What's holding US pastors back from preaching on climate
As the White House undoes scores of environmental regulations and protections, some Christian leaders are inviting their congregations to do as the Bible asks, and
As the White House undoes scores of environmental regulations and protections, some Christian leaders are inviting their congregations to do as the Bible asks, and be good stewards of the land. After years of decline, the number of Christians in the US has stabilized. But as they file into church on a Sunday morning, only a few will hear about the state of the planet the Bible calls on them to steward. According to a 2025 study, although almost 90% of US Christian faith leaders across all major denominations believe in at least some degree of human-caused climate change, only around half have ever discussed it with their congregation. One of the paper's researchers, and assistant professor at the University of Arizona's school of sustainability, Styliano Syropoulos puts the disconnect down to many factors. "Just because they care about it doesn't mean they feel obligated to talk about it," he said, adding that pastors may feel ill-equipped to bring it up. "Or some might feel it's not their role. Climate change, at least in the US, is a heavily politicized issue." 'Second Coming capitalism' That is not lost on Reverend Mattson of the Hope Episcopal Church in Pennsylvania, who sees divided views on climate change in the US as a reason to talk about it rather than stay quiet. "I would say that political forces in this country and in other countries around the world may work very hard to distance the human impact piece on our climate," he said. "They are working actively to say, 'there's nothing we can do about it.
Let's slash, mow and spray and let's just go ahead and do whatever we want.'" US turns its back on EVs To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Under the current administration, the US is a case in point. From blocking renewables expansion to promoting the extraction and use of polluting fossil fuels, US president Donald Trump has undone literally dozens of regulations implemented to safeguard not just the nation, but the rest of the world from environmental destruction. "Any of us have the capacity to go too far with power, and we need to keep ourselves in check for that," Mattson said. "I think certain groups of people use power for unbridled consumption, and there's just no Jesus in that." He says some people have a "Second Coming capitalism" way of looking at the world; the idea that we can consume at will "because eventually God will come back, destroy the earth and make it new." Mattson argues that this narrative stems from a misreading of Genesis, originally written in Hebrew, where the call to "fill the earth and subdue it" is taken to mean exploitation — "just plow it down." He adds it is actually a call to be good stewards. The church where Reverend Bradley Mattson leads a congregation is set in grounds that can be protected in a way that benefits more distant communities Image: Katie Brown And he takes that calling of stewardship seriously. He has involved his church in climate advocacy, reforestation and protection of the Great Chesapeake Bay Watershed, which stretches across six states, including New York.
The BriefWire