As the United States continues to cannibalize in the culture wars instead of working together to save crops, homes and forests from climate change, US clerics have emerged with a unified voice of beauty and moral clarity. The National Evangelical Association (NAE) joined major Protestant, Christian and Catholic denominations in declaring climate change an emergency that God dictates an energetic and scientific response.

Representing more than 40 denominations and millions of members, the NAE offers to help navigate the complexities of climate “with biblical clarity” on the need for action. As one Walter Kim puts it in his just-released 2022 update to provide the authoritative and biblical basis for climate action: love these least “For too many people in this world, the beach is not sunscreen or body surfing, but a daily reminder of tides and botched fishing.” The NAE report addresses this problem. , a review of the biblical basis for Christians’ commitment to climate change, how the global environment has been affected by climate change, and how extreme environments affect the poor, Christians offers to encourage you to do something about it. The report found that evangelicals, who were previously considered the “least likely” demographic to believe that climate change is real and that it is caused by human action, It marks an important shift in direction, especially for white evangelicals.

Catholics were already there. Pope Francis has previously likened inaction on climate change to suicide. “Every year the problem gets worse. He called on world leaders to heed the earth’s “cry of anguish”, which has been devastated by climate change. We are calling on all countries. “Mother Earth cries,” he wrote. “Fed prey to our excessive consumerism, she weeps and implores us to end our abuses and her ruin.” , mining and forestry to make changes to stop rising temperatures.

Thomas Reese, a senior analyst for the Religion News Service and a Jesuit priest, said earlier this year that the United States had “learned nothing” in the past 50 years when it came to the risks of being dependent on oil. . What needs to be done: “Reduce oil and gas consumption. Increase alternative sources of green energy. Politicians can only focus on this year’s elections…”

Meanwhile, the Presbyterian Church, which has long had ties to the oil industry, voted to sell off five oil companies in July, citing inadequate tackling climate change. Presbyterian votes to exit Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Marathon Petroleum, Phillips 66 and Valero Energy follow years of debate and encourage these companies to do more to curb their greenhouse gas emissions. It’s the result of years of hard work to make it happen. Concluding that their efforts were unsuccessful, presbyterian church usa 340 to 41 put these companies on the list for sale. Bob Fore, head of faith-based investing and corporate engagement, reported that the church’s “Mission Responsibility through Investments” committee wanted to see more voluntary change. Disappointed that their sincere efforts did not materialize, he said the divestment was “never the goal”. Corporate change is their goal as the climate crisis continues to grow in urgency.

There is a desperate need for a new unified voice of the clergy. More than 70% of her Americans are concerned about climate change, according to a Gallup poll, and climate change religious activism is on the rise.

As NASA recently reported, global climate change is not a future problem. Global climate change caused by increased human emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases is already having far-reaching effects on the environment. Glaciers and ice sheets are shrinking, river and lake ice is breaking up faster, the geographic range of plants and animals is changing, and plants and trees are flowering earlier. Loss of sea ice, accelerated sea-level rise, longer and more intense heatwaves, and other effects that scientists have long predicted will result from global climate change are now occurring.

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Many Americans are now personally observing a dramatic increase in droughts, wildfires and extreme rainfall. These events are happening much faster than scientists predicted. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a cooperative body set up by the United Nations to assess climate science, humans have never experienced these climate phenomena before, many of which have been around for thousands of years. cannot be returned.

NASA reports that all regions of the globe will be affected, not just poor countries. Sea levels he will rise 1-8 feet by 2100. Hurricanes get stronger and more violent. Extreme droughts, heat waves, wildfires, and dramatic changes in precipitation will continue. Deloitte estimates the cost of failing to address climate change at $14.5 trillion over the next 50 years in the United States alone.

The effects of climate change are visibly apparent to almost everyone but the Koch brothers, but the science is not new. reportedly attributed to greenhouse gases from fossil fuels. To offset this near-perfect scientific consensus, the oil industry has spent tens of millions of dollars padding out messages. It has effectively lobbied to protect its interests and has brought legislative defeat to climate action for decades.

In August, finally overcoming the Big Oil misinformation campaign, the United States passed its first significant climate law, creating a decarbonization strategy on par with the New Deal, the interstate highway system and mass electrification. Researchers say the scale required is enormous. Enough landmass to power the country with wind and solar exceeds the size of many states combined. Farmers and city planners are beginning to incorporate wind turbines and solar panels into existing land uses, but economists predict that this shift will bring immense economic benefits to most sectors of the economy. I’m here.

Despite the apparent change in the climate around us, climate denial persists, with many naysayers claiming it is cyclical or an act of God. Loving guidance from religious leaders can help. As the evangelicals just taught, “To love God means to obey. God has given us the task of caring for it (Genesis 2:15).We worship God by caring for his creation.”

Amen.

Gary’s attorney, Sabrina Haake, is a freelance columnist for the Post-Tribune.