Ecology

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Catholic, Jewish and other faith leaders are combining environmental and anti-poverty efforts in a new campaign calling for the creation of sustainable, environmentally green job opportunities for the poor.

A centerpiece of the campaign, launched Oct. 14 with a national media teleconference, is an interfaith prayer to God for poverty relief coupled with care for God’s creation. (This story was updated Oct. 19: USA shouldn't have 'working poor'

Fr. Larry Snyder, president and CEO of Catholic Charities USA, and Rabbi Steve Gutow, president of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs – whose organizations both launched major new anti-poverty initiatives in 2007, have been spearheading the new campaign, called "Fighting Poverty with Faith: Good Jobs, Green Jobs." [See: www.fightingpovertywithfaith.com].)

An organic farm stand with wagonload of pumpkins in Carmel Valley, Calif. (Photos from Newscom)

Viewpoint

The debate over organic versus conventionally grown food will never end. The latest salvo comes from Dr. Alan Dangour, a public health nutritionist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, reported recently in The New York Times and many other newspapers and online sources.

Workers prepare plastic bags for planting Jetropha seeds in August 2008 in Nairobi, Kenya. The plant is being reintroduced in Kenya to supply fuel for lamps with the aim of cutting fuel costs. The initiative is targeting rural households that mainly rely on kerosene for lighting. (Panapress/Khamis Ramadhan)

ANALYSIS

On a first reading of Pope Benedict XVI’s new encyclical, Caritas in Veritate, I’m struck by the consonance in many of the pope’s statements with the key values of the worldwide Green movement. The Greens have consistently espoused and based their policies upon what they call the Ten Key Values (or a summary Four Pillars in the case of some of the world’s Green parties). These include such concepts as “community-based economics,” “grass-roots democracy,” “decentralization,” “future focus,” “ecological awareness,” “social justice” and more.

These Green concepts, some originating in the writings of economic thinker E.F. Schumacher, constitute a blueprint for shaping a world economy based on real human values.

Similarly, Benedict’s encyclical urges Christian humanism as the basis for a world order.

The subject of economic development in the world, the encyclical states, is closely related to duties arising from our relationship to the natural environment. “The environment is God’s gift to everyone, and in our use of it we have a responsibility towards the poor, towards future generations and towards humanity as a whole.”

Inter Press Service

PISTOIA, ITALY -- Christian environmentalists meeting in Pistoia, central Italy, June 27-28 called for an end to mass consumption and a return to family values.

Greenaccord, an Italian environmental group, organized the conference because, it said, the global economic crisis presents an opportunity for redressing some of the imbalances in society.

“The economic crisis should be a moment for people to reflect on how they are living their lives and the choices that they make,” said Alfonso Cauteruccio, secretary-general of Greenaccord. “The crisis has helped to reduce mass consumption and reinforced the importance of family ties.”

Bishop Mansueto Bianchi of Pistoia read out a message from Pope Benedict XVI pledging his support for the conference and underscoring the need for “better rapport between man and universe.”

“The church has a strong role to play in helping to reduce the speed of modern life,” Bianchi said. “There are three aspects to this: to educate and inform, to stimulate individual consciences, and to persuade governments to raise awareness of the problem.”