UN Climate Change Conference

After disheartening results from the 2007 UN Conference in Bali, many participants were hoping for significant progress at the 2008 Conference. Making adjustments to the Kyoto Protocols, attending to deforestation in a more comprehensive manner and addressing the impact of climate change on the world's poorest countries are several areas where more deliberation, planning and action are needed.

Columban missionary Rev. Sean McDonagh,SSC attended the 2008 UN Climate Change Conference in Poznan, Poland. He has written several articles about the events there and his understanding of them.

Please read Setting the Stage for the UN Climate Change Conference, Prioritizing the Adaptation Fund: Peru as a Case Study and Bowing to vested interests will block progress on climate change.

For more of Fr. McDonagh, SSC's articles of analysis please visit the Columban Website.

Orissa

The wave of violence that for the past months has struck Christians in India bears witness to the growing importance of interreligious dialogue says Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office.

Three recent articles discuss the situation in Orissa, India where clashes between Hindus and Christians hav etaken place.  Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, Archbishop of Genoa and president of the Italian episcopal conference, spoke out against these events, denouncing the "anti-Christian persecution taking place in India...and other parts of the world."

The Indian episcopal conference is decrying the lack of government response to the wave of anti-Christian violence wrought by Hindu extremists.

Here is the text of a statement issued September 26, 2008 by the executive body of the Indian bishops' conference,regarding the ongoing wave of persecution against Christians at the hands of Hindu extremists.

Global Climate Change

Pope Benedict XVI spoke on Creation and Redemption to the clergy of the Diocese of Bolzano-Bressanone.

In an address to mark the 2008 United Nations World Tourism Day, Pope Benedict XVI urged tourists to think green.

Read The Winter 2008 Update from the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change.

A summary of the UN-sponsored climate change talks held in Bali in December 2007, "United Nations Climate Change Talks in Bali - A New Climate Deal?" is now available.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities issued a resource, "Climate-Change Policies Can Treat Poor Families Fairly and Be Fiscally Responsible."

The National Religious Partnership for the Environment issued a resource, "A Religious Agenda on Poverty and Global Climate Change."

The Catholic Coalition on Climate Change issued a resource, "A Catholic Approach to Climate Change," in November 2007.  

The Catholic Coalition on Climate Change issued a resource, "A Catholic Approach to Climate Change" in November 2007.

From the Missouri Catholic Conference, November 2007

USCMA members passed a Resolution at its 2006 Annual Meeting expressing concern for the future of God's creation and the one human family.

For more articles on Global Climate Change.

Immigration

Immigration is one of the most talked about issues in the United States. As Catholics we are called upon to let Catholic Social Teaching inform our understanding on this topic. As Catholics, our focus must be the dignity of the human person and the welfare of families.

A recent article on immigration, "Immigration's Dark Moments" by The Editors appeared in the October 13, 2008 issue of America.

The Bishop of Providence urges US immigration agents to evaluate the morality of immigration raids.

A Fact Sheet on Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Scheduled Departure Program.

Two recent articles from Catholic News Service focus on immgration issues related to the raids in Iowa. The first looks at difficulties many families face in the aftermath of the raids. The second explores the potential of similar raids in Indiana.

 Cardinal Mahoney says that the call for broad immigration reform is a moral issue.

To learn more about the SAVE Act in Congress which is enforcement only legislation.

An article on immigration, "A Reflection on Migration: Bridging the Divide over Immigration" by Paula Minaert appeared in a recent Woodstock Report.

In letters to the Presidential candidates December 12, 2007 Cardinal Roger Mahony urged all candidates to "show leadership on the issue of immigration" and to "work with your fellow candidates and the American people to find a humane and comprehensive solution to our broken immigration system."

The bishops serving the state of Maryland published "Where All Find A Home: A Catholic Response to Immigration." In it, Baltimore Archbishop Edwin O'Brien, Washington Archbishop Donald Wuerl and Wilmington Bishop Michael Saltarelli urge Catholics to engage in faith-filled discussion of the issue.

Bishop Edward Slattery of Tulsa, OK has also published a pastoral letter, "The Suffering Faces of the Poor Are the Suffering Face of Christ" in both English and Spanish.

Torture

The National Religious Campaign Against Torture, NRCAT, in alliance with Evangelicals for Human Rights and the Center for Victims of Torture, launched an effort that calls upon the President to issue an executive order banning torture based on six core principles embodied in a Declaration of Principles. We are calling this effort the "Campaign to Ban Torture." Prominent faith leaders from Catholic, Protestant, Evangelical, Jewish, Muslim, and Sikh communities, as well top officials from every Administration since the 1970s, have joined together to endorse the Declaration of Principles. The success of this effort depends upon thousands of people of faith and other opponents of torture joining together to endorse the Declaration of Principles. Your endorsement will help end U.S.-sponsored torture. We urge you to endorse the Declaration. To read the full Declaration. To endorse the Declaration.

"Torture Is A Moral Issue Catholic Study Guide," a recent publication of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops,looks at church teaching as it relates to the use of torture by government authorities around the world and mixes in biblical passages that evoke Jesus' call to "love your enemies." Written by the Catholic Leadership Council within the National Religious Campaign Against Torture, the guide was written for use by discussion groups and classes in Catholic settings as well as individuals, families and others interested in studying the issue.

"Faith Groups Mount Campaign Against Torture"
As Congress and the Bush administration skirmish over still-secret interrogation techniques, American faith communities are mounting a national campaign to prohibit torture and cruel and inhumane treatment of US-held detainees. More than 175 religious organizations have joined the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT). Their aim is to build a moral consensus among Americans on the issue and to bring government policies in line with US law and international norms. "Religions of the world do agree on basic tenets about how people should treat each other because of the dignity of the human person," says the Rev. Richard Killmer, executive director. The group involves mainline and evangelical Protestant, Catholic, Orthodox, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, and other members. See the complete article in the Christian Science Monitor.

The National Religious Campaign Against Torture is encouraging congregations to view
Rory Kennedy's HBO documentary "Ghosts of Abu Ghraib" during the week of October 21-28. In a nation-wide project called "Spotlight on Torture," the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT) has arranged for DVD copies of "Ghosts of Abu Ghraib" to be available to 1,000 congregations, on a first come, first served basis for showing during the week of October 21-28. The film is a masterful examination of one of the great moral issues of the 21st century. You can get a copy for your congregation by clicking here. Please forward this link to as many of your friends as you think might be interested.