Evangelicals With Deep Pockets Are Funding Climate Change Denial

In a baffling display of cognitive dissonance, two “Christian” Texas billionaires, Farris and Dan Wilks, have emerged as the patrons of climate change denialism. Their substantial wealth, built on an industry that contributes substantially to the destruction of the planet, now fuels a movement that contradicts both the scientific consensus and the teachings of their professed faith.

When he’s not pillaging the earth of its natural resources, one of the brothers, Farris Wilks is the pastor of a modest church known as the Assembly of Yahweh in Cisco, Texas… and a freaking rich Pastor, at that.

They have made their fortune from fossil fuel extraction using oil and gas fracking.

Unearthing the Roots of Denial

Fracking, the cornerstone of the Wilks brothers’ fortunes, is a controversial technique used by mining companies for extracting natural gas and oil from deep beneath the Earth’s surface. It involves injecting high-pressure fluids into rock formations, often causing environmental damage through water pollution, habitat disruption, and the release of greenhouse gases.

The industry that has propelled the Wilks brothers into the echelons of the super-wealthy is one of the major contributors to climate change. It’s no secret that the extraction and combustion of fossil fuels, including those harvested through fracking, release significant quantities of carbon dioxide into the Earth’s atmosphere.

Now, instead of using their fortune to support worthy causes that actually improve the planet or the lives of its inhabitants, the Wilks Brothers fund right-wing projects, with climate change denialism chief among them.

The Wilks Brothers seem to have missed the memo about the stewardship of the Earth. Instead of tending to the biblical injunction of being caretakers of the planet, they have chosen to equate climate change with God’s divine will. Apparently, if polar caps are meant to melt, it’s all part of a celestial plan. One can only wonder which passage of scripture they are referencing here.

It makes me so angry when so-called “Christians” use the whole “If-climate-change-is-real-it-must-be-God’s-will” argument. After all, seeing climate change through the lens of divine will reflects a fairly substantial misunderstanding of both science and faith. Global warming is not “God’s will” anymore than me stabbing my neighbor is God’s will. Climate scientists overwhelmingly agree that human actions are the main drivers of the current climate crisis. This isn’t just a theory; it’s a resounding chorus of voices echoing the urgency of our situation.

When we relegate climate change to a mere act of God, we unintentionally dismiss our own responsibility. It’s akin to shrugging our shoulders and saying, “Well, there’s nothing we can do about it.” But that couldn’t be further from the truth. We all have a moral duty, a calling, to step up and address this pressing global challenge — but Christians all the more. It is a God-given mandate.

The Gospel of Denialism

Unfortunately, the Wilks brothers’ funding endeavors read like a dark parody of evangelical giving. The Guardian reports that PragerU, a self-proclaimed educational outlet, is one of the largest recipients of their largesse. Churning out “edutainment” videos that peddle climate denialism to school children alongside a mishmash of other right-wing agendas, PragerU’s videos have actually been approved for use in Florida classrooms. You can watch their “Why You Should Love Fossil Fuel” video here, along with lots of other similar titles. After all, who needs peer-reviewed science when you can have animated infotainment?

The Daily Wire, another brainchild of the Wilks dynasty, continues this proud tradition. Founded with a hefty contribution from Farris Wilks, it serves as a megaphone for climate skepticism and anti-democrat sentiment and provides a steady diet of conspiracy theories while masquerading as a legitimate news source.

Financial Motivations

According to Forbes, “Dan and his brother Farris received a combined $3.5 billion (pretax) in 2011 selling their fracking company to a group led by Singapore-based firm Temasek. Moreover, the brothers have acquired more than 672,000 acres of land in six different states across the West, becoming America’s 12th-largest landowners.”

The financial interests at play in their climate change denialism cannot be understated. The Wilks brothers, along with other fossil fuel industry magnates, have a substantial stake in protecting their investments. Acknowledging the reality of climate change would necessitate a shift away from fossil fuels, potentially impacting their bottom lines.

God forbid.

Make no mistake, by funding climate denialism, the Wilks brothers — these so-called “men of faith” — are effectively safeguarding their economic interests, even at the expense of the planet’s well-being.

This only highlights to me the maxim of Jesus Christ: “You cannot serve both God and money.”

A profound hypocrisy

I can imagine that if I were filthy rich, I might wish to give away some of my money to worthy causes… especially if my worldview were supposedly underpinned by a belief in a savior who loved and served the poor and unfortunate.

But how can individuals who claim to follow a faith rooted in love, compassion, and the appropriate stewardship of the Earth simultaneously champion a cause that threatens the very planet they call home? That’s the same planet that God told us to care for, by the way.

And one of the brothers is a pastor, no less!

Perhaps the most appalling part of this sordid hypocrisy is this: Those who are and will be most impacted by climate change are those in poor and developing nations. It’s not the privileged West.

This stinks of self-interest rather than the kind of self-sacrificial love demonstrated by Jesus Christ.

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This post was previously published on Backyard Church.

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