Cultural mandate

Dominium terrae (Latin for " dominion over the earth ") is a theological term for an effective historically significant motif from the Old Testament, namely the order of God to man, dominion over the earth ( Genesis 1:28 LUT: "Do you subdue the earth ").

Source text

In the Old Testament it says ( quoted from the Bible):

Gen 1:27-28 EU: So God created man in his image; the image of God he created him. Male and female he created them. God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the earth, subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth. ( See also Gen. 9.2 EU)

Ps 8.7 EU: You got him [ d h man ] dominion over the works of your hands, did put all things under your feet.

The important issue of translation on the part of science following has been shown:

" The Hebrew exegesis is only in recent years more appropriate translations. The Hebrew verb kabasch (previously translated as make, subject ') also has the meaning: to take as a country of culture in possession ", subservient / speak to cultivate ', as comparisons with Verbübersetzungen in other books of the Bible (Num 32 EU and Jos 18 EU ) show. Radah the verb (previously translated as, royal or lordly occur ') is used in Mari texts for the handling of a shepherd with his flock and would have to responsible, caring connotation to express. "

History of Ideas

The idea of ​​dominium terrae was handed down in late antiquity and the Middle Ages on. Lactantius wrote about:

In modern times, it manifested itself in terms of a comprehensive instrumental control of nature (such as in Descartes. Man is ruler and owner of nature ( " maître et possesseur de la nature " ) and Francis Bacon formulated ) In this context one has variously Christianity for want to make the ecological crisis responsibility, such as the art historian Lynn White. This is not only in the sense of domination contract, but also in terms of the consistently place in Christianity " Entgötterung " of nature, such as those in the fight against nature deities in other religious traditions is expressed ( Schiller: " to enrich a among all / had to pass away these gods. " gods Graecia )

An increasingly occurring in the 20th century interpretation understands the mandate to rule rather as in a fiduciary, quasi -herding task ( stewardship ). Worth noting, however, that Karl Marx had already formulated in the third volume of Capital: Even an entire society, a nation, or even all simultaneously existing nations are not, taken together, the owner of the earth. They are simply its possessors, its beneficiaries, they have to leave as improved bonuses patres familias ( good fathers ) to subsequent generations. ( MEW, vol 25, p 784 )