CLIMATE STATEMENTS
Archbishop Wester on Laudato Si
Archbishop Wester’s article on Laudato Si in our Archdiocesan Newspaper, People of God, June/July issue (page 3 and 30).
https://issuu.com/officialasf/docs/pg-june2016final/1?e=2171720/36346138
An Op Ed by Archbishop Wester on the anniversary of Laudato Si and the urgency of climate change was also printed in the Albuquerque Journal on this Sunday, June 12.
http://www.abqjournal.com/790424/pope-has-called-for-action-on-climate.html
https://www.facebook.com/thankyouNAE/
Bishops call for “transformational” climate agreement
(Vatican Radio) Bishops from around the world have appealed to the COP 21 meeting in Paris to create a “fair, legally binding, and truly transformational” climate agreement.
For the full article click the link:
Caring for God’s Creation
A Call to Action
Go to website: http://nae.net/caring-for-gods-creation/
The biblical mandate to care for God’s earth and the people who depend upon it is clear. In 1970 the NAE declared that “those who thoughtlessly destroy a God-ordained balance of nature are guilty of sin against God’s creation.”[1] In 2004 we affirmed that “government has an obligation to protect its citizens from the effects of environmental degradation. This involves the urgent need to relieve human suffering caused by bad environmental practice.”[2]
A changing climate threatens the lives and livelihoods of the world’s poorest citizens. The NAE commends its publication “Loving the Least of These: Addressing a Changing Environment” for careful and prayerful study by all concerned evangelicals.[3]
In solidarity with evangelical leaders from around the world, we endorse the creation care principles outlined in the Lausanne Cape Town Commitment, which states:
All human beings are to be stewards of the rich abundance of God’s good creation. We are authorized to exercise godly dominion in using it for the sake of human welfare and needs, for example in farming, fishing, mining, energy generation, engineering, construction, trade, medicine. As we do so, we are also commanded to care for the earth and all its creatures, because the earth belongs to God, not to us. We do this for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ who is the creator, owner, sustainer, redeemer and heir of all creation.
We lament over the widespread abuse and destruction of the earth’s resources, including its bio-diversity. Probably the most serious and urgent challenge faced by the physical world now is the threat of climate change. This will disproportionately affect those in poorer countries, for it is there that climate extremes will be most severe and where there is little capability to adapt to them. World poverty and climate change need to be addressed together and with equal urgency.
We encourage Christians worldwide to:
A) Adopt lifestyles that renounce habits of consumption that are destructive or polluting;
B) Exert legitimate means to persuade governments to put moral imperatives above political expediency on issues of environmental destruction and potential climate change;
C) Recognize and encourage the missional calling both of (i) Christians who engage in the proper use of the earth’s resources for human need and welfare through agriculture, industry and medicine, and (ii) Christians who engage in the protection and restoration of the earth’s habitats and species through conservation and advocacy. Both share the same goal for both serve the same Creator, Provider and Redeemer.[4]
[1] “Ecology,” National Association of Evangelicals, 1970, http://nae.net/ecology/ (accessed October 19, 2015).
[2] For the Health of the Nation: An Evangelical Call to Civic Responsibility (Washington, DC: National Association of Evangelicals, 2004).
[3] Dorothy Boorse, Loving the Least of These: Addressing a Changing Environment (Washington, DC: National Association of Evangelicals, 2011).
[4] “The Cape Town Commitment,” The Lausanne Movement, 2011,http://www.lausanne.org/content/ctc/ctcommitment (accessed October 19, 2015).
We, the leadership of Unity Worldwide Ministries, hear the urgent call to co-create a world that nourishes all life forms. We positively declare our love for and spiritual interconnectedness with all beings and our responsibility to protect the sustainability of the environment.
Aligned with the empowering spiritual teachings of Unity co-founders Charles and Myrtle Fillmore, Jesus and other inspired spiritual teachers, we advocate our worldwide prayer partners to take into affirmative prayer and meditation the personal inquiry of “what is mine to do” to improve the quality of life of all beings and our planet. UWM affirms that climate change is real and that human activity is a significant cause of climate change. UWM also acknowledges that climate change is an issue resulting in both environmental degradation and social injustice. As such, we commit to serve, as our faith leads us, to take steps in healing the planet.
Unity Worldwide Ministries, in accordance with its God-centered five basic principles, commits to advancing the Unity movement by:
1. Promoting active stewardship of the environment and an awareness of our oneness with the earth.
2. Cultivating a consciousness of EarthCare that includes both spiritual and practical actions that support and balance the environment and our human needs, in accordance with Unity’s Fifth Basic Principle, “Through thoughts, words and actions, we live the Truth we know.”
3. Promoting sustainable living practices that honor the earth’s ecosystems and resources in a responsible manner.
4. Transforming attitudes and commitments by embracing concrete actions that reduce human ecological impact and promote social justice for all.
5. Educating, supporting and encouraging individuals to align their (individual) lifestyle choices with values that promote environmental sustainability and recognition of their moral imperative to care for creation.
www.UnityWorldwideMinistries.org
info@unity.org PO Box 610, Lees Summit MO 64063 tel: 816.524.7414 fax: 816.525.4020 Climate Change Action Resolution