By Lisa Zengarini vatican news
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople is organizing its fourth ecological “Halki Summit”,
gathering activists, scientists, journalists, business leaders,
theologians and academics of different Countries and faiths to promote
global awareness on the consequences of climate change, but also to
discern and effect changes in values and social attitudes related to the
abuse of God’s creation.
Lessons learnt from global crisis
The Summit, which draws its name from the Turkish island of Halki
(Heybeliada), will gather from January 26 to January 28 in a virtual
format, due to the Coronavirus pandemic and will be focused on the
theme: “COVID-19 and Climate Change: Living with and Learning from a
Pandemic”. Participants will be discussing the lessons that we have
learned for this global crisis, its impact on nature and the
environment, its implications for healthcare and how it has changed our
approach to science.
Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople
The first webinar will be introduced by the Ecumenical Patriarch of
Constantinople, H.B. Bartholomew I, and will focus on our failed
relationship with nature, pointing out the strong connection between the
present health crisis and the ecological crisis, namely THE loss of
wildlife and natural habitats and climate change. Speakers will examine
what we have learned and what we have yet to learn about this pandemic
and how the social, economic, and ecological impacts can be mitigated.
On the second day participants will discuss the impact of COVID-19 on
the relationship between politics and science and religion and science,
which has often been difficult. They will examine how governments and
churches have responded to scientists and the science on Covid-19 and
how the new Coronavirus has affected science and technology, as well as
our perception of science and religion. The discussion will be
introduced by Metropolitan John of Pergamon.
Finally, on January 28 the Summit will focus on the implications of
the pandemic for health. As the novel Coronavirus affects the lives of
millions of people throughout the globe, rising above national
boundaries and racial differences, it has invariably left an indelible
mark on matters of public health and mental health. Participants will
therefore discuss the importance of coordination and cooperation, of
mandatory lockdowns and social distancing, as well as of leadership and
support, but also what is the trade-off between health and economy and
the appropriate response to the need to care for people.
History of the Halki Summit
The first “Halki Summit” was held in June 2012 and focused on the
theme of “Global Responsibility and Environmental Sustainability”.
“Halki Summit II”, in 2015, brought together experts from around the
world on the theme: “Theology, Ecology, and the Word: a Conversation on
the Environment, Literature and the Arts.” “Halki Summit III”, in 2019,
gathered scholars and students from theological schools and seminaries
all over the world to discuss “Theological Formation and Ecological
Awareness”.
The Summits are inspired by a series of international, interfaith and
interdisciplinary environmental symposia organized since 1995 in
various Countries under the auspices of the Patriarch of Constantinople
Bartholomew, who over the last decades has advocated and advanced
worldwide conversation and cooperation among representatives of various
disciplines and faiths on environmental issues. At the heart of this
discussion is the belief that no effort can be successful without a
fundamental change in values as manifested in ethics, spirituality and
religion.
H. B. Bartholomew has been encouraged by his predecessor Dimitrios,
who in 1989 established the Day of Prayer for the protection and
conservation of the natural environment. The Orthodox Church was
subsequently followed by the Conference of the European Churches and the
World Council of Churches and, more recently, by Pope Francis whose
Encyclical “Laudato sì” was also inspired by the ecological initiatives
of Patriarch Bartholomew.
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