That is the question asked as introduction to this article: Pope Francis Expected to Instruct One Billion Catholics to Act on Climate Change
At the end of 2015, the nations of the world will meet in Paris and attempt to hammer out a global deal to cut greenhouse gas emissions. And Pope Francis hopes that the world’s Catholics, as well as other major religions, will be a big part of serious climate action.
This includes a series of steps next year. Francis is expected to tell the planet’s 1.2 billion Catholics why acting on climate change is essential to the faith using an influential church document called an encyclical. This has been long-rumored, but will reportedly be released to the world’s 5,000 bishops and 400,000 priests following a papal visit to the hurricane-damaged city of Tacloban in the Philippines.
In September, the Pope will take his message to the U.N. General Assembly in a New York address next year, according to John Vidal of the Guardian, who cited Vatican insiders. He will reportedly personally lobby political and faith leaders there, with the goal of pushing them to commit to real action ahead of the Paris meetings in December of next year.
I am glad he is doing this, but I also have problems with it. Read on below to find out why.
In my book with Jim Coffman we write about the role of Judeo-Christian religion in the complex world view that Western people have evolved. We use the writing of Native American author Vine Deloria, Jr.; God Is Red. This is
a nonfiction book that discusses traditional Native American religious views, particularly their relation to Western Christianity. It also details the hardships faced by Native Americans as their country was quickly flooded with foreigners eager for land and other resources. Deloria links the anthrocentrism of Christian orthodoxy and subsequent American economic philosophies with increasing environmental upheaval. Deloria also explains how religious views are rooted to "place" as opposed to being universal.
Deloria writes about the way religion shapes the human attitude toward nature. He points out that the creation myth in the Bible used by the Judeo-Christian religions is the root cause of this attitude. The story of the fall is a very potent myth in that it is the way both humans in particular and nature in general become tainted due to human sin. The separation from and attempted domination over nature are the result.
I doubt that the Pope shares these views. Therefore it will be hard for him to correct the problem his religion has helped create. I'm sure he will give reasons for his views but they are not going to undo thousands of years of teaching and the world view that has evolved.
This is not different from the conflict I see with his other recent teachings about economics and other issues. He is not convincing simply because the new positions seem to come from nowhere, ignoring history and the thinking that evolved up to now. The simple picture I get is that he is saying that he, as Pope, can simply do a turn around for his Church and no explanation for the drastic conflict with the past is necessary. I once was a Catholic and I don't see how this is going to work. Maybe there is something I am missing?