Should people of faith speak out on environmental issues? Isn that mixing religion and politics?
Each individual’s religious and ethical beliefs guide their actions, in public and in private. Therefore, when a person of faith considers a topic of public concern, such as the environment, their religious beliefs will crucially affect how they approach that topic. Furthermore, all citizens, whether they identify themselves as people of faith or not, have a civic duty to speak out on issues that affect the public good. The question, then, is not so much whether people of faith should speak out on environmental issues–they certainly should. The question, instead, is whether it is appropriate to do so in specific religious language, which might alienate others. This is a decision that each individual must make for her- or himself, depending on the specific audience and context.
