Philosophy of Religion and the Environment 6TH ANNUAL • WEATHERFORD COLLEGE • FRIDAY & SATURDAY, APRIL 5-6, 2024

Registration and Pricing

Conference registration for Weatherford College faculty, staff, and students is free, but registration is still required (Weatherford College registrants may be required to show their school ID at the conference registration table). Registration for non-Weatherford attendees will be $40. In addition to the paper presentations and plenary sessions, there will be a Q & A dinner featuring our keynote speaker and some of our presenters at the close of the conference on Saturday. The dinner will be held at a local restaurant and will be self-pay.

Welcome to Weatherford College

The world, it seems, is at a crossroads regarding environmental responsibility. While religion is often seen as antagonistic to environmental concerns, there is a rich history of religion’s engagement with nature, our use of resources, and human responsibility of stewardship and care for the environment. From Judeo/Christian scriptural traditions in Genesis, Psalms, Luke, and Romans to Hindu scriptural traditions in the Yajurveda, many religions embed care for creation in its religious laws. Now, however, the environment has been weaponized and politicized in ways that muddy the waters which seemed so clear to many throughout history. Must we choose between progress and the environment or is there a path forward that preserves both our way of life as a species and the world we inhabit? In light of such questions, Weatherford College is again pleased to host the 6th annual Philosophy of Religion Conference on the theme, “Philosophy of Religion and the Environment.” This weekend we will enjoy presentations for students and scholars as well as two keynote lectures in our Ben Arbour Memorial Lecture Series from Terra Schwerin Rowe.

My thanks to the Weatherford College administration for recognizing the potential an academic event such as this holds for our community of educators and students, and agreeing to fund this year’s conference. I also appreciate the support and encouragement of the greater Weatherford community including her faculty, staff, and students. Of particular note are President Farmer; Mike Endy, (without whose encouragement and support 7 years ago, this conference never would have begun); Scott Tarnowieckyi, Assistant Vice President of Student Services; for past and present support, administrative assistants, Debbie Alexander and Dana Orban; Dana Brewer and all of my other colleagues in the Humanities Department as well as those colleagues in my office bay, especially Jared Stewart. Katie Edwards from the graphics department, and all of the other support staff from the Business office to Public Relations to Graphic Design . . . you all have my deepest, heartfelt thanks. At risk of sounding the broken record, my hope for this event continues to be in hosting a respectable conference on a timely topic that would showcase the often-overlooked role of academics at a primarily two-year institution. Once again, Weatherford College has been given the opportunity to show that not only are such academic endeavors possible at an institution such as ours, but also that they can provide the means for a community college to add its diverse voice to a conversation taking place in the broader academic community. I hope you enjoy this weekend, taking advantage of the opportunity to listen and participate in that conversation.

SCHEDULE • 2024 CONFERENCE

FRIDAY, APRIL 5

• 2 p.m. - 3 p.m.: Registration & Coffee
• 3 p.m. - 3:50 p.m.: Session I
• 4 p.m. - 4:50 p.m.: Session II
• 5 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.: Dinner on your own
• 6:45 p.m. - 8 p.m.: The Arbour Memorial Lecture Series (Plenary Session I)

SATURDAY, APRIL 6

• 9 a.m. - 10 a.m.: Registration & Coffee
• 10 a.m. - 10:50 a.m.: Session III
• 11 a.m. - 11:50 a.m.: Session IV
• Noon - 1:00 p.m.: Lunch on your own
• 1:15 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.: The Arbour Memorial Lecture Series (Plenary II)
• 2:40 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.: Session V
• 3:40 p.m. - 4:40 p.m.: Session VI
• 5:30p.m. - 7:00 p.m.: Banquet at Shep's

Friday, April 5

2 P.M. - 3 P.M.: REGISTRATION & COFFEE

3 P.M. - 3:50 P.M.: SESSION I

“’The Heavens Being on Fire Shall Be Dissolved’: Jonathan Edwards on Conflagration and the Environment”

ACAD 109

Zack Tharp, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

At the intersection of the historical and theological, this paper analyses Jonathan Edwards’s view of conflagration during the apocalypse within his long-eighteenth century context. Despite renewed interest in the exegetical methods of Edwards, certain topical lacuna within the biblical corpus has remained largely ignored, such as how the Northampton theologian and exegete interpreted the biblical text to conceive of conflagration. Edwards mined the contours of particular texts on the nature of cleansing fire and the purgation of sin at the end of time as recorded in his “Miscellanies” and “Blank Bible” entries. Throughout the course of this paper, attention will be given to Edwards’s exegetical tendencies in conversation with his metaphysical commitments to idealism in order to properly nuance his view alongside his contemporaries, such as the Northamptonshire Particular Baptist minister and biblical exegete John Gill (1697–1771). Thus, this paper will elucidate demonstrative instances of Edwards’s view on conflagration and situate his thought with contemporary concerns for the environment.

“Dominion and Judgment”

ACAD 111 - Presentation via Zoom

JR Gilhooly, Cedarville University

In this paper, I explore some common Protestant lenses for viewing nature or the world. Two of these lenses are often applied to the environment but a conceptual slippage between nature, world, and the environment makes their application confused. I suggest some alternative lenses that might mitigate this conceptual drift.

4 P.M. - 4:50 P.M.: SESSION II

“Gender, Religion, and Sati in Colonial and Post-colonial South Asia”

ACAD 109

Richard Chelvan, Weatherford College

This essay provides a historiographical background for gender studies in general and studies of sati in particular in colonial and postcolonial South Asia. Sati can be defined as the voluntary or involuntary immolation of a widow on the funeral pyre of her husband. The imperialist and colonialist writers serve as a foil in contemporary debates and rarely discussed gender issues except to judge them from a Western or European point of view. The nationalist writers, pre- and post- colonial, usually cover women’s issues in relation to religious issues and the role of gender in the traditional society. The Cambridge school of historians generally writes on political developments in the history of South Asia. In reaction to the nationalist as well as the Cambridge historians, the Subaltern Studies Collective grew out of a group inaugurated by Ranajit Guha. The subaltern writers concentrate on writing about the under-represented peasants and eventually women of South Asia. Some of these schools of thought do not single out sati in particular; however, their methodology for using the archive has implications for their discussions on topics of gender. Opposing schools of thought react to differences in methodology as well as differences of opinion on gender issues.

“Toward an Interfaith Integral Ecology”

ACAD 111 - Presentation via Zoom

Chris Durante, St. Peter's University

I will argue that environmental injustices persist because the values of the neoliberal ethos have become so ingrained in our system over the course of the past few generations that for most people today, it is the values of this socioeconomic paradigm, rather than the values of their faith traditions, that are predominant in governing their social lives and molding their daily lifestyles. Yet, many of the world’s faiths denounce the vices of gluttony and greed that drive this socioeconomic system and encourage respect, if not reverence, for the natural world. For instance, many Christian eco-theologians advance as vision of “stewardship” in which care for the poor and care for the earth are intimately interrelated. Similarly, in the 1970s, the Buddhist economist E.F. Schumacher had argued that a good economy ought to be designed in such a way as to provide all members of society with a sufficient degree of well-being and livelihoods that do not cause harm to others, and which promote service to the public good of the communities in which they live. Schumacher’s Buddhist economics shares much in common with Catholic Social Teaching and many of the ideas he espoused resonate with views that have been expressed by other religious traditions: including the Abrahamic faiths as well as Hinduism, Taoism and various indigenous forms of spirituality. Therefore, I seek to lay the foundations of an Interfaith approach to Integral Ecology with which we can transfigure and transform our global neoliberal order and begin to adopt alternative socio-economic systems that promote rather than stifle environmental justice.

5 P.M. - 6:30 P.M.: DINNER ON YOUR OWN

6:45 P.M. - 8 P.M.: ARBOUR MEMORIAL LECTURE SERIES (PLENARY SESSION I)

“Disenchantment and Domination: Rethinking Philosophy of Religion and Environment”

ACAD 106

Terra Schwerin Rowe, University of North Texas

Saturday, April 6

9 A.M. - 10 A.M.: REGISTRATION & COFFEE

10 A.M. - 10:50 A.M.: SESSION III

“Caring for a Fallen Creation”

ACAD 109

David Williams, Institute of Philosophical and Theological Research

“Man vs. Nature: Narrative Theodicy and the Problem of an Evil Environment”

ACAD 111

Keith S. Lindley, Dallas Theological Seminary

Of the objections levied against Free Will Theodicy, perhaps the most well-known is that related to the problem of an evil environment. Provided this reality, when accounting for evils outside the purview of human moral responsibility—those such as hurricanes and earthquakes, droughts and floods, microbial infections and animal maulings—one is seemingly left with few options. Due to a shared commitment to morally significant action, however, Narrative Theodicy might possibly assist the Free Will Theodicist in thwarting these objections from environmental evil. Indeed, the tangible presence of these evils facilitate the plot conflict needed for Titanic, The Revenant, and 127 Hours, amidst others, as environmental challenges provide ample opportunity for the types of moral heroism commonly found in the greatest works of narrative art.

11 A.M. - 11:50 A.M.: SESSION IV

“Malfunctioning Machines, Mining Demons, Enchanted Electricity: A New Materialist Approach to Agential Assemblages”

ACAD 111

Sue McRae, University of North Texas

In this paper I am interested in creating a productive dialogue between accounts of demonic mining spirits, known as daemones (Daemon subterraneus truculentus) by Georgius Agricola, with early alchemical understandings of mined materials, especially metals and minerals used for modern-day machines, and enchanted electricity, especially as related to nineteenth century spiritualism. Special consideration is given to ideas around animation and enchantment of matter through new materialist lenses. Can these ideas be applied to modern malfunctioning machines such as smartphones? Can technological glitches, even entire electrical grid failures, and further unexplainable (and unsolvable) technical difficulties be analyzed through a religio-technical exploration of entities which live or have transferred forms of “willpower” through their own agential assemblage, or electricity, to mined materials for modern usage?

NOON - 1 P.M.: LUNCH ON YOUR OWN

1:15 P.M. - 2:30 P.M.: THE ARBOUR MEMORIAL LECTURE SERIES (PLENARY II)

“Energy Enchantments, Energy Imaginaries: Philosophy and Religion in Energy Cultures”

ACAD 106

Terra Schwerin Rowe, University of North Texas

2:40 P.M. - 3:30 P.M.: SESSION V

“Nature as a universal language: Philosophers Henry Thoreau and Arne Naess in the natural environment”

ACAD 109

Madison Claridy, Tarleton State University

Environmental philosophy, as a perceptible sphere of academic thought, formed at the hands of many scholars throughout the centuries, but perhaps two of the most eccentric figures for their respective times are Henry Thoreau and Arne Naess. Henry Thoreau (1817-1862) and Arne Naess (1912-2009) contributed novel ideals to the realm of environmental philosophy with widely underrated religious implications. Both philosophers believed that religion does not require institutional or organizational structures to have religious experiences. Nature manifests humans’ concept of God, and one need not look further than this simple and universal phenomenon. Humans’ connection to nature is, in its own right, a gateway to religious experiences. Moreover, ecological thinking is the basis that informs their philosophical principles.

“Biblical Ethics, Moral Impurity, and the Problem of What to Do with Evil”

ACAD 111

Dennis Plaisted, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

A fascinating issue in applied ethics is the question of when it is permissible to appropriate the products of someone’s evil action. Should today’s medical researchers, for example, be permitted to cite medical data obtained from the grossly unethical experiments conducted by the Nazis during World War II? As Biblical examples abound (Deuteronomy 23:18 regarding prostitution wages brought to the temple and 1 Corinthians 8 and 10:23-33 regarding eating meat sacrificed to idles, to name two examples), my primary aim in this paper is to develop an account of the Bible’s ethics for appropriating evil. I will describe the basic features of appropriation problems and the rationales that are offered to oppose appropriation in applied ethics contexts. Next, I will consider how various appropriation instances are handled in the Bible and argue that the Bible, to varying degrees, also invokes the aforementioned rationales. Lastly, I will set forth a philosophical-theological application of this material and argue that Old Testament cases of moral defilement can be well explained by the appropriation of evil model. Sexual immorality, idolatry, and bloodshed are said to defile the land, the sinner, and the sanctuary (see e.g., Lev 18:24-30, 19:31, 20:1-3, Num 35:33-34). Many scholars have come to refer to this type of defilement as moral impurity. I maintain that these cases of moral impurity display the pattern of appropriation of evil and can be productively studied with that concept.

3:40 P.M. - 4:40 P.M.: SESSION VI

“An Evaluation of Callicott’s Ethical Holism”

ACAD 109

Hyun Yang, University of North Texas

Ethical holism is an ethical theory that ascribes moral status to ecological communities. Early J. B. Callicott suggests that the good of the biotic community can be prioritized over that of community members. Evaluating Callicott’s ethical holism on the basis of six criteria for plausible ethical holism (Endorsing ecological communities as an entity with moral standing, Independency as an ethical theory, Rejection of absolutism, Anti-relativism, Encompassing norms for both the natural and artificial environments, and Opposition to unrestrained human exploitation), I will argue that early Callicott’s ethical holism allows for unrestrained human exploitation and thus violates the sixth criterion. While late Callicott’s theory cannot satisfy the independency condition which violates the second criterion.

“Christian and Jewish Versions of the Free Will Defense: Alvin Plantinga and Eliezer Berkovits”

ACAD 111

Tim Yoder, Dallas Theological Seminary

Christian apologists are well-acquainted with Alvin Plantinga’s free will defense published in God, Freedom, and Evil. Less well known is the parallel work, Faith After the Holocaust, by a Jewish orthodox theologian, Eliezer Berkovits in which he defends Yahweh in light of the Holocaust. An important contribution that Berkovits makes regarding the free will defense involves the distinctive Jewish belief in hester pannim (the hidden face of God). Berkovits asserted that if humans are to act on the basis of their own responsibility, then God must hide his power and majesty. However, humans left to their own devices are capable of great evil. Thus, God must walk a fine line between over-awing and under-ruling. This balancing act of God leads to two implications—innocent people will suffer, and evil will not conquer the good. The goal of this paper is to explore this contribution to the free will defense tradition.

5:30 P.M. - 7 P.M.: BANQUET at SHEP'S