Guest Editorial: The Bishops and 'Global Warming'

"Now I believe that, while there are a number of issues of critical importance to human life and dignity, global warming is not one of them."

FRONT ROYAL, VA (PRI) - In case you're wondering what eternal purposes bishop's conferences serve,you may (or may not) be reassured to know that they are in the thick of the fight against global warming.

At least that is what one can conclude from the joint letter that the presidents of the Bishops conferences in the G8 countries on June 20th sent to President George Bush and the heads of state of Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Canada, and Russia.

The letter urges the leaders, who met in Hokkaido, Japan, last week, to address the issue of climate change.

"We pray that your meeting will be blessed by a spirit of collaboration that enables you to advance the global common good by taking concrete measures to reduce poverty and address climate change," read the letter. The busy
prelates who signed the letter, of course, did so at the urging of the same Bishops conference staff who drafted it.

These staff members apparently believe that "global warming" is, as the letter says, "of critical importance to human life and dignity."1

Now I believe that, while there are a number of issues of critical importance to human life and dignity, global warming is not one of them.

Despite the claims of those who hope to profit from "cap and trade" proposals to limit CO2 emissions (read: Al Gore), or those who wish to see the establishment of international agencies to monitor our CO2 use (read:United Nations bureaucrats), the science is still out.

Recently, over 31,000 scientists have signed a petition rejecting the assertion that global warming has reached a crisis stage or that it is caused by human activities.

"No such consensus or settled science exists," said Arthur Robinson, founder and president of the Oregon institute of Sicence and Medicine, at a May 19 press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

Even if the planet is gradually (and I mean very, very slowly) warming, either due to human activities or more likely, solar cycles, it does not pose any threat
to human life.

There are real dangers threatening human lives though. Chief among these is the ongoing war on people. But when was the last time that the heads of the Bishops conferences wrote to G8 political leaders urging them to end abortion and population control?

Left on their own, I believe that most of the good Bishops, guided by the Holy Spirit, would be more than willing to forcefully express the teachings
of the Church in this manner.

For example, at the time the Bishops conference letter was sent, Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor released a separate statement declaring that "Our religious and moral commitment to protect human life and promote human dignity moves us to be particularly concerned for the poorest and most vulnerable members of the human family, especially
those in developing countries."

Most of our Bishops are not afraid to defend life.

The bureaucracies of the Bishops conferences, however, are another matter. Comfortably ensconced in national capitals, they have a tendency to see the government and its programs as the savior of the people.

They are quick to demand government action when problems, real or imaginary, arise. And they do not want to offend pro-abortion congressman and senators with whom they
work closely on other issues by demanding that direct assaults on human life, namely, abortion and population control, cease once and for all.

Steven W. Mosher is the President of the Population Research Institute and the author of Population Control: Real Costs and Illusory Benefits.

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