This traditionally held perspective, which assigns life to either the material or spiritual world, deeply troubles DeWitt, one of the primary architects of the creation-care movement. “Our thinking is so compartmentalized today,” said DeWitt. “We have take Glendora Conservancyn such a fragmented, reductionist approach to living in general that we think water comes from a faucet. This mentality accounts for part of the reason why the Earth is in such dire straits.”

Modern man’s ability to compartmentalize has conversely led to our inability to enjoy being awestruck by creation, as alluded to in Psalm 5 and 108, according to Ann Croissant, Ph.D., Azusa Pacific professor emeritus of education and founder of the . “Our detachment from and disregard for nature has dulled our ability to feel awe when in the midst of nature and left us poverty-stricken when it comes to feeling impressed by the grandeur of God v ia the created order,” said Croissant. “Ultimately, this results in a diminished capacity to see and experience God in a fuller sense.”

Azusa Pacific’s President Jon R. Wallace, DBA, who joined other prominent evangelical leaders in signing the Evangelical Climate Initiative sent to President Bush, fathoms the role of creation care. “We have students who travel to third- and second-world countries and they want to frame a response to the poverty, to the refugee crisis,” said Wallace. “They want us to respond to Darfur, to speak to the farmland that’s been turned barren because of soil erosion and climate change. Since only humankind is made in God’s image, we’re called to participate in God’s redemptive purposes, and part of that involves meeting the needs of His people as reflected in the world and responding to the evidence that science has so clearly revealed to us about the Earth. We don’t want to repeat some of the historical mistakes the Church has made in light of science, like defending an errant flat Earth perspective. ”

And the scientific evidence is urgent indeed. “It’s not just the Earth that’s warming,” said Wickman, an engineer and scientist by training. “The whole solar system is warming because the sun’s radiation output is increasing. And, not only are our polar ice caps melting, but so are the ice caps on Mars. Venus provides an excellent example of the sobering effect CO2 has on a planet’s atmosphere. Because of the great quantity of carbon dioxide in Venus’ atmosphere and the planet’s proximity to the sun, the surface temp is a whopping 900° F. These facts alone should motivate us to get our environmental act together. Solar system warming is happening whether we acknowledge it or not, so the question is, ‘What are we going to do to lessen its impact on our planet?’”

APU students, as well as faculty and administrators, ask this very question. Through the years, various students have played significant roles in advancing creation care on the APU campus through opportunities like the Community Garden located on West Campus, and partnering with eco-evangelists like Croissant in grass-root educational efforts like the S.E.E.D. Program (Students Experiencing Environmental Discovery).