The climate conversation many US pastors avoid
As the Trump administration undoes scores of environmental protections, some Christian leaders are inviting their congregations to do as the Bible asks and be good
As the Trump administration undoes scores of environmental protections, some Christian leaders are inviting their congregations to do as the Bible asks and be good stewards of the land. But many others stay silent. After years of decline, the number of Christians in the United States has stabilized. But, as they file into church on Sunday mornings, only a few will hear about the state of the planet that the Bible calls on them to steward. According to a 2025 study, although almost 90% of US faith leaders across all major Christian denominations believe in at least some degree of human-caused climate change, only about half have ever discussed it with their congregations. Styliano Syropoulos, one of the paper's researchers and an assistant professor at Arizona State University's School of Sustainability, said there were many factors that help create the disconnect. "Just because they care about it doesn't mean they feel obligated to talk about it," Syropoulos 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 Bradley Mattson of the Hope Episcopal Church in Pennsylvania, who sees divided views on climate change in the United States as a reason to discuss the issue 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 United States 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." Mattson said some people had 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." He said this narrative stemmed 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." The passage, he said, is in fact 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 Mattson takes that calling to stewardship seriously.
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