Planting the Seeds of the Future: Eschatological Environmentalism in the Time of the Anthropocene

Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, this essay examines how the local Jehovah's Witnesses' response to the current ecological crisis on the Galápagos Islands has produced a distinct form of religious environmentalism. Specifically, I argue that the Jehovah's Witnesses' vision of t...

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Detalhes bibliográficos
Autor principal: Bocci, Paolo (Author)
Tipo de documento: Recurso Electrónico Artigo
Idioma:Inglês
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Publicado em: MDPI [2019]
Em: Religions
Ano: 2019, Volume: 10, Número: 2, Páginas: 1-14
Outras palavras-chave:B Ecuador
B INVASIVE SPECIES
B the Anthropocene
B the Galápagos Islands
B Eco-theology
B endemic plants
B Conservation
B Urbanization
B environmental anthropology
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Descrição
Resumo:Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, this essay examines how the local Jehovah's Witnesses' response to the current ecological crisis on the Galápagos Islands has produced a distinct form of religious environmentalism. Specifically, I argue that the Jehovah's Witnesses' vision of the ultimate future informs action rather than despair-contrary to what is often assumed about millenarian beliefs. This essay joins voices in Christian feminist and eco-theology interested in reclaiming eschatology for its imaginative valence. Yet, unlike invocations for hope that lack consideration of their viability, my ethnographic approach contributes to this literature with a view of the practical reverberations of eschatology. Further, current discussions about ecological unraveling, often couched around the concept of the Anthropocene, have reinforced expert-driven, techno-scientific measures that exclude other forms of knowledge production and practical interventions. If such worries continue to motivate a paradigm of conservation that exclude locals, my essay shows how the local Jehovah's Witnesses promote a valuable alternative form of environmentalism, on the Galápagos and elsewhere.
ISSN:2077-1444
Obras secundárias:Enthalten in: Religions
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.3390/rel10020125