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L. Rydén
4 Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation
When the 6th General Assembly of the World Council of Churches gathered in
Vancouver in 1983 the participants reported a general feeling of the severity or
seriousness of the situation, as if life itself was at stake. It is not surprising considering
the world situation at the time. The two large powers of the Cold War, NATO and the
Soviet Union, were in the process of deploying intermediate range nuclear missiles,
the SS 20 and the Pershing, close to each other’s borders. This so–called double zero
decision was aggressively protested against by many groups in civil society, including
many with a Christian background, by demonstrations and even occupation of missile
deployment sites. The smallest mistake could lead to nuclear annihilation as the time
from a nuclear alert to attack had shrinked to some 6 min.
During the meeting the phrase Integrity of Creation was added to the previous
goals of Peace and Justice. It is unclear from where the expression originated. It
may rather be understood as a reaction to the feeling at the meeting and the sense of
imminent threat to society (Brander 2002).
At the meeting thus the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) was added
to the other agendas of the WCC. It was not intended to constitute a new program
but rather a way for the two main directions of the WCC, Faith and Order and Life
and Work, to meet and develop a statement common for all Christian Churches to
gather around. This should be accomplished through a “conciliar process of mutual
commitment (covenant)” (Brander 2002; Hall 1989).
In the following years several interesting inputs to the process were done. Theologian Douglas John Hall described how integrity of creation could be understood
as threefold (1) how external form and internal reality are in harmony; (2) how the
components of creation are connected and in balance; and (3) as describing an internal value of its own (Hall 1989). The British chemist James Lovelock, famous for his
Gaia hypothesis, contributed with the description of how all systems on Earth were
interconnected and had the capacity to adapt to new situations and thus keep the system of the planet in balance, thus contributing to the meaning of integrity (Lovelock
1995). A similar understanding of integrity also comes from basic ecology, introduced originally by Eugen and Howard Odum in the 1950s. Although their systems
were not worldwide, as Lovelocks, it included both biotic and abiotic components,
and certainly also humans (Odum 1975). Carl Friedrich von Weizäcker in Germany
underlined that the three parts in the JPIC were dependent on each other: There is
no peace without Justice; there is no Justice without safeguarding the Integrity of
Creation, and no Integrity of Creation without Peace, etc. (von Weizäcker 1986).
At the 7th General Assembly in Canberra there were four sections. The first,
called Giver of life—sustain your creation, was where the process of the consultation
was intended to be reported. The report was however thin. It had not been possible
to reach a common understanding between the partners of the process. Rather the
divide between the Western Churches, focusing of Justice and Peace and stewardship
(see below) as before, and the Eastern Orthodox Churches focusing on Integrity of
Creation, remained (Brander 2002).
L. Rydén
4 Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation
When the 6th General Assembly of the World Council of Churches gathered in
Vancouver in 1983 the participants reported a general feeling of the severity or
seriousness of the situation, as if life itself was at stake. It is not surprising considering
the world situation at the time. The two large powers of the Cold War, NATO and the
Soviet Union, were in the process of deploying intermediate range nuclear missiles,
the SS 20 and the Pershing, close to each other’s borders. This so–called double zero
decision was aggressively protested against by many groups in civil society, including
many with a Christian background, by demonstrations and even occupation of missile
deployment sites. The smallest mistake could lead to nuclear annihilation as the time
from a nuclear alert to attack had shrinked to some 6 min.
During the meeting the phrase Integrity of Creation was added to the previous
goals of Peace and Justice. It is unclear from where the expression originated. It
may rather be understood as a reaction to the feeling at the meeting and the sense of
imminent threat to society (Brander 2002).
At the meeting thus the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) was added
to the other agendas of the WCC. It was not intended to constitute a new program
but rather a way for the two main directions of the WCC, Faith and Order and Life
and Work, to meet and develop a statement common for all Christian Churches to
gather around. This should be accomplished through a “conciliar process of mutual
commitment (covenant)” (Brander 2002; Hall 1989).
In the following years several interesting inputs to the process were done. Theologian Douglas John Hall described how integrity of creation could be understood
as threefold (1) how external form and internal reality are in harmony; (2) how the
components of creation are connected and in balance; and (3) as describing an internal value of its own (Hall 1989). The British chemist James Lovelock, famous for his
Gaia hypothesis, contributed with the description of how all systems on Earth were
interconnected and had the capacity to adapt to new situations and thus keep the system of the planet in balance, thus contributing to the meaning of integrity (Lovelock
1995). A similar understanding of integrity also comes from basic ecology, introduced originally by Eugen and Howard Odum in the 1950s. Although their systems
were not worldwide, as Lovelocks, it included both biotic and abiotic components,
and certainly also humans (Odum 1975). Carl Friedrich von Weizäcker in Germany
underlined that the three parts in the JPIC were dependent on each other: There is
no peace without Justice; there is no Justice without safeguarding the Integrity of
Creation, and no Integrity of Creation without Peace, etc. (von Weizäcker 1986).
At the 7th General Assembly in Canberra there were four sections. The first,
called Giver of life—sustain your creation, was where the process of the consultation
was intended to be reported. The report was however thin. It had not been possible
to reach a common understanding between the partners of the process. Rather the
divide between the Western Churches, focusing of Justice and Peace and stewardship
(see below) as before, and the Eastern Orthodox Churches focusing on Integrity of
Creation, remained (Brander 2002).