Vatican Asks Catholics to Drop Investments in Fossil Fuels, Arms
2020-06-22
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1The Vatican is urging Roman Catholics to sell investments in arms manufacturers and businesses that specialize in oil and other fossil fuels.
2It also has asked Catholics to look closely at companies in areas such as mining to see if they are hurting the environment.
3The calls are part of a new document for Catholic religious leaders and workers.
4It marks the fifth anniversary of Pope Francis' encyclical "Laudato Si" (Praised Be) on the need to protect nature, life, and defenseless people.
5The document suggests ways to reach the goals of the Pope's letter.
6The encyclical expressed support for agreements to contain global warming.
7It also warned against the dangers of climate change.
8The new document says people "could favor positive changes" and remove "from their investments companies that do not satisfy certain parameters."
9It listed these as respect for human rights, bans on child labor and protection of the environment.
10The document is called 'Journeying Towards Care For Our Common Home.'
11One part urges Catholics to refuse to use or invest in "companies that are harmful to human or social ecology, such as abortion and arms, and to the environment, such as fossil fuels."
12Another part calls for the "monitoring" of mining industries to prevent air, soil and water pollution.
13Last month, more than 40 religious groups from around the world promised to sell investments in fossil fuel companies.
14More than 50 percent of those organizations were Catholic.
15The Vatican bank has said it does not invest in fossil fuels.
16Many Catholic dioceses and educational groups around the world have said the same.
17The document urges Catholics to defend the rights of local populations to have a say in whether their lands can be used for oil or mining.
18It also defends the right of Catholics to take strong positions against companies that cause environmental disasters or exploit natural resources such as forests.
19I'm Susan Shand.
1The Vatican is urging Roman Catholics to sell investments in arms manufacturers and businesses that specialize in oil and other fossil fuels. It also has asked Catholics to look closely at companies in areas such as mining to see if they are hurting the environment. 2The calls are part of a new document for Catholic religious leaders and workers. It marks the fifth anniversary of Pope Francis' encyclical "Laudato Si" (Praised Be) on the need to protect nature, life, and defenseless people. 3The document suggests ways to reach the goals of the Pope's letter. The encyclical expressed support for agreements to contain global warming. It also warned against the dangers of climate change. 4The new document says people "could favor positive changes" and remove "from their investments companies that do not satisfy certain parameters." It listed these as respect for human rights, bans on child labor and protection of the environment. 5The document is called 'Journeying Towards Care For Our Common Home.' One part urges Catholics to refuse to use or invest in "companies that are harmful to human or social ecology, such as abortion and arms, and to the environment, such as fossil fuels." 6Another part calls for the "monitoring" of mining industries to prevent air, soil and water pollution. 7Last month, more than 40 religious groups from around the world promised to sell investments in fossil fuel companies. More than 50 percent of those organizations were Catholic. 8The Vatican bank has said it does not invest in fossil fuels. Many Catholic dioceses and educational groups around the world have said the same. 9The document urges Catholics to defend the rights of local populations to have a say in whether their lands can be used for oil or mining. It also defends the right of Catholics to take strong positions against companies that cause environmental disasters or exploit natural resources such as forests. 10I'm Susan Shand. 11The Reuters News Agency reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 12_________________________________________________________________ 13Words in This Story 14encyclical - n. a letter from the Pope sent to all bishops in the Roman Catholic church 15global - adj. worldwide 16positive - adj. a successful outcome 17parameters - n. the line of definition 18ecology - n. the study of the relations between one organism to another 19abortion - n. the termination of a pregnancy 20monitoring - n. watching over 21dioceses - n. an area watched over by a bishop in the Christian faith 22exploit - v. to make use of