Hillary Clinton says she will follow Pope Francis’s example and make combating climate change a top priority for any future US administration she leads.
Writing in the National Catholic Reporter, Mrs Clinton stated as “a person of faith, a mother, and a grandmother, I am deeply moved by Pope Francis’s recent teachings on climate change — to reflect and above all to act”.
“I’m grateful — as so many Americans are — for the Pope’s teachings.
“And as president, I hope to follow his example. I will make combating climate change a top priority of my administration.”
The Democratic Party presidential contender noted the Pope’s reference to the Earth as “our common home”.
“As a Methodist, I was taught that we have a sacred duty to care for God’s earth,” Mrs Clinton wrote.
“All creation is the Lord’s,” say the Methodist social principles, “and we are responsible for the way we use and abuse it.”
“Pope Francis is right,” Mrs Clinton added, “All countries and all people are responsible for preventing the worst impacts of climate change.”
“But countries like the United States have a particular role. We are rich, powerful, and blessed with many advantages. We must lead the charge.”
“For the first time in history, we are within reach of eradicating hunger and extreme poverty. But climate change threatens that progress.”
The former US Secretary of State praised Pope Francis for “bringing his extraordinary moral leadership to the fight”.
She urged all Americans to heed Pope Francis’s call to become good stewards of the Earth.
Climate change “threatens the health, happiness, and future of every one of our children”, she wrote.
She also hit out at climate change deniers who, in spite of overwhelming scientific consensus, are “intent on obstructing progress”.
“There is no Planet B,” she wrote.
“We need to develop an ethic of stewardship, of responsibility and sustainability.”
Sources