Each faith has something different to say about the environment and our role with it. Here are a few.
“Anthropogenic climate change is not inevitable; humanity chooses its relationships with the natural world…The current global order has often approached the natural world as a reservoir of material resources to be exploited. The grave consequences of this paradigm have become all too apparent, and more balanced relationships among the peoples of the world and the planet are clearly needed. The question today is how new patterns of action and interaction can best be established, both individually and collectively, through personal choices, social systems, and governing institutions.” ~ Shared Vision, Shared Volition: Choosing Our Global Future Together
“God’s command to tend and keep the earth (Genesis 2) did not pass away with the fall of man; we are still responsible. Lack of concern and failure to act prudently on the part of Christ-followers reflects poorly to the rest of the world. Therefore, we humbly take responsibility for the damage that we have done to God’s cosmic revelation and pledge to take an unwavering stand to preserve and protect the creation over which we have been given responsibility by Almighty God Himself.” ~ Southern Baptist Declaration on the Environment and Climate Change
“Four Noble Truths provide a framework for diagnosing our current situation and formulating appropriate guidelines—because the threats and disasters we face ultimately stem from the human mind... Our ecological emergency is a larger version of the perennial human predicament. Both as individuals and as a species, we suffer from a sense of self that feels disconnected not only from other people but from the Earth itself…We need to wake up and realize that the Earth is our mother as well as our home—and in this case the umbilical cord binding us to her cannot be severed. When the Earth becomes sick, we become sick, because we are part of her.” ~ The Time to Act is Now: A Buddhist Declaration on Climate Change
“Nature, in a word, is at our disposition and we are called to exercise a responsible stewardship over it. Yet so often we are driven by greed and by the arrogance of dominion, possession, manipulation and exploitation; we do not preserve nature; nor do we respect it or consider it a gracious gift which we must care for and set at the service of our brothers and sisters, including future generations.” ~ His Holiness Pope Francis for the Celebration of the World Day of Peace 2014
.“We commit to being the voice and hands that will witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and build the moral and political will that prompts action from our elected leaders. As international churches with congregations in many nations, we can and will use our global networks to promote a political framework to limit climate change, while in a unified voice we speak to the world about the urgency of committed climate work. We commit to leading a conversion of epic scale, a metanoia, or communal spiritual movement away from sin and despair toward the renewal and healing of all creation.” ~ Episcopal Church & Church of Sweden, Sustaining Hope in the Face of Climate Change.
“We are faced with a crisis that is pressing, urgent, and that must be resolved in our generation. Many of the world’s poorest people, ecosystems, and species of flora and fauna are being devastated by violence against the environment in multiple ways, of which global climate change, deforestation, biodiversity loss, water stress, and pollution are but a part. We can no longer afford complacency and endless debate. Love for God, our neighbors and the wider creation, as well as our passion for justice, compel us to “urgent and prophetic ecological responsibility” (CTC I.7.A). ~ Lausanne Global Consultation on Creation Care and the Gospel: Call to Action
“The Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (11.2.41) states, “Ether, air, fire, water, earth, planets, all creatures, directions, trees and plants, rivers and seas, they are all organs of God’s body. Remembering this a devotee respects all species.” Knowing this, Hindus strive for ahimsā, to minimize the harm we cause through our actions in our ordinary, day-to-day lives. As Hindus we revere all life, human, non-human, plant, and animal. Our rivers are all goddesses; our mountains are gods. The landscape as a whole is seen as being full of divinity. The planets and stars are physical objects, but they are also celestial beings, they and the space between them full of divinity. When we embody this, we move beyond just caring for our fellow beings as stewards of a divine creation. We become servants of the Divine, all our actions, including those in protection of the world around us and all the beings therein, becoming acts of worship.” ~ Bhumi Devi Ki Jai! A Hindu Declaration on Climate Change
“We are driven to conclude...that there are serious flaws in the way we have used natural resources – the sources of life on Earth. An urgent and radical reappraisal is called for. Humankind cannot afford the slow progress we have seen in all the COP (Conference of Parties – climate change negotiations) processes since the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment was published in 2005, or the present deadlock.” ~ Islamic Declaration on Global Climate Change
Indigenous Traditions “There is no more time for discussion on preventing “Climate Change.” That opportunity has passed. “Climate Change” is here. The Air is not the same anymore. The Water is not the same anymore. The Earth is not the same anymore. The Clouds are not the same anymore. The Rain is not the same anymore. The Trees, the Plants, the Animals, Birds, Fish, Insects and all the others are not the same anymore. All that is Sacred in Life is vanishing because of our actions. The truth is we have moved beyond climate change to survival.” ~ Indigenous Elders And Medicine Peoples Council Statement to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change
Indigenous Traditions “There is no more time for discussion on preventing “Climate Change.” That opportunity has passed. “Climate Change” is here. The Air is not the same anymore. The Water is not the same anymore. The Earth is not the same anymore. The Clouds are not the same anymore. The Rain is not the same anymore. The Trees, the Plants, the Animals, Birds, Fish, Insects and all the others are not the same anymore. All that is Sacred in Life is vanishing because of our actions. The truth is we have moved beyond climate change to survival.” ~ Indigenous Elders And Medicine Peoples Council Statement to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change
“Our ancestor Abraham inherited his passion for nature from Adam. The later rabbis never forgot it. Some twenty centuries ago they told the story of two men who were out on the water in a rowboat. Suddenly, one of them started to saw under his feet. He maintained that it was his right to do whatever he wished with the place which belonged to him. The other answered him that they were in the rowboat together; the hole that he was making would sink both of them. (Vayikra Rabbah 4:6)…We have a responsibility to life, to defend it everywhere, not only against our own sins but also against those of others. We are all passengers together in this same fragile and glorious world. Let us safeguard our rowboat–and let us row together.” ~ Jewish Statement: The Assisi Declaration
"The scale of human activity has grown so large that it now threatens the planet itself. Global environmental problems have become so vast they are hard to comprehend…The vast majority of scientific evidence suggests that carbon dioxide from fossil fuels has already caused a measurable warming of the globe. Confronted with the massive crisis of the deterioration of God's creation and faced with the question of the ultimate survival of life, we ask God's forgiveness for our participation in this destruction." (2004 Book of Resolutions, "Environmental Justice for a Sustainable Future”) ~ United Methodist Church Statement on Climate Change
“At the heart of Paganism is a deep reverence for the sacredness of Nature. It is, therefore, urgent that humans stop activities that harmfully impact the planet. We must accept responsibility for our actions and work to reverse damage, restore natural balance and learn to live in harmony within Nature. We support local, regional, national, and global efforts to conserve natural resources, to seek clean, sustainable sources of energy, and to rebalance our world.”
“Energy choices, more than ever, are moral choices. As our planet grows warmer, our Christian witness must become bolder. As individuals, families, congregations, and church administrative bodies, we must become the change we want to see in our nation. We must put our own houses in order even as we call on our nation to accept its moral responsibility with regard to energy policy and climate change. Together we must radically reduce our carbon footprint.” ~ The Power to Change: U.S. Energy Policy and Global Warming, 2009
“We recognize that most anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions are created by fossil fuel combustion. We recognize that our increasing population continues to pursue fossil fuel-dependent economic growth. We recognize that the Earth holds more fossil fuel reserves than are safe to burn, and that the vast majority of fossil fuel reserves must remain in the ground if we are to prevent the catastrophic consequences of climate change. We therefore question profoundly the continued investment in, and subsidizing of, fossil fuel extraction.” ~ A Shared Quaker Statement: Facing the Challenge of Climate Change
“Respect for nature is ingrained in Sikh teachings. As Guru Nanak Ji said: Pawan Guru pani pita mata dharat mahat (Air is our teacher, water our father and the great sacred earth is our mother). If we act now, we can protect our atmosphere, water resources and earth for ourselves and for future generations. To achieve internal peace, we must first look at the environment in which we live.” ~ First Sikh Statement on Climate Change, 2014
“BE IT RESOLVED that the Twenty-sixth General Synod of the United Church of Christ admits Christian complicity in the damage human beings have caused to the earth's climate system and other planetary life systems, and urges recommitment to the Christian vocation of responsible stewardship of God's creation, and expresses profound concern for the pending environmental, economic, and social tragedies threatened by global warming, to creation, human communities and traditional sacred spaces…” ~ A Resolution on Climate Change, 2007
“Earth is our home. Life on this planet will be gravely affected unless we embrace new practices, ethics, and values to guide our lives on a warming planet. We declare by this Statement of Conscience that we will not acquiesce to the ongoing degradation and destruction of life that human actions are leaving to our children and grandchildren. As a people of faith, we commit to a renewed reverence for life and respect for the interdependent web of all existence.” ~ THREAT OF GLOBAL WARMING/CLIMATE CHANGE, 2006 Statement of Conscience Faith Traditions Speak about Care of the Earth