Red, Yellow, Blue and Green: Examining the Relationship between the Spiritual, Social and Ecological within The Salvation Army Matthew David Seaman BInfTech, (Qld); MA (TheolStud), (SCD) A thesis submitted for the degree of Master of Philosophy at The University of Queensland in 2013 School of History, Philosophy, Religion and Classics Abstract This thesis examines the relationship between spiritual, social and ecological dimensions within The Salvation Army. The relationship between these three elements is investigated using the methodological framework of practical theology and contains three distinct segments. The first element is a review of ecologically-aware Christian theology and mission literature, and mutually critical correlations with non-Christian ecological literature. The second is historical research on Salvationist precedents for spiritual, social, and ecological engagement and praxis, and an examination of current projects and literature within The Salvation Army. The third section is an analysis of the perceived relationships between these three elements within current Salvation Army discourse and mission. This third segment applies a grounded theory approach to a series of interviews undertaken with individuals who have a significant connection with The Salvation Army within the South Queensland Division of the Australia Eastern Territory. The interview findings reveal three emergent streams of Salvationist understandings of the Church's relationship between the spiritual, social and ecological and involvement in this interconnected discourse, mission and praxis: (1) the spiritual or Economy of God: 'We have a responsibility to God’; (2) the social or Ecumenics: ‘We need to balance what we do’; and (3) the ecological or relationship to creation: ‘There really is a wholeness about the Earth.’ Overall, the findings corroborated a number of other research findings in the literature and have uncovered some particularly Salvationist-related themes. Participants generally have a deep respect for the natural world. The most significant variations of opinion relate to climate change, yet the vast majority of participants support caring for creation and agree there are socially responsible, logical and scriptural imperatives for caring for the environment. Responsible stewardship is seen as the proper response to God’s provision, whereas sin and greed are linked with irresponsibility, pollution and social and environmental injustices. There are financial, evangelistic, mental, health and spiritual benefits when spiritual, social and ecological matters are united. ii Declaration by author This thesis is composed of my original work, and contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference has been made in the text. I have clearly stated the contribution by others to jointly-authored works that I have included in my thesis. I have clearly stated the contribution of others to my thesis as a whole, including statistical assistance, survey design, data analysis, significant technical procedures, professional editorial advice, and any other original research work used or reported in my thesis. The content of my thesis is the result of work I have carried out since the commencement of my research higher degree candidature and does not include a substantial part of work that has been submitted to qualify for the award of any other degree or diploma in any university or other tertiary institution. I have clearly stated which parts of my thesis, if any, have been submitted to qualify for another award. I acknowledge that an electronic copy of my thesis must be lodged with the University Library and, subject to the General Award Rules of The University of Queensland, immediately made available for research and study in accordance with the Copyright Act 1968. I acknowledge that copyright of all material contained in my thesis resides with the copyright holder(s) of that material. Where appropriate I have obtained copyright permission from the copyright holder to reproduce material in this thesis. iii Publications during candidature Refereed Papers Seaman, M.D. 2011. ‘Red, Yellow, Blue and Green: Eco-Theology within The Salvation Army’. Aldersgate Papers (9):47-65. Seaman, M.D. 2013. 'Dark Green Religion and the Wesleyan Tradition: Harmony and Dissonance’. Wesleyan Theological Journal (48:1):135-148. Conference Abstracts Seaman, M.D. 2012. ‘Salvationism, Ecology and Inequality: Implicit and Explicit Salvationist Visions of Social and Eco Justice’. The Australian Sociological Association Conference, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Qld. Seaman, M.D. 2012. ‘Space, Place and Grace: The Salvation Army, New Media and the ‘Open Air’’. International Society for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture Conference, Pepperdine University, Malibu, CA. Seaman, M.D. 2012. ‘Dark Green Religion and the Wesleyan Tradition: Harmony and Dissonance’. Wesleyan Theological Society Conference, Trevecca Nazarene University, Nashville, TN. Seaman, M.D. 2011. ‘Red, Yellow, Blue and Green: Eco-mission within The Salvation Army’. The Australian Association for Mission Studies Conference, Sydney, NSW. Seaman, M.D. 2011. ‘Red, Yellow, Blue and Green: Eco-justice within The Salvation Army’. Australasian Centre for Wesleyan Research Conference, Nazarene Theological College, Thornlands, Qld. Seaman, M.D. 2011. ‘Red, Yellow, Blue and Green: Environmental Concern within The Salvation Army’. The Australian Association for the Study of Religions Conference, Southern Cross University, Tweed Heads, NSW. Other Papers Seaman, M.D. (Accepted). 'Recapturing a Salvationist Vision for all of Earth'. Thought Matters (2). Publications included in this thesis Seaman, M.D. 2011. ‘Red, Yellow, Blue and Green: Eco-Theology within The Salvation Army’. Aldersgate Papers (9):47-65. Partly incorporated in Chapter 4. Contributor Statement of contribution Author: Seaman, M.D. Wrote the paper 100% Seaman, M.D. (Accepted). 'Recapturing a Salvationist Vision for all of Earth'. Thought Matters (2). Partly incorporated in Chapter 6. Contributor Statement of contribution Author: Seaman, M.D. Wrote the paper 100% Contributions by others to the thesis No contributions by others. Statement of parts of the thesis submitted to qualify for the award of another degree None. iv Acknowledgements A huge ‘Thank You!’ to all who helped, nudged, inspired and encouraged me throughout this journey. This includes (but certainly not limited to): my hermano Peter E. Wells, Nathan ‘Oikos’ Rule, John and Robyn Lutze, Nickey Bright, Rev. Dr. Glen O’Brien who planted the research seed, The Salvation Army USA National Archives, and The Salvation Army Heritage Centre, Sydney. Heartfelt thanks also go to those who have been particularly patient, kind and supportive: my wise advisors Dr Sylvie Shaw and Rev. Dr. Clive Ayre, my wonderful parents David and Maureen, and of course, my amazing wife Carmen. Keywords The Salvation Army, ecotheology, ecology, social justice, environment, practical theology, spirituality, Christianity, stewardship, oikotheology. Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classifications (ANZSRC) ANZSRC code: 220401 Christian Studies (incl. Biblical Studies and Church History), 50%. ANZSRC code: 220405 Religion and Society, 50%. Fields of Research (FoR) Classification FoR code: 2204 Religion and Religious Studies, 100%. v Table of Contents List of Figures & Tables .................................................................................................... viii Chapter 1 - Introduction and Overview ............................................................................ 1 1.0 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 The Current Environmental Situation ............................................................................. 2 1.2 The Salvation Army on Earth ......................................................................................... 5 1.3 Faith Communities and the Environment ....................................................................... 8 1.4 Theology and Ecology ................................................................................................... 9 1.5 The Study, Methods and Participants. ......................................................................... 10 1.6 Thesis Outline .............................................................................................................. 11 1.7 Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 12 Chapter 2 - Methodology: Practical Theology and Grounded Theory .................... 13 2.0 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 13 2.1 Practical Theology ....................................................................................................... 13 2.1.1 Context .................................................................................................................. 15 2.1.2 Praxis..................................................................................................................... 17 2.2 Grounded Theory ......................................................................................................... 19 2.3 Data Collection Process and Analysis ......................................................................... 19 2.4 Conclusion