"When a person attains the holiness of Adam, nature obeys him — as when Saint Seraphim of Sarov lived with a bear"
1. Father Christopher, what does the 2026 theme “Inspired by Nature. For Climate. For Our Future” mean to you as an Orthodox Christian?
“Wonderful are You, O Lord, and wonderful are Your works, and no word is sufficient to praise Your wonders.” (Book of Needs, especially in the service of the Great Blessing of Water)
Creation is the work of God’s hands. The cradle of our existence is intimately bound to the beauty of nature and its rich diversity. Green nature provides us with clean, breathable air; the forests are rightly called the lungs of planet Earth.
Meadows, hills, flowers, valleys, springs, birds, and the whole variety of flora and fauna - all these, by their very presence, praise the majesty and almighty power of God. As the Holy Spirit declares through the Psalms of David:
“I know all the birds of the sky, and the beauty of the field is with Me.” (Psalm 49/50:11).
“Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!” (Psalm 150:6).
Nature is humanity’s first physician. Through God’s grace and providence, it offers us a full range of natural remedies - flowers, leaves, fruits, roots, and every kind of herbal and natural treatment - for the healing of body and soul.
Our future is inseparably linked to the nature that surrounds us. By respecting the biosphere, atmosphere, lithosphere, and hydrosphere, we preserve our own existence on earth. By not polluting the air, we safeguard our health and that of future generations. By refraining from the abusive exploitation of underground or surface resources, we avoid degrading the planet’s beauty for ourselves and for those who will come after us.
By not contaminating waters and natural food through excessive use of chemicals, herbicides, and other interventions, we preserve the natural potential of micro- and macro-fauna. These species regenerate themselves when all creatures are conserved according to their nature, thereby maintaining the balance of the planet and the conditions for life in generations to come.
Climate is directly affected by negative, absurd, and abusive human interventions upon nature. Abusive deforestation leads to floods, landslides, and the disappearance of species. Mining and large-scale hydrographic projects can alter spring sources, change local relief, contaminate groundwater, and destroy entire biotopes and ecosystems through discharges into rivers.
Other factors - hail cannons, electromagnetic disturbances from radars, antennas, or other systems, and the cumulative effects of intense air traffic - also influence climate, as many researchers have noted. Sudden shifts from excessive heat to excessive cold, prolonged droughts, or catastrophic rains (sometimes artificially provoked) accelerate the desertification and devastation of the earth.
We are called to love nature, to protect it, and to conserve it. It is our duty to transform every patch of land into an earthly paradise, as far as possible.
What is the divine commandment?
“Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it” (Genesis 1:28).
To subdue does not mean to sabotage, plunder, or destroy. We humans should learn the lesson of self-preservation from the trees, plants, flowers, birds, and all living creatures. They all obey the law of nature and the divine law of conservation - each according to its species, purpose, and meaning - thereby glorifying their Creator.
May we too become worthy stewards of God’s creation, offering it back to Him in thanksgiving and love.
2. How does the Orthodox teaching that humans are “priests of creation” relate to the call for nature-based solutions and climate action?
Orthodoxy is the Faith of Love.
The commandment to love is not given only for humans; it extends to all creation and every living creature.
Man, as the king of creation, was placed by God to watch over it, to use it responsibly, and to protect it.
Around the world, people study species, care for them, and protect them. Some that had gone extinct have been reintroduced, while others on the brink of extinction are being saved from the consequences of human recklessness. We create biotopes and ecosystems, establish parks and natural reserves where rare plants and endangered species are safeguarded.
We also see encouraging progress in agriculture and animal husbandry, as more and more people seek to move away from intensive, polluting industrial methods toward organic, ecological, and truly natural food - unprocessed and free from chemical preservatives.
In Christianity, we also speak of the spiritualization of nature. When a person attains the holiness of Adam, he receives spiritual authority, and nature obeys him and submits to him. Saint Seraphim of Sarov lived with a bear, Saint Simeon the Stylite with a deer, Saint Gerasimus with a lion, Saint Blaise with a wolf, Saint Tryphon with wild animals and insects, and Saint Mamas, at whose Divine Liturgy the animals of the forest would gather.
Christianity is a way of life marked by measure, moderation, humility, love, peace, and joy. We must never destroy what we cannot create. Instead, we are called to preserve and conserve everything for the well-being of the planet and of all humanity.
3. From an Orthodox Christian perspective, how does the idea of “For Our Future” in this year’s theme shape our responsibility toward the environment and future generations?
Orthodox doctrine firmly opposes the brutalization or reckless abuse of the gifts of creation with which the planet has been endowed.
From moral, legal, ethical, aesthetic, administrative, and economic perspectives, it is not advisable to exploit the planet’s resources in a draconian or predatory manner, polluting and destroying the natural environment and the living framework in which we carry out our lives.
Cleanliness, hygiene, protection, preservation, and careful stewardship of breathable air, potable water, fertile agricultural land, meadows, forests, balanced mineral extraction, and natural deposits - these are the fundamental resources that sustain life on Earth.
Regardless of our selfish desires, we have a duty to conserve them through restoration, sustainable use, and wise management, so that they may also serve future generations.
The biblical command, “Be fruitful and multiply, and subdue the earth” (Genesis 1:28), does not grant permission to exploit and destroy the planet with reckless selfishness. On the contrary, it calls us to responsible dominion and care for God’s creation.
4. How can the Orthodox Church cooperate with World Environment Day while remaining faithful to its own tradition and theology?
The Orthodox Church cooperates with the ideas promoted by environmental science, as it shares the same ecological values.
5. Do you have any final message, blessing, or call to action for June 5 and beyond?
World Environment Day should not be just an occasion for publishing or promoting scientific topics and empty, sterile speeches.
On World Environment Day, every person on the planet should clean 1 m² of land, collect a bag of waste, plant a tree, plant a flower, and get directly involved in cleaning and healing the planet - a planet that has been wounded by humanity itself, through our ego and absurd pretensions.
Every green tree, through photosynthesis, gives the planet 1 m³ of oxygen for the benefit of mankind. If the 7 billion people on Earth were to plant one tree each year, clean 1 m² of land, and sow a flower, our planet would look like paradise - not a dump filled with waste and sources of pollution that are leading to humanity’s own disappearance through sheer negligence.
A flower is a sign of love toward creation. A tree is one more day of life.
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