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Hallman, who is a member of the United Church of Canada, pointed out that there was increasing evidence that vulnerable peoples, especially in poorer countries, were already suffering from the impact of human-induced climate change. He referred in particular to the past two years of floods in Mozambique, rising sea levels threatening Pacific islands, and persistent years of drought in Africa.

He added: "If the U.S. walks away from the Kyoto Protocol, it just means that another treaty with even more ambitious targets will have to be negotiated in the future as evidence of the devastating impacts of climate change mounts. We encourage all other countries to continue working towards the ratification of the Kyoto Protocol regardless of the U.S. action."

In New York on March 30, the National Council of Churches (NCC), the leading ecumenical body in the U.S., released the text of a letter sent the day before to President Bush by six religious leaders—Ismar Schorsch, chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary, and leading officials from the NCC, the Presbyterian Church (USA), the United Methodist Church, the Disciples of Christ and the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

The letter points out that "projected impacts of global warming on the most poor and vulnerable are ethically unacceptable" and adds that "domestic and international action is urgently required. The United States has a moral responsibility to lead the world's nations and to serve its people."

The letter urges the U.S. government to enact "a credible, binding program to honor international commitments, successfully prevent destructive impacts on humankind and habitat and embody equity."

The religious leaders asked to meet President Bush in June.

Kjell Larsson, Sweden's environment minister, said March 31, during an informal meeting of EU ministers for the environment, that the "Kyoto Protocol is still alive" and that "no individual country has the right to declare a multilateral agreement as dead."

"The EU sticks to the target of ratification of the Kyoto Protocol by 2002 at the latest," Larsson said. "To that end the EU and its member states have started preparations for ratification and will actively continue its efforts to combat climate change, for instance by developing the ECCP [the European Climate Change Program]."

Copyright © 2001 ENI.

Christianity Today's earlier coverage of Christian environmentalism includes:

Unholy Harvest? | Evangelicals join protests against genetically modified "frankenfoods." (May 9, 2000)

U.S. Churches Join Global Warming Debate (Oct. 5, 1998)

God's Green Acres | How Calvin DeWitt is helping Dunn, Wisconsin, reflect the glory of God's good creation. (June 15, 1998)

Greening of the Gospel? | Evangelical environmentalists press to add creation care to the church's mission. (Nov. 11, 1996)

Evangelical Environmentalism Comes of Age (Nov. 11, 1996)

Other articles on the U.S. withdrawal from the Kyoto Treaty include:

Faith-based environmental groups hope Bush sees the light — Scripps Howard News Service (Apr. 3, 2001)

'God's creation is under threat' | Coalition of churches assail decision to withdraw — The Independent (Apr. 1, 2001)

Anger Erupts Over U.S. Move to Ease Controls on Emissions — Los Angeles Times (Mar. 31, 2001)

Coalition raps Bush on global warming | Religious leaders say issue a moral concern — The Washington Post (Mar. 30, 2001)

Bush Criticized for Global Warming — Associated Press (Mar. 30, 2001)

For more articles, see Yahoo's full coverage area on global warming.

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April (Web-only) 2001, Vol. 45