Dear Friends

SAFEGUARDING THE ENVIRONMENT

THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY

You may have heard the Archbishop being interviewed last month on the “Today” programme. He was responding to the news that the Government is not likely to meet its own targets to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Margaret Beckett, the Environment Minister, did not know how to cope with the Archbishop’s assertion that the protection of the environment is “a moral issue”. I was interested in her response that she “did not feel that the public liked politicians to use the language of morality”! If that is true, it is an interesting comment both on politicians and society.

GIVING A MORAL LEAD

Church leaders are often criticised for not “giving a moral lead”. What that often means is that they are not reported for supporting the particular pet causes of their critics. Personally, I find it refreshing to hear bishops speak about something other than sex! In this interview I felt our Archbishop was giving a strong moral lead about a subject that matters to very many people. He was spelling out the likely consequences for the world if we fail to address the effects of man made global warming. In the Indian sub-continent alone, millions of lives could be lost in future years, because of rising sea levels. In other parts of the world, as deserts encroach on previously fertile areas, there will be further catastrophes. Our failure to take this seriously is, says the Archbishop, a moral issue.

CHANGING ATTITUDES

The Archbishop said that there is a profound need to educate people about the environmental consequences of our way of life. The weight of scientific opinion is now that global warming is largely caused by human activity. The melting of the ice caps seems to be accelerating, and is even more serious than had first been thought. But every government looks to blame someone else. The Australian government is reluctant to take action, because it says that any difference it could make would be insignificant unless China reduces its carbon emissions. European governments point to the fact that the United States is responsible for producing one quarter of the “green house gases”. Everyone passes the buck. The Archbishop argues that governments must do more, and provide greater leadership. But that ultimately, each of us shares some responsibility. In a democracy, politicians will be unwilling to go further than voters are prepared to. And as yet, there is not the will in the Western world, to allow our standard of living to be affected in any way. Until we wake up to the real dangers that face our planet, there is not likely to be the political will to do more than make a few token gestures to the environment. Some scientists are warning that by the time we do wake up, it may be too late.

A THEOLOGY FOR THE ENVIRONMENT

One of the Bishop of Chelmsford’s five marks of mission is “to strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth”. This is more than a liberal cause espoused by trendy clerics. It is a fundamental aspect of our Christian theology. We need look no further than the first pages of Genesis. At the creation, God looks on his world, and “behold, it was very good”. Our home on this planet is a place of the most remarkable beauty, complexity and diversity. It is, as we are discovering, also incredibly fragile. God has entrusted human beings with the responsibility of being stewards of this world. Sadly, we are not living up to this trust. We may not be able to do much to change the attitudes of President Bush or of the Chinese government. But each of us can examine our own way of life, and our own individual attitude to and treatment of the environment.

Stephen Carter