Faith Communities Must Lead on Climate Action
An Open Message to Faith Adherents and Faith Communities on Climate Change
Friends — This would be a really good post to share to start conversations, to help build The Climate Movement.
Preface
My audience for www.climatehopetogether.com is all of us in The Climate Movement, those who should be, those who will be, as well as those who support climate action, or Climate Action Supporters. I try hard to write to my entire audience, not only in my country, the United States, but around the world.
But today I’m casting my eyes on one part of my audience.
Faith folks in the US, you see me lookin’. Yep. I’m looking right at you. Why? We’re not realizing our potential. And we absolutely must.
Why? Two reasons.
The climate challenge is the greatest moral cause of our time.
The destiny of The Climate Movement is to become the greatest and most long-lasting social change movement in the history of the world.
Faith folks — we have a tremendous roll to play in this, including contributing 12 million of us to The Climate Movement. But as of yet we’re not doing it.
I think some misperceptions might be getting in the way, as well as many things clamoring for our attention right now (see conclusion). We’ve got to deal with anything blocking us and get to it. Time’s a wastin’, time we don’t have to waste.
Misperceptions Are Stifling Us.
Misperception #1:
Do we think that “The Climate Movement” is something outside, distinct from, our faith communities?
It’s not!
Misperception #2
Do we think that “climate movement people” or climate organizations or environmental organizations are in charge of The Climate Movement?
They’re not!
Misperception #3
Do we think that climate leadership comes from those in charge, those outside of us, and so we’re waiting for them to lead as we go about our other “religious” stuff?
We mustn’t!
Dispelling These Spells
Underlying these misperceptions is an “Us and Them” mentality. But there’s no “them”! There’s only us. It’s an “Us and Us” kinda situation. Not “Us and Them.” There’s’ plenty of overlap, and we’re in it together.
We’re not distinct and separate silos, so that we have a faith community silo and over there somewhere is the climate movement silo. And when we’re in the bogus faith-silo we put on our faith-self, and if we somehow find our way over to the other one we put on our climate-self.
And if we do imagine ourselves venturing into this bogus climate movement silo, we might think we have to shed our faith-selves when we enter.
But it’s our faith that gives us so much of our moral power! We can’t be Superman in our faith community, with all of the moral superpower it provides, and change into regular clothes and become Clark Kent as we enter the “climate movement silo,” hiding our strengths, hiding our light under a basket (Mt. 5:15-16). Our faith-selves and our climate-selves are one and the same.
There’s no faith-us and a separate climate-us. It’s always just us.
As for misperception #2, who’s in charge, the answer is: no one. No one is in charge of any movement, including The Climate Movement. So waiting for the person in charge of The Climate Movement is like waiting for Gadot. There’s no such person. If no one’s in charge, then everyone’s in charge. Uh, yea. We’re all responsible to act.
As for misperception #3, climate organizations and environmental organizations and the people that make them up may indeed provide excellent leadership, strategic leadership for The Climate Movement. Climate campaigns may do the same. But that doesn’t mean they’re in charge of the larger Movement.
So let’s consider again the two points at the beginning. First, living a moral life is part of our traditions. We can’t be passive on the greatest moral cause of our time!
Second, the Climate Movement’s destiny to become the greatest and most long-lasting social change movement means the Movement must become its first characteristic/imperative/goal: big and broad and active enough.
In the US that’s simply not going to happen without faith folks. We are 70% of the population. Are we really supposed to just wait for someone we think of as outside our communities to tell us what to do about the greatest moral cause of our time?
I’m not saying listening to others would be wrong. We should listen to anyone trying to get us on the right path towards climate action.
What I’m saying is that this way of thinking makes us passive. It makes us completely miss the potential, the capacity within us, within our traditions and communities, that we have more to offer than just showing up every once in awhile when we’re told.
It’s time shake off these misperceptions and wake up to our own potential. Time to claim our climate calling.
If you feel you really need an Invitation, that you need to be asked, well, then, here you go. I’m inviting you. I’m asking. You’re invited! The party won’t be the same without you. Literally.
Our Callings Are Not Passive
Because of these misperceptions, and possibly other factors (see conclusion), way too many of us faith folk are in passive mode. But our faith traditions call us to a variety of actions that are anything but passive:
create justice,
have compassion,
embody selfless service,
heal the world,
create peace,
live in harmony,
protect life and end suffering,
live in and live out the Better Future Covenant.
Where the faith and climate circles overlap, all of these actions are in that shared space. This is our kairos climate moment. It’s decision time. But to do what?
Just Say No to the Individual Carbon Footprint Scam
I know what some of you are thinking.
“Ok, yes, our faith is calling us do something. Let’s all do better on our carbon footprints. Now where did I put that list of things individuals can do to reduce his or her pollution.”
Aaaahhh! Frikkin’ NO.
As I wrote about in an earlier post, we must dump the individual carbon footprint scam made popular by Big Oil to distract us from their culpability.
Valiant efforts by lone individuals to act on their own to reduce outcomes that are an inevitable byproduct of systems in which they are enmeshed, is, at the end of the day, delusional.
You can’t do it on your own. It’s crazy to think you can.
Stop Being Conned. Start Being True
Stop being manipulated and played for a sucker. Stop allowing the real culprits trap you in harmful guilt, ineffectually acting on your own as they continue to profit from products that foster death.
Jesus of Nazareth warned his disciples he was sending them out as sheep among wolves, warning them to be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (Mt. 10:16; cf. Lk 16:8).
With the climate challenge we must not be conned as marks, but rather be shrewd for good as we are true our moral calling. Together we must be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Only working together can we do this. Time to be true to who we are.
Responsible, But Not Accountable: Time to Join
As an individual you are not accountable for climate change. An individual cannot cause a systemic aggregate problem. It is the Big Producers of Polluting Products and the governments that allow them who are accountable.
But we are all responsible for joining with others in collective action to overcome climate change by creating a just and prosperous sustainability that enhances wellbeing for everyone and everything.
The only way we’re going to do this is by working together. It’s one of the hallmarks of faith communities. If anyone should understand the need and the power of collective action it is faith adherents. When you make a sustained commitment to collective action over time to do this, to fulfill this responsibility, you become a part of The Climate Movement. Ta Da! You’re in!
So there’s really only one thing listed on an individual’s climate action To Do List. Want to know what to do? Join The Climate Movement and work together.
Time to Lead
Faith communities in the US — we need to be leading! We don’t have to wait for others in The Climate Movement to lead. It’s time for us to step up! Time is running out to make a difference on the greatest moral challenge of our time.
The nature of the climate challenge and the need for climate action is this: we must act in the present to (1) avoid a terrible future and (2) create a better one. Time to make this better future come faster.
As such, climate change is something tailor-made for faith leadership for many reasons. I’ll highlight two: wisdom and justice.
» Wisdom
We are guardians of wisdom, painstakingly gathered from millennia of life’s lessons and stored in our traditions. Science is another great source of wisdom, providing us facts about our world that also guide our behavior, in this case the nature of the climate threat. With our response to climate change we are partaking from both of these great fonts of wisdom. When facing the climate challenge, wisdom counsels us to do exactly what the nature of the climate threat calls us to do: act in the present to avoid a terrible future and create a better one. Time to be shrewd for good.
» Justice
The classic definition of justice is to give each their due. Faith traditions have strong calls for justice, because each person is due dignity and respect. Poverty and unjust treatment of the powerless are denials of dignity. Climate change, wherein those most vulnerable who have done nothing to create this threat will nevertheless suffer the greatest harm, is a grave injustice. The innocent killed. The guilty rewarded. On its own this is enough for faith communities to help lead The Climate Movement.
Creating Power For Good
As faith communities we are uniquely poised to be major contributors to the creation of The Climate Movement’s three forms of power: moral power, people power, and staying power, or P3.
Moral Power — The Climate Movement is a moral movement because climate change is a wrong that must be made right. Climate action is the right thing to do. Because this is inherent and self-evident, The Climate Movement doesn’t need a moral “seal of approval” from faith traditions. But there is no doubt that faith communities can bolster the perception and recognition of our effort as a moral movement. Pope Francis and Pope Leo have been tremendous leaders in this regard, lending their moral stature and the teachings of their tradition to our cause.
People Power — The more faith adherents recognize climate action as part of their calling, the more The Climate Movement will grow. Our goal is to have 5% of the US population be a part of The Climate Movement by 2030. That’s about 16 million folks. Faith communities in the US are around 70%, and 70% of 16 million is 11.2 million. But we should do a little more. So I’d say faith communities should contribute at least 12 million.
US Goal: 12 million Faith Adherents in The Climate Movement
As I’ve covered before, polls show that the Climate Movement Potential in the US is about 30%. So 12 million? Easy-peasy. Polls also show that when folks are asked to do climate actions by someone the like and respect, the numbers increase by 24%, with Conservative Republicans at +9, Moderate Rs at +14, Moderate Democrats at +32, and Liberal Ds at +43. If there’s one thing faith communities know how to do, it’s ask people to do stuff.
Staying Power — Our communities have been around for thousands of years. I’m hard pressed to think of any other institutions in society that come close to this. We know how to have staying power. We’ve helped provide it in social movements like the Civil Rights Movement. We can do so again.
I’ll say it flat out: every person of faith and every faith community in this country and around the world is called to be a part of The Climate Movement. What happens to our climate is not just the province of a select few. It’s all of us.
Faith-CATS
One way for faith communities to organize climate action within themselves is by encouraging and supporting the formation and existence of Faith-CATS, aka Faith Climate Action Teams.
CATS are small groups that meet together regularly to support one another in climate action: (1) meet; (2) support; (3) act.
Since every person of faith is called to be a part of The Climate Movement, Faith-CAT members aren’t the only ones in their faith community to be doing climate action. As I said, what happens to the climate is not the domain of a chosen few. But Faith-CATS can provide leadership within the community and be catalyzing and organizing agents of community action to make our future come faster.
Even if some faith communities and denominations don’t support climate action, people of faith can find one another and form Faith-CATS. The teachings of your faith give you all the permission you need. It is part of being faithful to your faith today.
So let’s start lots of Faith-CATS. Let’s start to organize these Faith-CATS together. Let’s create state-based faith-climate-action networks and organize these state networks at the national level. Time to get organized!
Only So Many Hours in a Day, But Time Is Running Out
There’s more than misperceptions holding us back. I know that faith communities in the US have a lot on their plates right now — including challenges created by the Trump Administration that are sucking all the oxygen out of the room.
Everything that’s clamoring for our attention and time, all that seems to be more immediate than climate change, these can screen out the greatest moral challenge of our time from our thoughts, short-circuiting needed climate action.
The nature of the climate challenge is telling us we can’t do that. The teachings and examples from our traditions are calling us to stand for climate action now, and to keep pushing for wisdom and justice to prevail. This is our kairos climate moment. Time is running out for us to be faithful to our calling and make our future come faster.
The challenges of our current moment aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive, and we must find ways to combine efforts and provide mutual support, what I call Climate Action+, a both/and approach that builds on the places where we are strong together, another way to be shrewd for good.
Everyone is called to be a leader in their own way on climate action by being active and proactive in the ways that you can. Some of you are even called to make climate action your life’s work.
And what about hope? We’ve got that covered, too, because we’re the hope we’ve been waiting for. Let’s go!
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