This month, the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change is launching a unique and unprecedented initiative, A Catholic Climate Covenant and the St. Francis Pledge to Care for Creation and the Poor. This ambitious project is in response to a growing desire by the Catholic community to respond, in faith, to climate change. It will also be a demonstration of a common Catholic commitment to care for God’s creation and to stand with the poor and vulnerable people in our nation and around the world who face the impacts of a changing climate. AFJN has joined many Catholic organizations to promote this covenant and pledge. Climate change is something many of our members are interested in, and this year we participated in Ecumenical Advocacy Days, which had the overall theme of “Enough for All Creation.” The next step is for us to join the Catholic Coalition in ratifying the covenant and pledge.
At the center of the Covenant is The St. Francis Pledge, calling on Catholic individuals, groups, and institutions to make a serious commitment to all of the following:
PRAY and reflect on the duty to care for God’s creation and for the poor and vulnerable;
LEARN about and educate others on the moral dimensions of climate change;
ASSESS our participation-as individuals and organizations-in contributing to climate change (i.e. consumption and conservation);
ACT to change our choices and behaviors contributing to climate change; and
ADVOCATE Catholic principles and priorities in climate change discussions and decisions, especially as they impact the poor and vulnerable.
You can learn more about this on the Covenant and the Pledge at www.catholicsandclimatechange.
