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Religious leaders criticize Bush on environment
The president's policies take a short-term view, they say
BETH CASPER
Statesman Journal
February 19, 2005
When religious people look to the heavens, they are not seeking only spiritual solace.
They are looking for clean air.
In a statement to the Bush administration, more than 1,000 religious leaders across the country expressed dismay and alarm at several environmental policies.
"They are taking a short-term approach to stimulating the economy at the long-term detriment to our environment," said the Rev. Kent Harrop, pastor of First Baptist Church in McMinnville. "President Bush touts himself as a faith-based leader while ignoring the fact that protecting the environment is also a faith-based value. And we want the president and his administration to see the connection between one's faith and the policies of his administration."
Harrop and other local leaders especially are concerned about:
The Clear Skies Initiative, legislation proposed by the Bush administration to control air emissions. A committee vote on the bill was delayed until March 2 because committee members are deadlocked.
The Kyoto Protocol, an international agreement that addresses the reduction of greenhouse gases, which contribute to global warming. It went into effect Wednesday, without the participation of the United States.
Bush on Friday offered no apologies for opposing the Kyoto treaty, which U.S. business leaders opposed but Europeans embraced.
"They thought the treaty made sense," Bush said. "I didn't."
He noted that the Senate had voted 95-0 against the treaty.
Yet, Bush said there were other ways to deal with the problem of global warming and that he would talk with allies about new technologies to deal with the issue.
The president also has said that the Clear Skies Initiative will aid both the economy and the environment.
Some local religious leaders have a different view.
"The Clear Skies (initiative) is a lie because the administration's proposals for air pollution allow coal-burning facilities to keep polluting the atmosphere," said retired Rev. Paul LaRue, who is a member of the Jason Lee United Methodist Church in Salem. "The same could be said for water pollution. The administration favors industry, it favors corporations, and it favors rich people who continue to exploit the earth at the expense of all the rest of us."
A recent poll from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life found that these local religious leaders are not alone.
By a 2-to-1 margin, survey respondents back strong regulations to protect the environment even though they might cost jobs or result in higher prices. The poll also found that in setting national priorities, 53 percent of those asked place the environment above other issues including abortion and same-sex marriage.
Mark Shibley, associate professor of sociology and coordinator of the environmental studies program at Southern Oregon University in Ashland, said that the religious-environmental movement is significant and has been growing for the past decade.
"In one sense, it's hard to see how these kinds of statements are making a difference in terms of the administration," he said. "On the other hand, it is important to see what the statements say about the evolution of religious communities. It's clear among evangelicals ... they are now weighing in much more on environmental issues than ever before."
Shibley said that trend is important because evangelicals tend to be more conservative.
"If they come to care about environmental issues, it might be more powerful than the usual suspects like the Sierra Club," he said.
Retired Rev. Stuart Shaw, a United Methodist clergyman for 43 years, said that environmental issues span all religions and all political views.
"There are some issues that all Christians and Hindus and Buddhists, Jews and Muslims all cherish in terms of God's relationship in the world," the Salem resident said.
"One of those things is this world is our home. Religious leaders of all sorts believe that and think we have to take care of that."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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