He applied the “Page 99 Test” to his new book, The Nature of the Religious Right: The Struggle between Conservative Evangelicals and the Environmental Movement, and reported the following:
Page 99 demonstrates that Christian school educational material written in the 1980s by religious right supporters championed the views of famous preservationist John Muir. In the Christian schoolbook, Muir stops his money hungry father from chopping down all the trees on their farm. The Nature of the Religious Right illustration/photo section additionally features reprinted pages of this story about Muir, which can be located just before chapter 5 that begins on page 109.Learn more about The Nature of the Religious Right at the Cornell University Press website.
The final paragraph on page 99 connects the Muir’s story with a previously discussed idea called Christian environmental stewardship. The analysis explains that Christian environmental stewardship is a theologically based perspective in which humanity was mandated by God to treat nature with respect even if it meant curbing financial gain. Such a moral is directly reflected by the story of Muir.
In summary, page 99 offers hard evidence of the book’s overall thesis that conservative evangelicals of the religious right surprisingly supported eco-friendly philosophies from the late 1960s to the early 1990s. Thus, although today this important American religious and political demographic stands in opposition to environmental initiatives, history shows they once held much friendlier views of nature.
In short, page 99 gives the reader a very good idea of the whole book. It demonstrates that religious right supporters, who wrote Christian school material, supported protecting the environment even if it meant curbing financial profits. Such a perspective nicely reflects the book’s thesis that conservative evangelicals of the religious right believed that humanity could use nature but must do it wisely because the earth is owned by God.
It is recommended, however, that one should read the introduction of The Nature of the Religious Right to clearly understand conservative evangelical culture and the book’s overall thesis. Nevertheless, the analysis of the Muir story on page 99 nicely reflects the book’s overall message.
The Nature of the Religious Right can help save our planet and therefore our survival as a species.
The book proves that conservative evangelicals of the religious right actually supported eco-friendly initiatives from the late 1960s to the early 1990s. Such a fact suggests that bridges of communication can be built between environmentalists and supporters of the religious right movement.
After all, this book is dedicated to “conservative evangelicals and environmentalists.” The information could, in other words, be used to assist in healing political divides, which if accomplished, can help protect the earth.
--Marshal Zeringue
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