Chai Brady
Parishes across Ireland can “lead the way” in tackling the climate emergency with Catholic activists pleading for the same energy that went into fighting Covid-19 to tackle the crisis facing the planet.
It comes as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warned this week that without urgent action to tackle dangerous gases, every country on the planet will suffer.
Jane Mellett of Trócaire said climate change was already affecting the world’s poorest people and said every parish in Ireland had a responsibility to do their bit.
“From physically decarbonising a parish, a diocese, a school, a congregation and families, these are the groups Pope Francis is inviting to take on this challenge,” she told The Irish Catholic.
Encouraging parishes to be proactive, Ms Mellett said “There are shining examples of parishes that have really taken this on and it brings life to the parish. It’s something that young people are really passionate about and I think if parishes can make this link between youth ministry and care for the earth, people respond to that kind of witness.”
Fr Seán McDonagh SSC, an outspoken eco-theologian said that it is important for people to move from being concerned about climate change to taking concrete action in their own parishes.
“It’s a moral issue that must be connected to action, we’ve got good at talking about climate change but what we need is action to do something about it.
“Generating electricity from solar energy on our rooves [in churches], that’s going to happen right across the board because energy has been generated by fossil fuel, that has to stop within ten years,” he said.
Author and theologian Fr Dermot Lane told The Irish Catholic it is vital for the State to partner with local communities to bring about action. He criticised the Government for what he described as “totally ignoring” faith communities regarding the challenge of climate change.
“The faith communities have a particular contribution to make, the great religions of the world all have a commitment to the care of our common home,” he said.
He added: “The Catholic Church in Ireland for the last three years has been rolling out resources about the care of creation and has made those resources available to all the parishes in the country, it’s known as the ‘Season of Creation’. It provides resources for liturgies, for Sunday worship and for action at the local level.
“I’ve never heard any politicians or any Government minister refer to the contribution that faith communities can make to the provision of motivation and inspiration to act to save our planet,” he said.