The Saints' Forgotten Ecological Wisdom
4:46
Mrs. Elisabeth Theokritoff, lecturer at the Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies in Cambridge, reflects on how care for creation appears throughout the lives of the saints as a natural fruit of holiness rather than a modern addition. From the desert dwellers who lived at the mercy of the elements to modern saints such as St. Porphyrios, the natural world served as a place of encounter with God.
St. Porphyrios spoke of the "little love" found in nature drawing the heart toward the "great love," Christ Himself. The saints often lived in harmony with animals, plants, and landscapes because they perceived creation as bearing the signature of God. In inter-Christian environmental discussions, St. Francis of Assisi is often treated as the only saint who related to nature, but this relationship is actually the norm across Christian history.
St. Seraphim of Sarov exemplified this by sharing bread with a bear and other animals. St. Maximus the Confessor taught that the world, man, and the church mirror each other, reflecting God's signature in creation. Scientific discoveries such as the "wood wide web" of fungal networks through which trees communicate reveal divine wisdom in nature.
Because humans are created in the image of the Logos, we should appreciate and tune into the logos present in other creatures. The Citami monastery, supervised by Elder Porphyrios, continues this tradition with an environmental education center on a rare natural habitat with endemic plants and hermit caves made into chapels.
Key moments
- Francis of Assisi is wrongly treated as the only saint with a relationship to nature in inter-Christian environmental conversations.
- From earliest times, desert dwellers lived with animals and at the mercy of the elements, cooperating with their environment.
- St. Porphyrios is a prominent modern example with wonderful openness to the natural world as a path to Christ.
- Citami monastery, supervised by Elder Porphyrios, has an environmental education center on a rare natural habitat with endemic plants and hermit caves made into chapels.
- St. Seraphim of Sarov had good relations with a bear and distributed bread to animals weekly.
- St. Maximus the Confessor teaches that the world, man, and the church all mirror each other, showing God's signature in creation.
- Science discovers intricate divine wisdom in nature, such as the "wood wide web" where trees communicate through fungal networks in their roots.
- Humans are created in the image of the Logos, so we should appreciate and tune into the logos and wisdom in other creatures.