As Christians, we have a subdue dilemma—three dilemmas, in fact. All of them stem from our understanding of the word "subdue" in Genesis 1:28.
Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."
— Genesis 1:28 NKJV (emphasis mine)
Our first dilemma is the meaning of the word "subdue." Historians like Yuval Noah Hariri believe this verse has allowed a culture of exploitation to develop unopposed within "Christian" nations.
It’s possible to trace a direct line from the Genesis decree of “fill the earth and subdue it” to the Industrial Revolution and today’s ecological crisis.
— Yuval Noah Hariri, The Guardian
If we’re being honest about Christian history, I think we have to agree with Hariri. The Church’s slow reaction to climate change and our glacial pace to divest from the companies driving it speaks volumes about our “Christian” priorities. As does our lack of repentance within official church divestment statements. We appear to believe we’ve not done anything wrong in finacing oil and gas firms.
Our general lack of engagement with environmental issues since the beginning of the Energy Revolution means “subdue” in Genesis 1:28 offers tacit permission to nations and companies to do as they please to land, sea, and sky.
Our second dilemma is the timing of the word "subdue." This is a peculiarly Christian dilemma, but it's one of the major reasons the first dilemma exists.
It’s chapter 1 of Genesis. It’s the sixth day. We’ve not yet reached the moment in the story when humankind rebels against God and sin enters the world. According to Christian evangelists, the world is perfect. And in a perfect world, there is absolutely nothing for us to subdue.
So what on earth does God want us to be subduing?
Our third dilemma is the blessing "subdue" appears within. It's easy to imagine how the act of subduing the earth blesses humankind, but it's unfathomable how it blesses any of the creatures or habitats we're meant to have "dominion over" (Gen. 1:28 NKJV).
Our current understanding of "subdue" encourages our beliefs to embrace anthropocentrism and paints God as someone who cares little for our world.
And if God doesn't care, why should we?
