Letter to the Church of Ireland Gazette 10 July 2015
Church of Ireland Gazette, 10 July 2015.
Letter to the editor,
I thank God for Ron Elsdon. About 20 years ago he visited our midweek Bible study and spoke passionately about global warming; I have vivid memories of images of melting glaciers. So I was delighted to read his article, ‘An immense pile of filth’, Gazette 3 July 2015, in which he wrote again with passion about the need for every parish and parishioner to respond to the moral problem of climate change. In particular, he highlighted the Environmental Charter passed at General Synod in May.
On 25 June 2015 the Down and Dromore synod voted to pass unanimously a motion on climate change that endorsed the Environmental Charter. It is a call to action for Christians and churches within the Church of Ireland. I hope other diocesan synods may vote on similar motions soon. For convenience the text of the motion is online at
http://bit.ly/CoIDivest.
Another interesting article in the same edition of the Gazette is by Christian Aid’s Head of Advocacy and Policy, Sorley McCaughey. In the article he highlights the intervention by Pope Francis with his encyclical on climate change. Mr McCaughey writes, “We’ve heard from the scientists, economists and the politicians; it’s now time for faith leaders to speak up”.
The synods people of Down and Dromore spoke up, for in the motion on climate change they called upon the Church of Ireland Representative Body to act in a significant way – to divest from fossil fuels. The RB General Unit Trust funds are worth £44.70m (NI), and €187.68m (RI). Four of the top ten investments, and at least 5% of the General Unit Trust funds, are invested in fossil fuel companies.
The speech to propose the motion noted that the Bishop's Appeal gave £71,499 and €149,720 in 2014 to help millions of Filipinos suffering as a result of Super Typhoon Haiyan. A recent scientific paper in 'Nature Climate Change' journal concluded that natural disasters like Haiyan are increasing in severity and frequency because of global warming. The link between severe weather events and suffering populations is clear.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Rt Revd Justin Welby, wrote in the New York Times last week, "we have reached a critical turning point." He added we must choose charity over greed to demonstrate a moral commitment to our neighbour and respect for the Earth.
There are signs that the Church of Ireland is genuine about its commitment to our worldwide neighbours and to the Earth. The RB has invested £6m in UK solar farms and €8.5m the Irish Energy Efficiency Fund. As I've said before, I am very impressed with the the staff in the RB - they are sincere people who do listen, and they have a real desire to invest ethically.
These investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency are to be commended. But the question must be asked, is it still ethical to invest in fossil fuels when so many around the world are suffering because of climate change?
Letter to the editor,
I thank God for Ron Elsdon. About 20 years ago he visited our midweek Bible study and spoke passionately about global warming; I have vivid memories of images of melting glaciers. So I was delighted to read his article, ‘An immense pile of filth’, Gazette 3 July 2015, in which he wrote again with passion about the need for every parish and parishioner to respond to the moral problem of climate change. In particular, he highlighted the Environmental Charter passed at General Synod in May.
On 25 June 2015 the Down and Dromore synod voted to pass unanimously a motion on climate change that endorsed the Environmental Charter. It is a call to action for Christians and churches within the Church of Ireland. I hope other diocesan synods may vote on similar motions soon. For convenience the text of the motion is online at
http://bit.ly/CoIDivest.
Another interesting article in the same edition of the Gazette is by Christian Aid’s Head of Advocacy and Policy, Sorley McCaughey. In the article he highlights the intervention by Pope Francis with his encyclical on climate change. Mr McCaughey writes, “We’ve heard from the scientists, economists and the politicians; it’s now time for faith leaders to speak up”.
The synods people of Down and Dromore spoke up, for in the motion on climate change they called upon the Church of Ireland Representative Body to act in a significant way – to divest from fossil fuels. The RB General Unit Trust funds are worth £44.70m (NI), and €187.68m (RI). Four of the top ten investments, and at least 5% of the General Unit Trust funds, are invested in fossil fuel companies.
The speech to propose the motion noted that the Bishop's Appeal gave £71,499 and €149,720 in 2014 to help millions of Filipinos suffering as a result of Super Typhoon Haiyan. A recent scientific paper in 'Nature Climate Change' journal concluded that natural disasters like Haiyan are increasing in severity and frequency because of global warming. The link between severe weather events and suffering populations is clear.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Rt Revd Justin Welby, wrote in the New York Times last week, "we have reached a critical turning point." He added we must choose charity over greed to demonstrate a moral commitment to our neighbour and respect for the Earth.
There are signs that the Church of Ireland is genuine about its commitment to our worldwide neighbours and to the Earth. The RB has invested £6m in UK solar farms and €8.5m the Irish Energy Efficiency Fund. As I've said before, I am very impressed with the the staff in the RB - they are sincere people who do listen, and they have a real desire to invest ethically.
These investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency are to be commended. But the question must be asked, is it still ethical to invest in fossil fuels when so many around the world are suffering because of climate change?
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