As I stated earlier, the topic of caring for the earth is rarely a subject of public religious discussion. I don't remember it being a topic of any Sunday school lesson or church talk in my memory; and to my knowledge, environmental consciousness has never been the subject of any general conference talk in my lifetime, though several LDS church leaders have made statements about it.
Caring for the environment is something that a majority of people have to be on board with before it can be really successful. It doesn't do to have an extremely vocal, radical minority who are complete conservationists when the rest of us waste resources like it doesn't matter. There are many possible ways that Americans could be motivated to be more caring towards the earth; and while our society is becoming increasingly secularized, I think that religious motivation can still inspire many people to action on this matter.
Admittedly, I speak mostly from personal experience; since it was digging deeper into my religion's teachings about the value of the earth and its inhabitants that finally made me care about this when I didn't before. But I've found at least a few teachings in several major world religions that can inspire believers to be more unselfish; not only towards other people but towards all life on earth. Nearly every religious tradition has examples of loving, unselfish people who sacrificed much so that others could avoid suffering. Whether the exemplar is Buddha, Mohammed, or Jesus, there's no reason not to extend that example of compassion to all life. So why isn't there more effort to promote the idea of caring for the earth through the religious atmosphere?
Honestly, I don't know how well the idea would take, especially in American culture. I consider caring for the environment to be a commandment from God, but if leaders of churches were to actively encourage their congregations to conserve and give back, I don't know if it would have much effect. Church members might agree with these teachings, try hard to be environmentally conscious for a couple weeks or a couple months, and then the movement would fizzle out and die. I think many of us would just feel guilty about it without really doing anything. It would take the focus off of other, perhaps more important, things. So as nice as the idea sounds to me, I can't see it working very effectively.
Despite this, studying the value of God's creations has brought a great deal of fulfillment to me. In the early days of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, founder Joseph Smith said, "Love is one of the chief characteristics of Deity, and ought to be manifested by those who aspire to be the sons of God. A man filled with the love of God, is not content with blessing his family alone, but ranges through the whole world, anxious to bless the whole human race." While learning about how much earth and its creatures are really worth, I felt this kind of love in a way and with an intensity I never have before. I think anybody who sincerely searches to have this compassion can feel it too. I hope this knowledge permanently changes the way I live my life, and I hope it does for you.
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