On this Earth Day, the Bible has been on my mind.
I’ve been working on an article about evangelical Protestants in Indiana who are trying to help heal the planet. The relationship between the Bible and environmental efforts came into sharper focus with the death of Pope Francis, who used his enormous platform to exhort humanity to take better care of the Earth.
For Francis and those evangelicals, the mission is rooted in Scripture.
“When we talk about the environment, about creation, my thoughts go to the first pages of the Bible, to the Book of Genesis,” Francis said to the faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square in June 2013.
“Cultivating and caring for creation is an instruction of God which he gave not only at the beginning of history, but has also given to each one of us,” Francis continued.
Most U.S. adults, including majorities of Protestants, Catholics and people of other religions, believe that the Earth is sacred and that God gave humans a duty to protect and care for it, a Pew Research Center survey found in 2022. But there is often a disconnect between that belief and environmental action. On average, the survey found, people who are less religious tend to be more concerned about climate change.
Leaders from many religious traditions have sought to change that by raising awareness in their communities about global warming and biodiversity loss. Francis was undeniably the most prominent example.
On Monday, the day he died, tributes poured in from environmentalists of all stripes.
“His humble leadership on the climate crisis sparked a moral movement that will continue to light the way forward for humanity,” wrote Al Gore, the former U.S. vice president and a climate activist.
Bill McKibben, another prominent climate activist, called Francis “perhaps the world’s greatest environmental champion.”
Francis’ death comes at a time when despair has been biting at the environmental movement. The Trump administration is denying climate science and promoting fossil fuels, the main driver of global warming. The United States is in the process of withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, a pact that Francis supported.
The pope’s last day on Earth was Easter, a celebration of life after death and hope in the face of despair.
On Monday in Indianapolis, the Rev. Katy Lines, a pastor at Englewood Christian Church, had the day off after a busy Easter Sunday. She was tending to her native plant garden and reflecting on her gratitude for Francis’ contributions.
“Anytime someone that is a person of influence speaks on behalf of nonhuman creation, I relish that,” Dr. Lines said. “And when it comes from a person of deep faith who has a place of power and a voice, I think it makes it even stronger.”
For Oscar Soria, a Catholic environmental activist, Monday was a day of mourning and steely hope. He first met the pope three decades ago, he said, when Francis was a bishop in their native Argentina. He recalled an interaction they had five years ago, when Mr. Soria told the pope how dispirited he was by the lack of progress in global biodiversity negotiations.
“He took my hands and told me to never give up, never get tired of serving, never,” Mr. Soria said. “It was tender and yet challenging, and I will never forget that because I think that is what he’s been saying to all of us.”
My colleague Cara Buckley and I, along with the whole climate and environment desk, are reporting on state and local solutions happening across the United States. Read more from our 50 States, 50 Fixes project:
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Shell Recyclers in Connecticut Are Helping Oysters Find Homes
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Maryland Protected Nearly a Third of Its Land, and It’s Reaching for More
Ask NYT Climate
What’s the best thing I can do for the planet?
Here at Ask NYT Climate, we usually dive into specific questions, from the greenest ways to dispose of pet waste to the most eco-friendly workout clothing. But because Tuesday is Earth Day, we’re tackling one of the big questions: What is the single best thing I can do for the planet?
We put this to half a dozen experts who shared their advice on how to be the best planetary citizen possible. — Rachel Nuwer
In memoriam
Pope Francis inspired a wave of global climate action
Francis, who died on Monday at 88, was a strong and vocal environmental advocate. In a shift for the Roman Catholic Church, he used his papacy to help inspire global efforts to curb greenhouse gas emissions. He framed climate change as a spiritual issue, emphasizing the connections between global warming, poverty and social upheaval throughout his 12-year leadership.
Within the church, taking such a stance was seen by some as unnecessarily injecting politics into church matters. For environmentalists, the support of Francis was immensely meaningful.
In 2015, he penned the first-ever papal encyclical focused solely on the environment. In “Laudato Si,” a sprawling call to action, the pope recognized climate change as both a social and environmental crisis and emphasized that its greatest consequences were shouldered by the poor. — Claire Brown
Pollution
Sludge contaminated 10,000 acres of farmland. What should be done?
The abandoned Galey & Lord textile mill in Society Hill, S.C., resembles an apocalyptic wasteland. Looters have hauled away the steel gates for scrap metal. Rusting tanks sit in pools of dark water. Alligators lurk in wastewater ponds.
But the real danger, environmental officials say, lies in the surrounding fields. South Carolina says as many as 10,000 acres of contaminated farmland, including fields still growing food, should be part of an unprecedented federal Superfund cleanup.
For decades, Galey & Lord took the water that had been used in making its fabrics, treated it in wastewater lagoons and then gave the sludge to farmers as fertilizer.
What those farmers and many others didn’t know is that the sludge contained dangerous levels of “forever chemicals” linked to cancer and other diseases. Testing has now shown high concentrations of the chemicals, also known as PFAS, on farms where the sludge fertilizer was spread. — Hiroko Tabuchi
Read the full article. And read more from our investigation into toxic sludge:
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A Maker of Sewage-Based Fertilizer Leaves Town Amid a Toxic Crisis
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The E.P.A. Promotes Toxic Fertilizer. 3M Told It of Risks Years Ago.
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Something’s Poisoning America’s Land. Farmers Fear ‘Forever’ Chemicals.
More climate news:
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The United States is set to to impose tariffs of up to 3,521 percent on solar panels from Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam, The Guardian reports. The move comes after American manufacturers accused Chinese companies of unfair trade practices.
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Texas has seen a flood of new residents in recent years looking to escape higher-cost states. But home insurance costs are rising quickly there, The Washington Post reports, with premiums up 19 percent last year.
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Reuters examines life in Byrnihat, India, which is ranked as the world’s most polluted metropolitan area has air pollution that is 25 times the level recommended by the World Health Organization.
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Catrin Einhorn covers biodiversity, climate and the environment for The Times.
The post The Connection Between Faith and Environmental Action appeared first on New York Times.
