[Granville-Hough] 7 Dec 2009 - Quakers and Climate Change

[Trustees for Granville W. Hough]

Date: Mon, 07 Dec 2009 08:36:38 -0800
From: Granville W Hough <gwhough at oakapple.net>
Subject: Quakers and Climate Change - 7 Dec 2009

    Today, we have a great meeting in Copenhagen where the nations of 
the world will decide how many of us live and die.  The descendants of 
our British Quaker ancestors had their yearly meeting in June, 2009, and 
they took a stand, recorded as follows:
   
    The crisis of global climate change represents a supreme test of 
humanity's collective wisdom and courage.  Our immoderate use of the 
Earth's resources violates the entire biosphere, threatening the lives 
of millions of people and the habitats of thousands of species.  Many of 
the poorest people are already suffering a changed climate; they are 
asking us all to act.
    How has humanity produced this crisis? Our faith response is that 
prevailing social values have obscured what it means to live 
authentically on the Earth.  In rich European countries we consume more 
than we need within an economic system that divides us as a society.  In 
much that we do, we cause harm to the planet and each other without 
enriching our lives.  
     The Earth is God's work and not ours to do with as we please.  We 
recall Gandhi's saying, often quoted by Quakers: "Live simply that 
others may simply live."  As a Quaker community, we do try to live what 
we believe, guided by the values of simplicity, truth, equality and 
peace.  Too often we fall short of honouring them.  Climate change is 
challenging us to ask anew what our faith leads us to do.
    As individuals and as a community , we are now making the difficult 
decisions and plans necessary to limit our ecological impact to a 
sustainable level.  With encouragement from one another, we are 
progressively recucing our reliance on non-renewaable resources while 
stepping up our campaign for wider social change.  As a small religious 
society, we take heart in belonging to a community of faith groups and 
others working towards the same goals in a hopeful spirit
    We gladlly take up our responsibility and call for unprecedented 
international cooperation to enable the large cuts in global emissions 
which are required.  This will be a difficult road to travel but we are 
prepared to support decision-makers in taking the radical steps 
necessary.  We appreciate progress made and uphold decision-makers as 
they navigate conflicting priorities, yet we challenge them to hold 
faith with the goal and not bend to short-term expediency.
    An inequitable global agreement on climate change could lead to 
forced migrations and serious conflict.  Any agreement must put the 
world's poorest first; it falls to richer countries to bear the greater 
burden of responsibility for change.  The goal is achievable but 
priorities will need to change; currently, the majority of states commit 
more resources to warfare than to tackling climate change.
    Where we see crisis, we also see opportunity to remake society as a 
community of people living sustainably as part of the natural world. By 
leading the simpler lives of a low-carbon society, we draw nearer to the 
abundance of peace, freedom and true community.  Our faith in common 
humanity gives hope; love, rather than fear, can still lead us through 
this crisis.
    (As recorded by Susan Seymour, Clerk, Meeting for Sufferings, 
Britain Yearly Meeting, June 2009).
------------------------------
    There will be more about our Quaker and Viking ancestry in future 
discussions.
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    God has remembered us in Southern California with a shower, at least 
enough to wet the ground.  The crows are busy picking off the earthworms 
who must have come aboveground  to see what was happening.  And may God 
remember those who did what they could many years ago at Pearl Harbor.  
It may have been insignificant, but is very significant that they did 
it.  Grampa.