Sisters of Providence lament U.S. withdrawal from Paris Climate Agreement
The Sisters of Providence join with faith-based organizations and environmental, public, health, and other activists in lamenting the deeply flawed decision by the Trump administration to formalize the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement.
As evidenced by our Providence Climate Agreement, we hold life and our impact on the life of the planet as a sacred trust. We see this decision by our government as moving us farther away from the true communion that Catholic Social Teaching calls all of us to experience.
We affirm the recent statement by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) expressing deep distress over this action.
As the LCWR says, so too will we “… continue to raise our voices against climate policies that harm Earth and its people and to advocate for climate justice.”
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Sisters, while I understand your concern, I am distressed at the fact that you are only concerned about the US withdrawing from the accords rather than addressing that the accords allow China, India, and other nations to have virtually no restrictions on environmental conditions when their economies contribute a much larger share of pollution than the United States. The US withdrawal may force other nations to “belly up” and commit to reforms of their own. The amount of damage their government does to their own people and the rest of the world is incalculable..
Well, Mr Flood, I respectfully disagree. Far and away most climate scientists and environmental experts concur that the Paris Climate Agreement is most definitely a move in the right direction for the life of the planet. The issue I believe you are alluding to could be the notion of fairness or equity. A short example might help. A six foot tall person does not need a step ladder to see over a five foot fence. On the other hand a five foot tall person does. If both of these persons are standing at the fence and one is given a step ladder to enable her to see over the fence would you consider that unfair? Or somehow unequal treatment? On the contrary, providing a step ladder to the shorter person is a matter of equity. It is this principle of equity that makes some persons think that the Paris Climate Agreement is unfair.
As responsible global citizens we here in the U.S. have in the Paris Climate Agreement an opportunity to do the right thing. We simply can, and must in my opinion, step up and hold ourselves accountable for our past and current contributions to this climate crisis. It is a matter of justice.