How the Climate will change our Political World

When I was a kid, I remember Kermit the Frog singing on TV about

Earth Day. 

When I was a kid, I remember Kermit the Frog singing on TV about
Earth Day.  In the 80s, we were taught
about the danger of global warming, cartoons were made about ecological
super-heroes, and many of us watched feature films about singing fairies who
protected the rain-forests from pollution monsters.  Back then, everyone knew that Democrats were
for the environment and that Republicans were against it.  And everyone agreed that the environment
needed protection.

Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, the debate got
side-tracked from protecting our planet and our future to a discussion about spotted
owls and frozen wildernesses that no one had ever seen.  Environmentalism started to be associated
with "idealistic, hemp-wearing liberals from the west-coast" (not that those
any of those things are necessarily bad, but they are harder for "middle America" to relate to).  And as environmentalism was pushed to the
fringe, and cheap gas helped fuel our love for SUVs, Republicans became
emboldened to stand up and publicly argue that we shouldn't worry about the
environment.  Unfortunately, when
Democrats turned to our "Republican-light" strategy of the 2002 and 2004
elections, we also started distancing ourselves from the environment. 

And so the movement begun by Kermit and Captain Planet might
have been in danger of going the way of the dodo had it not been for a new
voice that called on America
to remember our obligation to Creation: the evangelicals.  When 80+ well-known evangelicals leaders put
out their Evangelical Call to
Action and launched the Evangelical Climate Initiative, the press had no
idea what to make of it.  It was hard for
the media to get their minds around how evangelicals who opposed gay marriage could
also support environmental protection. 
After all, weren't all evangelicals just Republican strategists and
right wing nuts?  The world was changing…well,
not really, but changes that had been taking place for a long time were
becoming more evident.

I'm going to make a bold statement here, but what the ECI represented
was the beginning of what I believe will be a seismic shift in the American
religious and (potentially) political landscape.  In the same way that our melting icecaps are
an indication of a much larger change in the global environment, I believe
we'll look back to the ECI as the point when the Republican monopoly on the
evangelical voting block began to crack.  There are many factors that are contributing
to this phenomenon.  But when folks like Pat
Robertson started adding their voice to those of other key evangelical leaders
like Rich Cizik and Rick Warren who insist that climate change is real, it is
our fault, and we have a moral obligation to do something about it, they opened
the door for Democrats. 

In the Casey, Ford, and Shuler races where we have fielded
Pro-Life Democrats who oppose gay marriage, this issue has become one of the key
deciding factors for evangelical voters. 
But a door has also been opened for other Democratic candidates who may
disagree with evangelicals on abortion and/or gay marriage.  What the creation care movement has done is
to break the Republican monopoly on "God's issues."  Furthermore, as with internet porn, this issue
feeds into the fundamental evangelical fear that, at the end of the day, the
Republicans are just using evangelical voters and will put business interests
over God's interests.  As more and more
evangelicals start to worry about those things and think about basing their vote
on something other than abortion and gays, they become more open to making a
decision based on social justice issues and other Democratic strengths. 

Momentum is building on this issue, and a fissure is forming
in the Republican faith-based voting block. 
The press and broader faith community are starting to talk about this
issue.  And even traditionally secular
groups like the Sierra Club have started hiring faith outreach
coordinators.  We need to fan these
flames.  We all need to encourage our
churches to hold forums on climate change. 
Our preachers need to preach on creation care/environmental
stewardship.  And everyone reading this
blog should get involved in the "Great
Warming Call to Action." 

I'll do another post on the Call to Action in the next few
days.  But the short summary is that the
Call to Action is a 4-week plan for raising awareness of this issue and forcing
it into the political fore.  The movement
(and the wonderful movie it is connected to, The Great Warming, which will be
released in theatres nation-wide on Nov. 3) is a God-send to Democrats.  Any church and any individual can get
involved.  And if you do, you will make a
difference.