 Picture credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (USA). John writes … Well, COP 29 has finished. Did it achieve anything? Here are two reactions to the conference. The first is a brief commentary, written by me for our church on-line newsletter, while the conference was still in progress: Who is my neighbour?  Picture credit: Source unknown. I was reading a passage in Chapter 2 of Habakuk and was stopped in my tracks by the beginning of verse 8: 'Because you have plundered many nations …'. It is set in a passage about injustice, exploitation and institutional theft but my mind immediately turned to climate change (1). Climate change has been caused by the emissions of carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels, mostly in the richer industrialised nations in support of lifestyle, industry, commerce, and warfare. However, the majority of the countries most affected are amongst the poorer nations of the world (although I acknowledge the effects of recent extreme weather events in Europe and the USA). As I have written elsewhere (2), if we factor in a country’s ability to deal with climate change along with the severity of the effects, nine of the ten worst-off countries are in Africa. This may not be direct ‘plunder’ but it certainly says something about inequality and global justice. It is no surprise that at COP 29, there have been demands from poorer countries for financial help to deal with climate change – something which I believe we should support in whatever way is possible for us.  The second is a Podcast, made by Chatham House (an independent international affairs think tank), towards the end of the conference while negotiations were still in full swing – to listen to podcast, click on this link: https://www.chathamhouse.org/.../independent-thinking-has...  My final comment, now that the conference has finished, is four-fold.
First, the amount agreed for payment to poorer countries is somewhat of a compromise Secondly, despite pressure from oil-rich nations, it is clear that we are making progress towards renewable energy sources and away from fossil fuels. Thirdly however, that progress is not fast enough. We are still heading for a temperature increase of at least 2 degrees, with possibly disastrous effects on tipping points. Fourthly, if you are a praying person, please pray about this John Bryant Topsham, Devon November 2024 (1) I was pleased to see that a recent commentator on this passage, Revd. Amanda Bloor, reacted in a similar way. (2) Introduction to Bioethics, 2nd Edition, Wiley, 2019.
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John writes ...  Sunrise in the forest. Credit: photowall.com 'The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it … for he founded it on the seas' (from Psalm 24). King David equated creation with ownership and went on to consider God’s awesome majesty, holiness and even ‘otherness’. Certainly, when we think about the universe in all its magnificence, awe is one of the emotions that we also feel. But look now at the previous psalm, the very well-known 23rd, in which David thinks of God as knowing him personally, nurturing, caring, providing for his needs – a very different picture from that of awesome majesty but equally valid. In our own reaction to God’s creation, many of us have experienced similar emotions, holding in tension the awesomeness of the creator with the understanding that he cares about us and indeed about the whole of creation. And so I end with this gentle exhortation entitled ‘On Holy Ground’ written by Peter Millar and published by the Iona Community*. Go gently my friends: feel the good earth beneath your feet, celebrate the rising of the sun, listen to the birds at dawn, walk gently under the silent stars, knowing you are on holy ground held in love – in the wonder of God’s creation.  Under the stars. Credit: Joshua Earle. John Bryant Topsham, Devon October 2024 *50 New Prayers from the Iona Community, ed. Neil Paynter, Wild Goose Publications, 2012. |
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