Leaked Papal Encyclical Highlights Blistering Moral Attack on Climate Deniers and Fossil Fuel Barons

The Pope’s encyclical on Climate has leaked. Guardian:

Pope Francis will this week call for changes in lifestyles and energy consumption to avert the “unprecedented destruction of the ecosystem” before the end of this century, according to a leaked draft of a papal encyclical. In a document released by an Italian magazine on Monday, the pontiff will warn that failure to act would have “grave consequences for all of us”.
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According to the lengthy draft, which was obtained and published by L’Espresso magazine, the Argentinean pope will align himself with the environmental movement and its objectives. While accepting that there may be some natural causes of global warming, the pope will also state that climate change is mostly a man-made problem.
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“Humanity is called to take note of the need for changes in lifestyle and changes in methods of production and consumption to combat this warming, or at least the human causes that produce and accentuate it,” he wrote in the draft. “Numerous scientific studies indicate that the greater part of the global warming in recent decades is due to the great concentration of greenhouse gases … given off above all because of human activity.”

The pope will also single out those obstructing solutions. In an apparent reference to climate-change deniers, the draft states: “The attitudes that stand in the way of a solution, even among believers, range from negation of the problem, to indifference, to convenient resignation or blind faith in technical solutions.”

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Francis is likely to want to influence Republicans in Washington with his remarks. Most Republicans on Capitol Hill deny climate change is a man-made phenomenon and have staunchly opposed regulatory efforts by the Obama administration.

The encyclical will make for awkward reading among some Catholic Republicans, including John Boehner, the Republican speaker of the House. While many Republicans have praised the pope, it will not be unprecedented for them to make a public break with the pontiff on the issue of global warming.

Andy Revkin at DotEarth:

The Italian translation of Pope Francis’s much-anticipated encyclical letter on humans, climate and nature was posted on Monday by L’Espresso, one of Italy’s leading weekly news magazines. The Vatican news office says it’s not the final version but is not questioning the authenticity of the document. There’s every indication that the themes, if not every punctuation mark, reflect what is coming later this week.

The magazine’s news article is here and the document itself can be read or downloaded here.

Below, Rolling Stone has a related interview with Evangelical Christian climate activist Anna Jane Joyner, daughter of a megachurch Pastor Rick Joyner.

Rolling Stone:

So many things are aligning this year for climate change: the encyclical, the UN climate talks. Certainly the Senate being so anti-climate isn’t good, but it could help in the sense that more and more, that position looks ludicrous. They look increasingly like dinosaurs. Yes. Paul Ryan and John Boehner are Catholics. It’s going to be interesting to see how high-level conservative legislators respond to the encyclical. But really, it’s on all of us to hold them accountable – to say that if you consider yourself a devout Catholic and a devout Christian, you have to acknowledge that this is a core part of our faith. That means caring for our neighbors and caring for God’s gift of creation and life. If you’re a policymaker, you have to do something about it. It’s your job. The pope is going to get a lot of media out of this, obviously, but it’s on the American people to take that and communicate it to their elected officials. When talking to evangelicals or conservative Christians, what’s the most effective argument? Love your neighbor? Protect the poor? The core narrative I use is stewardship – the idea that we’re charged to care for and protect the land, God’s creation, and these amazing gifts that God gave us. That includes our human communities, each other. And it includes wildlife and the larger creation. My dad, who is very evangelical and conservative, responds pretty well to that idea – he genuinely believes we should be protecting all life, including non-human life.