people blame environmentalists for the closure of the mills and the rise in unemployment. Here, we are labeled as radicals: anti-people, anti-job, and anti-American. To come into a small, rural, economically depressed town and try to build support for sustainable behavior is risky.

The anticipation is the worst part. I confess that I also worry that no one will show up. Sometimes I speak to a standing-room-only crowd, other times to an almost-empty room. Try as I will to not make the attendance numbers feel personal, they always do. I can feel my anxiety growing this morning.

The newspaper had a small article announcing the event. Yesterday, I did a short interview on the radio. The local newspaper is scheduled to come by for a complete story. If I had more money, I would have run a small ad in the newspaper for two weeks prior to speaking. Some local volunteers have put posters up around town. I sent letters to all the churches, but pastors tend to be reluctant to spread the word about some unknown speaker talking about a controversial topic. That's okay; one goal of the initial visit to any community is to begin building relationships.

The students have been wonderfully adaptive to the process of becoming environmentalists. They spent the past three months raising money for the trip through donations, rock concerts, and bake sales. Many admit that they came simply for the adventure of seeing Alaska. Only a few describe themselves as hardcore environmentalists, but they are all beginning to see the complex interrelationships between biological integrity, nature appreciation, sustainable local economies, social justice, and tribal cultures.

Every morning begins with a devotional where the students read and discuss a portion of a wonderful booklet called "Celebrating the Wonder of Creation," written by Dean Ohlman of the Radio Bible Church, a conservative radio ministry that has "grasped the vision" of environmental stewardship.

During these devotionals, the students explore the historic Christian connections to creation care -- our lingo for environmental stewardship. Early on, it became clear that many had never thought about the needs of wild ecosystems. They thought environmental stewardship consisted of recycling instead of littering. Most had never seen intact, pristine forests that were slated for logging. None had ever hugged a tree destined to die.

Last night, four members of the local conservation organization, Lynn Canal Conservation Group, came and spoke to the students, who were impressed by the speakers' passion and commitment to preserving wild lands. The speakers admitted that most of their adversaries were conservative Christians.

Later, during our evening debriefing, the students discussed how many of the environmentalists they had met were avowed non-Christians and that most Christians were avowed anti-environmentalists. They discussed how our favorite bumper sticker ("If you love the Creator, take care of creation") seems such a simple truth, but is seldom lived out in the world around us. The question became which had greater influence on our core value systems: Does our faith impact our social values? Or, do social values define our faith? We concluded that the answer was both -- our faith should impact society and society definitely redefines our faith.

The students concluded that if we could learn to love, serve, and protect God's creation, we will build up our faith and change life. This is my hope for the students. This is my hope for the Earth. This is my hope for my soul.