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More than 20 years ago, the United Methodist Council of Bishops introduced a pastoral letter called, “In Defense of Creation: The Nuclear Crisis and a Just Peace.” The 1986 letter was a clear message to all United Methodists about the possibility of nuclear war and the extinction of all life. It was an urgent reminder that this world is God’s creation, a sacred gift to be received and nurtured with respect, and an unconditional No to any use of nuclear weapons. The pastoral letter was supported by a foundation document and study materials.
In 2004, the General Conference authorized the Council of Bishops to update the 1986 document by “educating and encouraging the church, citizens and governments to seek things which lead to a just peace.”
The Bishops’ Task Force identified three interconnected global threats to God’s good creation:
- ongoing nuclear danger and the realities of violence, the
- degradation of the environment and global climate change, and
- pandemic poverty and disease in the struggles of a billion people for subsistence.
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