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Poverty, environment and church : a Christian contribution to the earth crisis as a key to poverty eradication : a Zambian perspective.

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Date

2004

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Abstract

The environmental crisis and the poverty crisis, are among the major challenges the Church in Zambia is facing. In this work I argue that poverty and the ecological crises are interrelated. However, a major problem has been that many programmes carried on by the Churches or church-based organizations seem to focus on poverty alleviation not recognizing the linkage between poverty and the ecological crisis. For this reason, this study represents the situation of poverty in Zambia and indicates its links to the environmental crisis. The aim of this dissertation is to remind the Free Methodist Church in Zambia and the Church in Zambia in general, that as Christians we are mandated to respond to these social issues of poverty and ecological degradation. We have the theoretical and theological contributions necessary to address the above two challenges, if we are keen to transform and build up the community we are ministering to. What is needed is to put into practice our beliefs. I argue that unless adequate environmental awareness is carried out, and that Christians understand the relationship between poverty and the ecological crisis we will not manage to break the cycle of poverty in the community. The Church efforts to carry out environmental awareness based on biblical and theological foundation teachings are a unique contribution that Christians can offer to respond to the earth crisis as well as to contribute to poverty eradication.

Description

Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2004.

Keywords

Human ecology--Religious aspects--Christianity., Ecology--Religious aspects--Christianity., Ecology--Zambia., Human ecology--Zambia., Community development--Zambia., Free Methodist Church--Zambia., Poverty--Religious aspects--Zambia., Poverty--Religious aspects--Christianity., Church work with the poor., Theses--Theology.

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