WASHINGTON – The United States takes climate change “seriously,” declared President Bush on Friday as he called on both developed and developing nations to set long-term goals to reduce emissions.
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White House photo by Chris GreenbergPresident George W. Bush addresses the Major Economies Meeting on Energy Security and Climate Change Friday, Sept. 28, 2007, at the U.S. State Department.
“By setting this goal, we acknowledge there is a problem, and by setting this goal, we commit ourselves to doing something about it,” he said at the Major Economies Meeting on Energy Security and Climate Chang, according to CNN e.
For a growing number of Christians, the Bush administration’s acknowledgement and effort to address climate change is encouraging news.
The Bush administration has been criticized by other nations for not participating in the 1997 U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, or the Kyoto Protocol. The protocol was signed by over 150 countries and called for reduction in emissions in absolute terms, but only by developing nations.
Partly in response, evangelical leaders such as the Rev. Richard Cizik of the National Association of Evangelicals and megachurch pastors Rick Warren and Bill Hybels have joined mainline church heads such as the Most Rev. Dr. Katharine Jefferts Schori of the Episcopal Church in supporting the view that global warming is real and mainly human induced.
These leaders have called for the United States to set policies that would cut emissions, explaining that Creation Care, as they call it, is a biblical responsibility.
“This concern … comes straight from God and the Holy Spirit who is regenerating people’s hearts to realize the imperative of the Scriptures to care for God’s world in new ways,” said Cizik in the recent film The Great Warming.
“Climate change is real and human induced. It calls for action soon. And we are saying action based upon a biblical view of the world as God’s world,” said Cizik. “And to deplete our resources, to harm our world by environmental degradation, is an offense against God. That’s what the Scriptures say.”
Some Christians, however, say believers should stay clear of the climate change debate given that there is “no consensus on this issue.” Some also oppose laying most blame for global warming on humans and reject proposals to significantly cut carbon emission – the main contributor of greenhouse gases – which they say will have a devastating effect on the world’s poor.
Furthermore, Christian leaders have been urged to resist from using the Bible carelessly to support their views.
“To tie the authority of the Bible to the shifting and revisable scientific and public policy proposals of one’s global warming agenda is unhelpful to the debate at best and trivializing of Christian faith at worst,” advised Dr. Russell Moore of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary during a hearing before the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works in June.
“The SBC (Southern Baptist Convention) and other like-minded evangelical groups are not opposed to environmental protection,” explained Moore, who is the dean of SBTS’s school of theology and senior vice president for academic administration. “We are, however, concerned about the ways in which religious arguments are used in this debate, possibly with harmful consequences both for public policy and for the mission of the church.” Continue >>
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I love Bush... and this is why... Bush is as concerned about Global Warming as the left is concerned for Religious Freedom and Tolerance... it just does not exist ;)
GW is occurring... but it is also happening on Mars as well... my question is... who is to blame for mars? Oh yes, I FORGOT!! The Aliens have not perfected their combustion engines yet... my bad...