Book contents
- Astrobiology, Religion, and Society
- Astrobiology, Religion, and Society
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Contributors
- Foreword
- Acknowledgments
- Chapter 1Introduction
- Part IConsidering Life on a Planetary Scale
- Part IIIn Christian Theology
- Part IIIIn World Religions
- Part IVIn Society
- Chapter 14Astrobiology, Sustainability Science, and Complex Adaptive Systems
- Chapter 15The Planet That Therefore We Are (Not)
- Chapter 16The Anthropocene by Starlight
- Chapter 17Life on a Planetary Scale, the Anthropocene Ironies, and Ethics for the Holocene Biosphere
- Afterword
- Index
Chapter 15 - The Planet That Therefore We Are (Not)
A Preferential Ethic of Planetary Life
from Part IV - In Society
Published online by Cambridge University Press: aN Invalid Date NaN
Book contents
- Astrobiology, Religion, and Society
- Astrobiology, Religion, and Society
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Contributors
- Foreword
- Acknowledgments
- Chapter 1Introduction
- Part IConsidering Life on a Planetary Scale
- Part IIIn Christian Theology
- Part IIIIn World Religions
- Part IVIn Society
- Chapter 14Astrobiology, Sustainability Science, and Complex Adaptive Systems
- Chapter 15The Planet That Therefore We Are (Not)
- Chapter 16The Anthropocene by Starlight
- Chapter 17Life on a Planetary Scale, the Anthropocene Ironies, and Ethics for the Holocene Biosphere
- Afterword
- Index
Summary
As a limit concept, “planetary/planetarity” shows how theology can hold the tension between being of the planet and thinking beyond it, and, against the homogenising logic of globalisation, re-grounds ethics in material planetary conditions and forces (water, energy, gravity, light) across scales from subatomic to galactic. A ‘preferential ethic of planetary life’ is advanced that rejects both metaphysical and moral anthropocentrism, prioritises action at life’s margins, and culminates in the messianic claim that a cosmic Christ uniquely represents creation in declaring a planetary emergency.
Information
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Astrobiology, Religion, and SocietyConsidering Life on a Planetary Scale, pp. 264 - 285Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2026
Accessibility standard: WCAG 2.2 AAA
Why this information is here
This section outlines the accessibility features of this content - including support for screen readers, full keyboard navigation and high-contrast display options. This may not be relevant for you.Accessibility Information
The HTML of this chapter complies with version 2.2 of the
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
(WCAG), offering more comprehensive accessibility measures for a broad range
of users and attains the highest
(AAA)
level of WCAG compliance, optimising the user experience by meeting the most extensive
accessibility guidelines.
Content Navigation
Table of contents navigation
Allows you to navigate directly to chapters, sections, or non‐text items through a linked table of contents, reducing the need for extensive scrolling.
Allows you to navigate directly to chapters, sections, or non‐text items through a linked table of contents, reducing the need for extensive scrolling.
Index navigation
Provides an interactive index, letting you go straight to where a term or subject appears in the text without manual searching.
Provides an interactive index, letting you go straight to where a term or subject appears in the text without manual searching.
Reading Order & Textual Equivalents
Short alternative textual descriptions
You get concise descriptions (for images, charts, or media clips), ensuring you do not miss crucial information when visual or audio elements are not accessible.
You get concise descriptions (for images, charts, or media clips), ensuring you do not miss crucial information when visual or audio elements are not accessible.
Full alternative textual descriptions
You get more than just short alt text: you have comprehensive text equivalents, transcripts, captions, or audio descriptions for substantial non‐text content, which is especially helpful for complex visuals or multimedia.
You get more than just short alt text: you have comprehensive text equivalents, transcripts, captions, or audio descriptions for substantial non‐text content, which is especially helpful for complex visuals or multimedia.
Visualised data also available as non-graphical data
You can access graphs or charts in a text or tabular format, so you are not excluded if you cannot process visual displays.
You can access graphs or charts in a text or tabular format, so you are not excluded if you cannot process visual displays.
Visual Accessibility
Use of high contrast between text and background colour
You benefit from high‐contrast text, which improves legibility if you have low vision or if you are reading in less‐than‐ideal lighting conditions.
You benefit from high‐contrast text, which improves legibility if you have low vision or if you are reading in less‐than‐ideal lighting conditions.
Structural and Technical Features
ARIA roles provided
You gain clarity from ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) roles and attributes, as they help assistive technologies interpret how each part of the content functions.
You gain clarity from ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) roles and attributes, as they help assistive technologies interpret how each part of the content functions.