2024/02/15 by Dobrosława Wiktor-Mach, Konrad Pędziwiatr · 1 voice · 1 citation
Environmental Science · Social Sciences · #Environmental Philosophy and Ethics #Religion and Society Interactions #Religion, Ecology, and Ethics
paper · doi:10.1080/09644016.2024.2313656
openalex publication_date 2024/02/15 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/15
The increasing participation of faith leaders in environmental debates has led to the renewed interest in the ‘greening of religions’. This paper examines the frames employed by religious actors to encourage environmental action, with a focus on the eco-movement within the Roman Catholic Church in Poland. Its narratives are connected to the goals of promoting ‘ecological conversion’ and encouraging change at the community level. We demonstrate how pro-environmental religious actors navigate between anti-ecological voices within the Church and left-wing activism, applying the following frames: 1) presenting ecological lifestyle as a religious obligation, 2) promoting the idea of ‘integral ecology,’ rooted in a Christian anthropology, 3) reinterpreting Catholicism by showing green practices as a legitimized element of the Church’s tradition. We argue that these activities constitute a form of a counterculture that develops a values-based approach to environmentalism, aiming to transform the culture of the Catholic church and society.