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This new encyclical is the first one in which
the environment will be the primary topic.
Pope Francis will bring together issues of
social justice and economic inequity along
with the environment and climate change
He is also slated to address the UN General Assembly in September and convene a
summit of world religious leaders to address climate change
According to Bishop Marcelo Sorondo, chancellor of the Vatican’s Pontifical
Academy of Sciences, the pope hopes to influence next year’s crucial UN climate
meeting in Paris, when countries will attempt to finalize two decades of troubled
negotiations with a universal and binding commitment to reducing greenhouse gas
emissions.
According to Yale religion and environment professor Mary Evelyn Tucker, co-founder of the Forum on
Religion and Ecology, the forthcoming encyclical will be one of
the “most important” documents dealing with the moral implications of
climate change, and will explore environmental justice concerns,
including how the poor and other vulnerable groups are deeply impacted by global “climate
disruption.”
The reasons might be threefold.
First, perhaps Pope Francis wishes to make
clear that when it comes to matters of creation, the church should be a major
player, not a marginal voice.
Second, perhaps Francis is underscoring that this is not just a
question of policies and carbon emissions, critical as they are, but it
is also one of persons, especially poor and vulnerable persons, who
often contribute the least to carbon emissions but suffer the most from
“climate chaos” in the form of floods, drought, typhoons, and
wildly whipsawing weather patterns
Third, might Pope Francis be suggesting that
climate change is not only a moral crisis, but a deeply spiritual crisis as
well, one that cuts to the core of who we are and
how we relate to all that is?
John Paul delivered high-profile remarks on the
topic as early as 1990. "The gradual depletion of the ozone layer and related 'greenhouse effect' has now reached crisis
proportions as a consequence of industrial growth, massive urban
concentrations and vastly increased energy needs," he said
during a World Day of Peace message.
Benedict earned praise as "the green pope" from some quarters for a series of symbolic
actions on climate change. He installed solar panels near St. Peter's Basilica, used offset purchases to make Vatican City the world's
first carbon-neutral state and even purchased an electric "Popemobile"
Joint Workshop of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences and the Pontifical Academy of
Social Sciences, 2-6 May 2014
2014 Cafod lecture: Argentinian bishop highlights urgency of tackling climate
change12 November 2014
“When we hear that people have meetings about how to preserve
creation, we can say: ‘No, they are the greens!’” Francis said in
his homily at morning Mass, using a common name for environmental
activists.“No, they are not the greens! This
is the Christian!” he said.
• Green Building is Ethical Building• Theology can build support for Green
Building• Green Building Theology Teaches Green
Values to Members of Religious Institutions
Can we network with other groups, Ngos before Paris?
Which groups? On what basis can we support the groups?
Networking
Fr. Allwyn D’Silva
Director - Institute for Community Organization Research (ICOR)
Head - Archdiocesan Office for Environment (Mumbai)
Secretary - Climate Change Desk of Federation of Asian Bishops Conference (FABC)