News Items

The Forum regularly posts news articles of interest here from a variety of sources and news outlets. You can check back here or view the most recent ones from the homepage. We also archive these articles here, for those doing research, with news going back to 2006. Use the menu on the right to explore the archived articles.

News

Religious Groups Lend Helping Hand in Flint Water Crisis

January 23, 2016
By Derek Welch
World Religion News

Interfaith effort responds to Michigan’s Contaminated water supply. The Flint water crisis has pushed state and federal officials to respond with urgent help. Residents of Flint, Michigan have been exposed to dangerous lead levels due to the faulty water system. In response, musicians, religious groups and even ex-prisoners...

In North Dakota's Booming Oil Patch, One Tribe Beat Back Fracking

The Turtle Mountain Band was among the first tribes to ban the drilling process. Here’s the difference it made.

By Sarah van Gelder
Yes! Magazine
January 21, 2016

Drive the long, straight roads of north-central North Dakota, and you pass lake after lake amid hayfields and forests. Migratory birds, attracted by the abundance of water and grain, pause here. Farmers,...

On Moral Grounds

January 22, 2016
By Maya Chandra
Yale Daily News

2015’s best advocate for the rights of the environment may very well be the Pope. And if other religious leaders follow his example, the U.S. just might be on its way to successfully combating climate change.

Climate change has been acknowledged as an environmental and politically divisive issue for years, but a new...

Church groups respond to water emergency in Flint, Michigan

January 20, 2016
By Barb Powell and Lauren Markoe
Christian Century

The Michigan bodies of the United Church of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) launched The Gospel in Action––Flint in January as President Obama declared a state of emergency in the city over its poisoned water.

Two congregations in Flint are central in that effort: Vermont...

Thou Shalt Not Toss Food: Enlisting Religious Groups To Fight Waste

January 18, 2016
By Maria Godoy
NPR

Separation of church and state? When it comes to fighting food waste, the U.S. government is looking to partner up with the faithful.

The moral dimension of climate change—and of courage to address it

January 15, 2016
World Council of Churches

Implementation of the Paris Agreement on climate change sharpened discussion of the 2015 papal encyclical Laudato Si’ at a UN conference initiated by the Holy See and several permanent missions to the UN on 15 January in Geneva.

Cardinal Turkson: Laudato si' continues to be relevant

January 15, 2016
Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) The President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Cardinal Peter Turkson, on Friday spoke during a special event in Geneva discussing Pope Francis’ Encyclical Letter Laudato si’.

Pope Francis' Call for Action — One Key to Global Climate Agreement

January 14, 2016
By Oscar Cantú   
Morning Consult

In the wake of the historic Paris climate agreement, many commentators have focused on the extraordinary work of the negotiators, the terms that have been agreed upon and the global outlook going forward. While these important topics merit extended analysis, I believe that we should also reflect on the key role that morality...

Donations stream into Catholic Charities amid Michigan water crisis

January 14, 2016
By Traci Badalucco
National Catholic Reporter

The Catholic community in Michigan is ramping up its efforts to support Flint residents affected by the recent crisis that left thousands of households with lead-contaminated tap water.

Health authorities in Genesee County have advised residents to not consume water without using a water filter,...

Religion and Climate Change

By Lloyd Steffen, Professor, Religion Studies; University Chaplain; Director, Dialogue Center and Lehigh Prison Project, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA

Huffington Post
January 13, 2016

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