Mutual Care Based on Earth-Centric Empathy in the Living Ecological Web

Abstract

When efforts to address the environmental crisis are solely motivated by human-centric fears of threats to human life, there is a risk of overlooking damage to the Earth that does not threaten humans yet contributes to environmental degradation. This paper aims to shift the perspective from human-centric to Earth-centric, attempting to listen to the voice of the Earth based on a mutual relationship, and to seek practical theological wisdom arising from empathy toward the Earth. Through an interdisciplinary analysis of two case studies, the possibility of listening to and empathizing with the Earth is explored. Practicing such interspecies and Earth-centric empathy enables the reformulation of humanity's roles in addressing the climate crisis, creating a path for mutual care within the living ecological web. This process leads to a theological imagination of the eschatological Kingdom of God and ultimately constructs an Earth-centric practical theology.