J. J. Johnson Leese discusses how the apostle Paul's writing on Christ's relationship to creation, read alongside the interpretations of Irenaeus of Lyon, provide a meaningful contribution to contemporary debates on the interrelationship between religion and nature.
Leese draws upon the integration of three related scholarly trends - the increased importance placed on biblical creation themes, the emergence of ecotheology, and the history of reception - while focusing on the Pauline corpus and readings of Paul by Irenaeus, thus uncovering a robust creation
and ecotheological theology. Irenaeus' approach provides the possibility for Paul to contribute to ecotheology, by way of a theological vision where the whole of reality in relationship to Christ and creation and by extension, to soteriology and ecclesiology, are central components of Paul's theology.
Johnson Leese ? has demonstrated through her work that, beyond Rom 8:19-25 and Col 1:15-20, Paul's letters provide a wealth of funding for biblical ecological reflection.