Citizens’ Climate Radio Ep. 56: Rev. Tony Campolo’s Call To Save Creation

Citizens’ Climate Radio is a monthly podcast hosted by CCLer Peterson Toscano. Browse all our past episode recaps here, or listen to past episodes here, and check out the latest episode in the post below.

Last month, the Citizens’ Climate Radio podcast featured three conservative Christians, who told us how their faith compels them to promote creation care and climate change solutions. This month, we feature one of America’s most widely known progressive Evangelical Christian thought leaders. Rev. Tony Campolo is professor emeritus of sociology at Eastern University, and he led the Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education for more than 40 years. 

Rev. Campolo has written over 50 books on topics that have educated and challenged his Evangelical Christian audience. He has been ahead of his time on a variety of social issues. In 1992 he published the book “How to Rescue the Earth Without Worshiping Nature: A Christian Call to Save Creation.” In the book, he seeks to help believers see they have a role to play in caring for creation. 

Rev. Campolo, who is 85 and has never retired, suffered a stroke in 2020. He is at home recovering with the help of his wife, Peggy. Before the pandemic and his stroke, podcast host Peterson Toscano was fortunate enough to sit down with Tony and ask him about his 1992 book. 

Rev. Campolo reveals his frustration with fellow ministers and accuses them of not listening to God’s voice in regard to the mandate to care for creation. 

Listen now!

The Art House

Returning to the Art House are Jennie Carlisle, the curator and director of the Smith Gallery at Appalachian State University, and Laura England, a senior lecturer. They are two of three co-facilitators of ASU’s Climate Stories Collaborative. Both Jennie and Laura appeared in Episode 49 and told us about how in spring 2020 they quickly adapted to the global pandemic by putting their annual Student Climate Stories Showcase onto Instagram.  

Some climate leaders see art as a straightforward communication tool. But art overloaded with messages about issues and politics can turn out clunky and preachy. How does an artist stay in a creative space? When producing climate art, what is more important — the process or the product? 

You can hear a standalone version of The Art House at Artists and Climate Change. 

Good News Report

This episode we begin a new feature, The Good News Report. Listeners share their climate successes with us. Good news this month comes from Cathy Orlando in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. She is the International Outreach Manager for Citizens’ Climate Lobby and also the Canadian Director. Slow, steady, and relentless climate advocacy has paid off in Canada!

If you have good news to share, contact Peterson Toscano: radio@citizensclimate.org 

Dig Deeper                                                                      

• Ron Sider, Canadian-born American theologian and social activist
• Tony Campolo’s Christmas 2020 Homily
• Making a Planet Worth Saving: Bill McKibben interviews Reverend Lennox Yearwood, Jr. (New Yorker)
• Amitov Ghosh: Where is the Fiction about Climate Change? (The Guardian)

We always welcome your thoughts, questions, suggestions, and recommendations for the show. Leave a voicemail at (518) 595-9414 (+1 if calling from outside the USA). You can email your answers to radio@citizensclimate.org. 

You can hear Citizens’ Climate Radio on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher Radio, SoundCloud, Podbean, Northern Spirit Radio, Google Play, PlayerFM, and TuneIn Radio. Also, feel free to connect with other listeners, suggest program ideas, and respond to programs in the Citizens’ Climate Radio Facebook group or on Twitter at @CitizensCRadio.