Replies

Jerusalem Interfaith Climate Declaration

https://interfaithsustain.com/jerusalem-interfaith-climate-declaration/

We, religious clergy and members of faith communities based in Israel, gathered here at the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem on November 3, 2022, hereby make the following declaration to people of faith across the Earth, and to the governments, UN entities, civil society, and all stakeholders of COP 27 now opening at Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.

The impacts of climate change are being increasingly felt in Jerusalem and the Holy Land, with more days of extreme heat than any time in the recorded past. Drought has been seen as a cause of war in our region, while wildfires, storms and flooding have intensified.

Inspired by the values and principles of our belief systems, faith, values, and ethics, we recognize that the climate crisis is caused by unrestrained human activity. We have failed to protect Earth’s capacity to support life, impacting especially the poor and marginalized. As people of faith, we must with humility challenge greed, instant self-gratification, and short-term thinking. Abusing and degrading God’s creation for current and future generations is sinful behavior. We must urgently adopt a new development paradigm that integrates our common moral and spiritual values towards a new one of sustainable well-being.

We affirm the power of religion to lead an essential transformation in human society, action, and behavior. We call upon our faithful to act in accord with our shared beliefs:

The one living God created Earth as one interdependent life-supporting whole. All of us are called to care for, love, protect and glory in God’s creation. We shall not worship idols of greed, consumption, and consumerism and shall make time for sacred rest, to gratefully embrace in joyous awe all of creation.
Humankind shall act with justice and awareness, using and allocating Earth’s resources wisely and equitably. At this crucial moment, we must responsibly protect the purity of air, soil, and water as sources of human life and flourishing.
Respect Earth’s capacity for sustainable growth, living in ecological harmony and balance. We call upon humanity to safeguard, respect and bless all life, as human and non-human biodiversity are sacred. You shall not steal from others and future generations. Honor, cherish and respect ancestors, the entire human family, all species, and future generations.
We call upon all religions, governments, UN entities, civil society, as well as our own constituencies to act urgently to address the root causes of the climate crises, to repair our world based on our common spiritual and cultural values of justice and ethics.