Why Pope Francis' Climate Change Encyclical Is So Important - US News

Love your neighbors, and save them from climate change.

This summer, Pope Francis will deliver the first major encyclical of his papacy. It will be on climate change and the environment. Encyclicals are a big deal, just one level below a papal bull.

While nearly everything the “superman pope” does is scrutinized closely by the conservative wing of the Catholic church in America, this particular call to the church is likely to receive an extra dose of attention because of the nature of the issue.

Francis issued a general encyclical on moral issues early in his papacy. But he chose to tackle climate change and the environment as his first real issue. But why climate? And why now? While the pope hasn’t talked much about the rationale for choosing climate, his advisers at the Vatican have given plenty of hints. Some of the reasons are obvious. But some of them are not.

The most obvious reason is one of timing. This year, 2015, is a pivotal year for efforts to jumpstart a transformation of the energy system from a carbon-intensive one that is threatening to destabilize the planet to a low-carbon one that can slow the rise of the planet’s temperature. World leaders are committing to long-term efforts to slow the use of carbon-intensive energy, and the Vatican wants to influence those deliberations that conclude in Paris at the end of the year.

But the not-so-obvious reason is that climate change is rapidly becoming the moral issue of our time, and this pope both recognizes it and wishes to help direct the church in that effort.

[SEE:Editorial Cartoons on Energy Policy]

People of all ages, from all demographics and all corners of the planet, are beginning to recognize that significant changes are occurring in our ecosystem, and they’d like to see someone, anyone, do something about it. They’re beginning to challenge leaders to act boldly. They’re learning how to act as low-carbon consumers. They’re demanding an end to the fossil fuel age. They’re turning a distant threat into a moral cause that demands a much more immediate response from business and political leaders.

Moral causes take time to develop. They tend to match the pace of concern that rises within people and places affected by them. In the case of climate change, perhaps for the first time in the world’s recorded history, we’re beginning to witness an awakening not just in one country or within one group of people, but in nearly every corner of the Earth.

People sense that we’re in trouble, as a species, and they want answers. But, more importantly, they want real actions. That sort of all-across-the-world public awareness around a threat (one that isn’t the result of military conflicts between nation states) has never truly happened before in our history as a species on Earth, but it’s happening now.

This is the basis of the moral cause of climate change, and why Francis’ encyclical has the potential to catalyze a great deal of action across the world when it’s issued.

So what is the encyclical likely to say? What is its basis, its foundation? And what right does a pope have to weigh in on what looks, on its surface, like a business and political issue?

For starters, the pope is likely to use his letter to more than 1 billion Catholics to explain the basics of what climate change is in plainspoken language that makes the issue available and relevant to everyone, rich and poor, and explain why we need to care about it.

[SEE:Political Cartoons on the Economy]

The atmosphere is like a blanket. It keeps the heat from the sun close to our planet. When people burn fossil fuels, they add more gases to the atmosphere. That’s like adding bulk to a blanket. More gases mean the atmosphere holds in more heat. The result is changes in the systems that sustain life. Rain is less predictable, deserts grow and even the chemical composition of the water in the ocean changes. The changes on our extra-heated Earth are what we call “climate change.”

But the pope will almost certainly explain why any of this matters to the church. As people of faith, Christians are called to love their neighbors. Because climate change harms our neighbors, we must solve climate change if we want to protect the people we love.

Christians are also called to remember our rightful place within creation. That rightful place is one that respects a vast web of life, and honors our responsibility to protect and defend the creation.

Christians are also called to care for the poorest and most vulnerable among us, a theme that this particular pope embodies better than any in recent history. The poorest people are least responsible for climate change and most affected by it, and Francis will almost certainly make this a central focus of his encyclical. It is all too evident that large numbers of people in different countries and areas of our planet are experiencing increased hardship because of the negligence or refusal of many others to exercise responsible stewardship over the environment.

Fundamentally changing the way we use energy will have an impact on the economy. But the truth is that climate change itself is the greater threat. It’s easy to forget, but the natural world underpins everything we do. Climate change will disrupt every sector of the economy, from agriculture and transportation to energy.

To prevent this disruption, a fossil fuel-based economy will need to gradually transition to a clean energy economy. Some of the biggest American businesses are already making major investments in the sustainable economy, which will require innovative leaders and dedicated, smart workers. But we need more businesses on board, and at a much faster rate.

[READ:The Other Climate Change]

The right to productive work with fair wages is an important part of Catholic social teaching. Training and supporting people in the fossil fuel industry as they make the transition to more sustainable work is essential. Catholic bishops in America have advocated for directing resources from climate change legislation to assist workers who are affected by a move from fossil fuels to clean energy sources. The pope will almost certainly touch on this issue of fairness in the midst of this transition.

This is the type of language that Francis is likely to issue in his encyclical. But beyond the science and the policies and the biblical rationale beneath it, the most important aspect of the pope’s encyclical will be his call to the church to take up the moral cause.

Call it the St. Francis pledge. When a billion people heed their religious leader’s call to reflect and then advocate and act on it, business and political leaders will have no choice but to pay attention.

That’s the heart of a moral cause. And Francis is about to establish the central basis for one on climate change and the environment. The church will hear it, understand it and advocate for it. The question is whether leaders are prepared for what happens next.

http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/faith-matters/2015/04/16/why-pope-francis-climate-change-encyclical-is-so-important