The World Council of Churches (WCC) Global Forum on Poverty, Wealth and Ecology, which met recently, concluded with a strong call for action to evolve “transformative congregations” with moral courage to build an “economy of life” that focuses on eradicating poverty, challenging wealth accumulation and safeguarding ecological integrity.
The forum took place in Bogor, Indonesia, with more than one hundred participants from around the world.
The call for action is an outcome of the AGAPE (Alternative to Economic Globalisation Addressing Peoples and Earth) study process which analysed the relations between poverty, wealth and ecology, undertaken in Africa in 2007, Latin America and the Caribbean in 2008, Asia and the Pacific in 2009, Europe in 2010 and North America in 2011.
The statement has been developed at the forum and will make a contribution to the upcoming 10th Assembly of the WCC and its theme, “God of life, lead us to justice and peace”. The assembly will take place next year in Busan, Korea.
“An economy of life is not only possible, it is in the making, and justice lies at its very foundation,” reads the statement. “The shaping of an economy of life will entail a range of strategies and methodologies, including, but not limited to: critical self-reflection and radical spiritual renewal, rights-based approaches, the creation and multiplication of spaces for the voices of the marginalised.”
As part of a theological affirmation, the statement points out that “greed and injustice are the root causes of the intertwined crises.” It goes on to say, that the “crisis is therefore a deep moral and existential one. The challenges that are posed are not first and foremost technological and financial, but ethical and spiritual.”
The WCC general secretary Rev Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, who has just returned from his visit to the churches in Papua, expressed gratitude to forum participants for their contribution to the statement.
“You have raised significant issues in the AGAPE study process. Now it is time to move to action which is relevant, strategic, inclusive and effective. And this action should be based on the understanding that the studies have brought forth,” said Tveit.
“With AGAPE studies, we are now better equipped to pray for justice and peace,” added Tveit.
The forum was organised by the WCC programme for Poverty, Wealth and Ecology, and hosted by the WCC member churches in Indonesia, including Huria Kristen Batak Protestan (HKBP), Communion of Churches in Indonesia (PGI), Urban Community Mission Jakarta (PMK-HKBP) and Indonesia Christian Church (GKI-West Java regional synod).
“The outcome document of Rio+20”, he said, “does not reflect the urgency of threats to life on earth as presented by the scientific community. It fails to update previous commitments of the international community, especially those in the Rio 1992 Conventions regarding biodiversity, desertification and climate change. There are no new, concrete commitments for the future.”
He provided this critique of the document: “The WCC has advocated for a principle-based preamble with clear ethical grounding. The present ‘vision’ of the text falls short in this regard. The international community, having been unable to reach a consensus, opted for the lowest common denominator, avoiding any controversial issues. As a result, the earth loses, and the poor and vulnerable lose.”
Kerber dismissed the document’s cautious approach: “Arguments used to justify the lack of ambition in the document, like the financial and economic crises, are unacceptable from the WCC perspective.”
During the conference, representatives of the People’s Summit met with UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon to express their frustration with the final document of Rio+20.
Rafael Soares de Oliveira, executive director of the ecumenical service organisation Koinonia, which is a member of the ACT Alliance, said of the encounter with Ban Ki-Moon: “The meeting represented a concrete challenge to the leader of the UN regarding its agenda for the future. The People’s Summit did not accept the final document of Rio+20 as an effective instrument of change.”
Need for public theology
Bishop Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm, of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria, Germany, was among the speakers who continued to encourage people of faith to dedicate themselves to the struggle against environmental deterioration.
He said that “religions reach the minds and the hearts of people. Therefore, what we need is a public theology that is developed both in religious and secular languages.”
Bedford-Strohm pointed to two elements that, in his opinion, are essential to change the world: inspiration and incentive. “I’m not so pessimistic,” said the bishop. “We as religions have so much to offer.”
Rev Dr Nestor Paulo Friedrich, president of the Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in Brazil (IECLB), added, “What we saw here in Rio shows that the distance between the UNCSD and the People’s Summit reflects an urgent need to increase the participation of civil society in the global dialogue.”
A young Muslim leader, Soher El Sukaria, secretary of the Muslim Arab Society of Cordoba, Argentina and co-coordinator of Religions for Peace Latin America and Caribbean Youth Network, stressed the common struggle of religions in protecting the environment and empowering the poor. And at the end of the panel, Michael Slaby, on behalf of Rabbi Awraham Soetendorp, presented the inter-religious statement: “Towards Rio+20 and beyond – a turning point in earth history,” a text which already has been signed by many religious leaders and organizations.
WCC, through its Care for Creation and Climate Justice programme, will continue to advocate at the UN debate concerning sustainable development, environment and climate change-related issues. The WCC is also committed to continue its participation in the movement that organised the People’s Summit.