Catholic bishops in the United States continue to maintain silence and a lack of concrete action on climate change despite repeated appeals from Pope Francis, say media reports and studies.
In his latest appeal on Nov. 14, Pope Francis called on the world’s political and business leaders “to act now with courage and vision” to care for people of the planet facing a climate crisis.
The pope made the remarks at the Vatican after the two-week United Nations Climate Change Summit in Glasgow came to an end.
Francis has been vocal on importance climate action for years, particularly since publication of his famed environmental encyclical Laudato Si’ in 2015.
Climate change was a major talking point during his meeting with US President Joe Biden at the Vatican last month.
US-based NPR reports that Catholic bishops in the United States have generally been mum or misleading about climate change in their messaging to their congregations.
A devout Catholic, Biden has reportedly said he does not support abortion personally but as a lawmaker he supports legal rights to abortion
It noted that a study released last month by scholars from Creighton University in Nebraska analyzed more than 12,000 official, written communications sent to parishioners in nearly every US diocese over five years beginning in June 2014.
The authors found that on the infrequent occasions that bishops mentioned climate change, they often “diminished and distanced themselves from church teaching on this issue” and downplayed parts of Laudato Si’ that conflicted with American conservative political ideology.
The study also found that conservative American bishops speak in unison to deny President Biden Catholic the sacrament of communion for his support for abortion rights, making it another issue of discord between the Vatican and US bishops.
The issue came to spotlight again during a conference of US bishops in June when they debated whether prominent politicians like Biden who support abortion should be allowed to receive communion.
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A devout Catholic, Biden has reportedly said he does not support abortion personally but as a lawmaker he supports legal rights to abortion.
Following his meeting with Pope Francis, Biden said the pope “was happy I was a good Catholic and I should keep receiving communion.”
On several occasions, Pope Francis has opposed the denial of communion to certain Catholics who apparently go against Catholic doctrine. In 2013, he said that communion is “not a prize for the perfect but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak,” adding that the Church “is not a tollhouse” but rather “a place for everyone, with all of their problems.”
The issue of Biden’s communion is expected to flare up again as US bishops meet in another conference in Baltimore this week. The prelates will vote on a document that may address who is eligible to receive communion and how closely Catholics with public authority should embody Catholic values.
The NPR reports that recent surveys show most American Catholics don’t toe the line of conservative bishops on issues like abortion and communion.
In March, a Pew Research Center study found that 67 percent Catholics say Biden should be allowed to receive communion, while in April 55 percent of Catholics said they believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases, compared to 59 percent of the general population.
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