Evangelicals press to fight global warming

By Jonathan J. Cooper - St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Friday, May 09, 2008 - Web Link
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May 9, 2008

When the Senate takes up legislation next month to confront global warming, environmental groups will have some fervent new allies: evangelicals and other Christian activists.

Concerned about what they see as a moral and biblical issue, religious groups from the right are joining with environmental organizations from the left in supporting strong measures to fight global warming.

Some Christian leaders are using the clout they have built up in Republican circles to lobby conservatives in Congress to support regulations on greenhouse-gas emissions.

"When evangelicals speak, Republicans listen," said Richard Cizik, vice president of government affairs for the National Association of Evangelicals. "And Republicans, frankly, are listening to what we're saying."

For many religious groups, global warming isn't a political or environmental issue. It's a threat to God's creation.

"It's not a blue state, red state, scientific, or even a green issue," said Cizik, whose organization represents 45,000 churches. "It's a spiritual issue. And that, above all else, is why evangelical Christians should be concerned."

The once-tiny Christian environmental movement began accelerating quickly in 2006, when 85 prominent evangelical leaders signed on to the Evangelical Climate Initiative calling for action on global warming. The number has climbed to more than 100.