Community Peace and Justice - from a Faith Perspective
Resources – Reading
“The most significant feature of Pope Francis’ encyclical on environmentalism, “Laudato Si,’” is not about climate change. It is that the document represents a sea change in Catholic — indeed, Western religious — thinking on the relationship between human beings and the earth.”Religion News Service” – June 19, 2015
The US National Academy of Sciences and The Royal Society have released “Climate Change: Evidence & Causes,” a new publication produced jointly by the two institutions. Written by a UK-US team of leading climate scientists and reviewed by climate scientists and others, the publication is intended as a brief, readable reference document for decision makers, policy makers, educators, and other individuals seeking authoritative information on the some of the questions that continue to be asked. Read Online – Updated 2020
An excellent overview from the National Association of Evangelicals. “We are called as children of God to seek justice and care for the earth that God has given us. Degrading the environment, polluting air and water, and misusing valuable resources are obvious ways in which we Christians fall far short of God’s commands. But now we are confronted by the fact that we are
altering Earth’s climate by our own activities, a situation that generates a set of complex moral and ethical questions. I am encouraged that the evangelical church has begun serious discussion of the climate issues, including calls to
reconsider our profligate use of the global environment. I hope and pray that its voice will become increasingly clear on these issues.
Thomas Ackerman, Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, Director of the Joint Institute for the Study of the Atmosphere and Ocean, University of Washington. Read Online – Updated 2020
- The first is Reality — about 97% of climate experts have concluded that human-caused climate change is happening.
- The second is Risk — that the reality of climate change means that there are climate change impacts we can expect, but we also must consider what might happen, especially the small, but real, chance that we may face abrupt changes with massively disruptive impacts.
- The third R is Response — that there is much we can do and that the sooner we respond, the better off we will be.