Climate, Catastrophe, and Faith, Philip Jenkins
Climate, Catastrophe, and Faith, Philip Jenkins
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Climate, Catastrophe, and Faith
How Changes in Climate Drive Religious Upheaval

Author: Philip Jenkins

Narrator: Pearl Hewitt

Unabridged: 9 hr 58 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 06/15/2021

Synopsis

Long before the current era of man-made climate change, the world has suffered repeated, severe climate-driven shocks. These shocks have resulted in famine, disease, violence, social upheaval, and mass migration. But these shocks were also religious events. Dramatic shifts in climate have often been understood in religious terms by the people who experienced them. They were described in the language of apocalypse, millennium, and Judgment. Often, too, the eras in which these shocks occurred have been marked by far-reaching changes in the nature of religion and spirituality. Those changes have varied widely—from growing religious fervor and commitment; to the stirring of mystical and apocalyptic expectations; to waves of religious scapegoating and persecution; or the spawning of new religious movements and revivals.

In Climate, Catastrophe, and Faith historian Philip Jenkins draws out the complex relationship between religion and climate change. He asserts that the religious movements and ideas that emerge from climate shocks often last for many decades, and even become a familiar part of the religious landscape. By stirring conflicts and provoking persecutions that defined themselves in religious terms, changes in climate have redrawn the world's religious maps, and created the global concentrations of believers as we know them today.

About Philip Jenkins

Philip Jenkins was educated at Cambridge University, and for many years taught at Penn State. He is presently Distinguished Professor of History at Baylor University, where his main appointment is in the Institute for Studies of Religion. The Economist magazine has called him "one of America's best scholars of religion." He has published thirty books, which have been translated into sixteen languages.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Jane on February 13, 2022

This is an interesting read about how throughout history, changes in climate have created religious upheaval. The author gives a history of the past and then by the final chapter discusses current global warming and its impact on political and religious struggles throughout the world.......more

Goodreads review by Austin on December 28, 2024

Ever read an old book and it goes something like “I remember the cold winter of 23’ where the crops failed and your mother had to work at the pub.”? I think I get it now. This makes it more clear tracking the history of climate and its minute (or broad) impacts on the world and culture. Found it lacki......more

Goodreads review by Joseph on May 24, 2022

I must say that I was slightly disappointed by this book. With that being said, I had high expectation since it was written by Philip Jenkins, a scholar whom I admire. One should certainly read this book in order to have a better understanding of how closely big cultural and economical changes are l......more

Goodreads review by Oliver on February 09, 2024

A very nice venn diagram of two fascinating subjects (to me at least), climate science and religion. Showing how the history of climate has impacted the spread, or decline, of religions, gives us insights into how that might look heading into the 22nd century with even more rapid shifts in the clima......more

Goodreads review by Beverly on August 20, 2021

Not what I expected This book is not what I expected. I have been reading a lot on climate change and environmental justice, seeking to create a more just cut. This book is about what we can learn from the impact of past climatic changes and the accompanying impact on the development of religious tre......more

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