He's got a point about the environmentalists not asking god for help.  Haven't yet seen a prayer offered up on Grist to slow global warming.

The idea that man could not have fouled up the atmosphere because that would denying the power of God (or some other similar divine principle) is a consistent and long-standing theme in denier thinking. Richard Lindzen even mentioned it in testimony before the Senate. So enviros who want to win over these folks should be thinking of good counter-arguments, no matter how absurd the God-wouldn't-allow-it proposition might seem at first glance.

My suspicion is that those counter-arguments will not be found in theology, because religious arguments can't be disproven. Instead, I think we would be better off trying to bring Chris Allen types down to earth.  

For example, perhaps we could ask: Mr. Allen, if God wanted to do something about global warming, might He cool the planet with an enormous volcanic eruption? (Which is one known method: cf. Mt. Pinotubo). And if Allen says yes, the next obvious question would be: how soon do you think He will act to set off such an eruption?  

And Allen types answer that he couldn't possibly know, then the logical response would be -- why do you then assume that temperatures will not rise to dangerous levels, as scientists around the world project it will?

Satan is really in charge.  God has retired to His Florida resort, and will be surprised to wake up one day to see everything under water.

Otherwise why would He have given us the Bush administration?

http://www.dailykos.com/User/Cassiodorus

Isaiah 5:8-10

Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth! In mine ears said the LORD of hosts, Of a truth many houses shall be desolate, even great and fair, without inhabitant. Yea, ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and the seed of an homer shall yield an ephah.

Okay, I'll admit that it doesn't directly mention global warming. However, land use is important and is one of the ways that humans are destroying God's earth. Don't believe it? Try Revelation.

excerpt from Revelation 11:18
(God will) destroy those who destroy the earth.

That someone who was destroying the earth (particularly the nations of the world as previously elucidated) means that it can be destroyed and by humans.

So, in other words don't trust someone (Chris Allen) who claims that God is the ultimate authority but obviously is unwilling to put the time into understanding scripture.

As for the concept of prayer on Grist, I wouldn't mind a prayer of the week, but to be perfectly honest a blog is a lousy place to discuss religion. Inevitably people get angry and instead of giving the other side the benefit of the doubt each side will attack whatever they feel to be unjust to their opinion/worldview.

Minor correction:  I rather doubt that Inhofe is scanning the Internet: this is a {Marc Morano & colleagues}.  Inhofe just funds the work.  Discredit where discredit is due.

-John Mashey

I claim no expertise but I seem to recall that we are given free will by God. That includes the freedom to screw up. I don't think God makes any promises to save our physical lives just our immortal souls.

Our treatment of the planet and all its inhabitants seems like a pretty good litmus test for who gets into heaven. Forgive me if I get it wrong but didn't Christ say that it was easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to achieve the kingdom of heaven?

Roy Spencer, Creationist and official climatologist for Rush Limbaugh.

So you think this guy is a religious nut?  I'm afraid the AGW promoters have used the same logic and tactics, from Sen. Boxer's infamous testimony of evangelicals on AGW to this quote from a speech by the Peace Prize winner:  

""Every faith tradition has teachings that are directly on point [to climate change]," Gore told the packed audience, which included former first daughter Chelsea Clinton.

"The Book of Revelation [says] God will destroy those who destroy his creation," Gore said, noting that some evangelical Christian leaders have expressed concern about climate change. "Whatever works," Gore added, prompting applause and laughter. "

A question I have about the Inhofe 400 is, why was there 19 000 claimed to have signed the Oregon Petition in 2001 and only 400 now?   That's a drop of 98 percent.   And with the exposing of some of the Inhofe 400 as not particularly research climate science orientated, Inhofe should have been able to get more than 400 to sign on.

Even a global warming denier can track the pattern in a drop of 98 percent in 6 years as significant.  What's going to happen in 6 more years, down to 12?    

Thats because most of those people who signed were either

Medical doctors/interns/nurses
Not really qualified in medical science
Business
Ficticious
Fraudulently signed by movie stars ;D

Pretty much that was merely 19,000 people.

Not climate experts, not even PhD's outside of climate science.  Just people.

You forgot your biggest friends, Babs Boxer, MoveOn.org, DailyKos, and the Socialist Workers Party in numerous countries.

Zack-

I don't think Houghton is in for any criticism.  There is a big difference between looking to religion for guidance about how to act vs. saying, "I don't have to worry about this because God will take care of it."  

Houghton is simply expressing his preferences for action, which are informed by religion.  Nothing wrong with that.

Chris Allen, on the other hand, is saying that the science must be wrong because God wouldn't let it be right.  That's quite different.  If you went to a doctor and he told, "You have terminal cancer, but don't worry, God won't let you die because he created you," you'd think he was a nutbag.  And you'd be right.

Though I agree that what Allen said is pretty stupid, I don't know that the differences are that big.

Both are using their religious beliefs to justify action (or inaction) in regards to our effects on climate.