This thesis is concerned with the possibilities of a stewardship ethic providing insight
and practical ways forward in an age of ecological crisis. I regard stewardship as an
ethical expression of the ecological impulse, an impulse explained above through the
ideas of Leopold’s land community, Gaian holism and biophilia.
Stewardship is an influential Western idea. Etymologically, stewardship comes from
the old English stig-weard (OED), meaning someone charged with the responsibility of managing another’s property (Moore, 2004). Worrell & Appleby (2000, 266) state
that the central idea of stewardship means ‘looking after something “in trust” for
someone else’. However, beyond these basic meanings, there are numerous other
understandings and traditions of stewardship.
In Western history, the predominant traditions of stewardship are Christian. Within
these traditions there are several quite different understandings of stewardship. One
institutions through traditions of giving as it became systematised through the tithe.
Tithing, or contributions to the financial well being of a church have often been seen
as an expression of discipleship, responsibility for and commitment of believers to
their church. This particular tradition has also been a means of promulgating the
evangelizing mission11 of particular Christian churches. Other understandings of
stewardship traditions are more in keeping with the idea that stewardship is a
relationship between humans and creation. Bohl (1997, np) states that ‘a mark of
Christian stewardship is a call to a life of simplicity, generosity, honesty, hospitality,
compassion, receptivity, and concern for the earth and God’s creatures’.
For the purposes of this thesis, Christian interpretations of stewardship that
emphasise relationship with and human responsibility to the Earth are most relevant.
McDonagh (1986, 122) states that ‘stewardship pictures humans in harmony with
nature, standing before God, and ultimately responsible to God for their management
of their affairs and the rest of creation’. These understanding of stewardship are
drawn from Genesis 2:1512 where ‘Yahweh took the man and settled him in the
Garden of Eden, tocultivate it and take care of it’. The Christian tradition of
11
A survey of both religious literature and online web resources reveals numerous references to stewardship as a form of discipleship, practised by tithing. Some examples include: Hope Associates, 2005; Lewallen, 2006; SLI, 2006; UCC, 2007.
12
On biblical sources of stewardship see Attfield, 1983; Berry, W 1981; Callicott, 1999; Cloke & Jones, 2003; Glacken, 1967; McDonagh, 1986; Passmore, 1974; Saltmann & Feroussier, 2000; Worrell & Appleby, 2000. The biblical elements and understandings of stewardship as they have filtered down through the ages and influenced contemporary thinking may be explored in greater depth by consulting biblical exegetical sources. See The Jerusalem Bible (Jones, 1968), and biblical scholars Anderson, 1984; Gowan, 1988; Hiebert, 1996, 2000; Von Rad, 1984; Westermann, 1981.
stewardship describes a relational way of being between humans and creation:
humans in harmony with nature. In this relational ontology, creation and all its
elements are regarded as moral subjects. Scripture scholar Bernard Anderson (1984,
54) referring to Genesis 9:12, states that stewardship is a covenant (relationship),
‘focused on the inclusive community of the living’. The community he refers to is
creation, including the human steward who has a responsibility to look after and care
for this creation, which has been given as gift. Responsibility for creation is
fundamental to the Christian understanding of stewardship. Gowan states that ‘man
[sic] is not just put in the garden to live and do nothing: he is given work to do, to till
it and keep it; keeping of the garden means to watch over it, and to nurture it (1988,
40).
Dewitt (2000) extends the understanding of stewardship to include a sense of service
and through that service, reciprocity of giving and receiving. He draws on biblical
and Christian traditions of servant hood, traditions that focus on devotion and
commitment to one another (as opposed to exploitation and the sense of servility). It
is a responsibility of humans to serve in the garden. He uses the term ‘con-server’ or
‘keeper’ of creation to indicate reciprocity of service, ‘service with’ and ‘for’
creation. The ‘con-server’ or ‘keeper’ is thus ‘a creature in relationship with other
creatures and in relationship to creation’ (p.304). This notion of being a keeper
underscores the virtue of humility as a way of being in the garden by acknowledging
the ‘awesome’ responsibility of looking after creation. Saltman and Ferrousier (2000,
373) state that ‘the steward is a selfless servant’, a tenant on the land whose
responsibility is to care for it. The core elements of the Christian understanding of
stewardship include relationship with creation, responsible and selfless caring,
In recent times, stewardship has gained a more secular and ecological focus.
Saltmann and Feroussier (2000, 734) acknowledge that the secular or ‘ecological
concept of stewardship, especially in North America and Europe evolved out of its
religious roots’. Wunderlich (2004, 79) connects it with environmentalism stating
that as a result of ‘an array of influences, in the last three decades [stewardship] has
become an expression of environmental concern and responsibility’. Many
environmentalists, (Attfield, 1983; Berry, 1990; Knuth & Siemer, 2004; Passmore,
1974; Rasmussen, 2000; Ruether, 1992; Saltmann & Ferrousier, 2000; Suzuki, 1998;
Wilkinson, 1991), have sought to reinterpret Christian traditions in an age of
ecological crisis. Their work focuses on the ethical nature of the relationships
between people and the Earth. In particular their work emphasises the need to respect
the Earth and natural systems as well as focusing on concepts of intergenerational
responsibility and equity. In so doing many have recognised that a wide diversity of
cultural traditions, especially indigenous and pagan ones have given expression to
stewardship13 as a relational ethic. Within these cultures the Earth is the moral
subject with whom humans relate.
In simple terms a secular and ecological interpretation of stewardship emphasises
that humanity is charged with responsibility for the earth because of its inherent
value as home to all life, evidenced in its history of unfolding. Zimmerman (1994)
citing Wilber states that ‘the other14 is sewn through the fabric of all that is’. In this
13
On indigenous sources of stewardship and spirituality see Abram, 1996; Bear et al, 1991; Bristow, 1995; Diamond, 1993; Dubos, 1980; Harvey, 2005; Hausman, 1987; Knudston & Suzuki, 1992; McDonagh, 1986; Steinmetz, 1984and Versluis, 1992.
14
Scholars in referring to the ‘other’ for which we care, use a never ending list of terms to describe the Earth. These terms include ‘the land’ and the biotic community (Leopold, 1949/1989); creation
secular understanding the Earth is both the moral subject for whom humanity must
care and also the source of this moral responsibility. These understandings imbue
stewardship with ethical dimensions: a relationship with the Earth, based on
responsibility, reciprocity and trust. Wunderlich (2004, 266) summarises this ethical
dimension of stewardship: ‘[it] is ultimately regarded as a person to person, or entity
to entity, relationship of responsibility’. Responsibility invokes ethically motivated
behaviours, showing concern and care15 for the more than human. It implies a moral
obligation (Knuth & Siemer 2004; Skolimowski, 1993; Worrell & Appleby, 2000) to
treat the Earth with the greatest respect and reverence, to express a sense of duty of
care for it. Skolimowski (1993, 99) concludes that ‘you are responsible for the world
because you care, deeming the universe to be sacred’. Care emerges as a fundamental
expression of responsibility and ethical behaviours towards the Earth. Care is a
sacred trust that evokes the spiritual nature of this relationship.
Underpinning this responsibility towards the creatures and other organisms of the
Earth is the contentious issue of the intrinsic rights of other people (non-citizens,
those not like us) or of other species (Callicott 1999; Hay 2002; Knuth & Siemer
2004; Maguire, 2000; Nash 2000; Vickerman, 1999; Worrell & Appleby 2000)16.
and the natural world (Berry, 1981, 1987); the Earth (Berry, 1989; Ruether, 1992; Skolimowski, 1993; Suzuki, 1997); plants, animals ecosystems (Worrell & Appleby, 2000); nature (Wunderlich, 2000), and aquatic systems (Knuth & Seimer, 2004).
15
Specifically care is understood as a ‘non-instrumental relationship to the other’, reflecting the discussion above relating to property and creation. For a fuller treatment of ‘non-instrumental relationships’ with the Earth, see Plumwood’s ‘Feminism and the Mastery of Nature’ (1993, 142).
16
It is not the intention of this project to debate the issue of the intrinsic rights of other species. However, Callicott, 1997; Devall & Sessions, 1985; Fox, 1996 and Naess, 1989, provide further
The notion of intrinsic rights underscores the ‘renewed way people are starting to
value other species, and their right to an evolutionary journey along with humans’
(Gurr, 2005).
In this thesis I contribute to this secular environmental reinterpretation of Christian
stewardship ethics. I continue to use Christian sources throughout this thesis a way of
acknowledging the wisdom and insights of Christianity that have contributed to an
understanding of the relationship between the human and the more than human
world. I too recognise the importance of indigenous worldviews and animist
traditions. The thesis works from the premise that the many ancient traditions of
stewardship provide important resources for a secular response to contemporary
environmental crises. A stewardship ethic developed from these traditions and
practiced in the local garden, emerges as a potential expression of a wider ecological
impulse.
The foundational qualities extracted from this description of stewardship, include a
deep relationship with the Earth marked by a moral responsibility to care for it. At
the local level, the particularity of the suburban garden provides the immediate space
where stewardship may be lived out as an intimate, ethical response to the more than
human world. The gardener who is the steward charged with ‘keeping’ creation,
enters into a relationship with the garden, regarding it as a moral subject. This
relationship is a way of being embodied in the Earth: the Earth for whom stewards
debate on the contentious nature of this issue.Of particular interest is Stone’s (1974) book on ‘Should Trees have Standing’ where he advocates giving rights to natural objects and the environment. He also addresses the legal ramifications of the issue of rights of other species: in this instance trees.
and gardeners care and to whom they are responsible. Stewardship is the praxis for
achieving and continuing a relationship with the garden.
Although there are a number of contemporary definitions of stewardship with
an emphasis on caring for the environment, I have not been able to discover
definitions or descriptions of stewardship as it specifically relates to gardening.
A definition of stewardship that best approximates the direction taken in this
thesis is found in Dixon et al (1995, 42-43).
[t]he moral obligation to care for the environment and the actions
undertaken to provide that care. Stewardship implies the existence of an
ethic of personal responsibility, an ethic of behaviour based on reverence
for the earth and a sense of obligation for future generations. To
affectively care for the environment individuals must use resources wisely
and efficiently, in part by placing self-imposed limits on personal
consumption and altering personal expectations, habits and values.
Appropriate use of natural resources within the stewardship ethic involves
taking actions that respect the integrity of natural systems.
This definition expresses the foundational qualities of stewardship as I have
described them, and includes some of the extended qualities that I wish to present in
the next section. It also recognises and includes the ethical implications of
stewardship as a relational way of being and behaving in the world. In this way
‘humanity's role is to be earth's gardener and curator, with the responsibility for