The Council of Religious Institutions of the Holy Land (CRIHL), an interfaith committee situated in Jerusalem that includes the chief leaders of Islam, Christianity and Judaism, recently endorsed the Declaration on Climate Change to promote environmental sustainability, and some believe it might lead to positive spillover in regional politics as well.

By endorsing the Declaration on Climate Change that the Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development (ICSD) submitted to the Council, Jewish, Christian and Muslim leaders will jointly pursue issues concerning climate change and use their religious influence to try and effect a change in how people deal with it.

"At a time when people around the world are confronting the challenge of climate change, religious leaders here are working together to promote action on the issue," Rabbi Yonatan Neril, ICSD founder and executive director, told Xinhua on the sidelines of a press conference.

The holy land council is comprised of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel, the Heads of the local churches of the Holy Land, the Ministry of Islamic Waqf at the Palestinian Authority, and the Islamic Sharia Courts of the Palestinian Authority.

"People of many faiths draw inspiration from their respective traditions to live sustainably, and these efforts cross-pollinate each other and encourage co-existence on our shared planet and in this land," Neril said.

RELIGION'S BROADCASTING POWER

Neril noted that a different, grimmer scenario has been painted by thousands of scientists over the world: rainforests shrinking, deserts expanding, storms intensifying, the planet heating.

In an open letter addressed to the religious community as early as 1990, scientists wrote: "Mindful of our common responsibility, we scientists, many of us long engaged in combating the environmental crisis, urgently appeal to the world religious community to commit, in word and deed, and as boldly as is required, to preserve the environment of the Earth."

Religions are viewed as a powerful force as they could serve as an important vehicle to promote greater environmental awareness.

Scientists aren't the only ones to recognize the important impact the world's religions could have in broadcasting environmental awareness throughout their constituencies worldwide.

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said last year that religions are an untapped source of hope for the ecological future of humanity and that this must be taken into account in any further efforts to safeguard the environment.

"We have to permeate all levels of society, speak about these topics in our churches, synagogues, and mosques, about how to take care of nature," Bishop William Shomali of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem told Xinhua.

Rabbi David Rosen, one of the Council members who also served as a liaison in presenting the declaration to all 15 council members, told Xinhua he believed the impact of the holy land court would be especially significant outside the holy land.

"Outside, whether it is in Asia, America, Africa or elsewhere when they see a statement coming from the religious leadership of the holy land, and added to that from a united voice, it will strengthen and empower those political leaders who want to take action to feel that they have significant religious authority behind them to do so," Rosen said.

IMPLEMENTATION QUESTIONABLE

"The Koran mentions the relationship between nature and human beings in a beautiful way, urging us not only to take advantage of all that nature has to offer, but also take care of it," Haj Salah Zuheika, a Muslim member of the Council and Deputy Minister of Religious Affairs for the Palestinian Authority, told Xinhua.

"Although the importance of the environment is addressed within religion, the problem lies in how to apply that theological message," Zuheika said.

"There is a gap between what religions say and how their goals are implemented," he added.

Rosen noted that a Jewish concept called "baal tashchit," which means "do not destroy," lies at the base of Judaism's belief in preserving the environment.

This verse, which specifically concerns protecting fruit trees on enemy territory, is understood by the Rabbis to exemplify a general principle of nature preservation.

They extend the specific situation of not destroying the trees of one's enemy during wartime to anxiously protecting all of nature, at all times.

"From that, Judaism has extrapolated not to destroy anything, and even avoid extravagance in personal conduct and lifestyle," Rosen said. "We need to highlight this concept in order create greater awareness and responsibility."

SPILLOVER INTO POLITICS

Shomali noted that spreading the message on environmental sustainability would take a lot of effort and patience, but ultimately also provided an opportunity for building a brighter future.

"It's like putting seeds in the earth. They should be carefully watered to enable them to grow," Shomali said. "The young people involved may be the leaders of tomorrow," he added, noting that their joint effort today would allow for improved coexistence on all levels in the future.

"This event showed how cooperation around environmental issues can spur coexistence among Israelis and Palestinians," Neril said. "This is an example of how our shared environmental challenges can play a key role in contributing to co-existence on the land, and how coexistence on the land can then help us to achieve environmental sustainability," he added.

The ICSD works to cultivate groups of Israeli and Palestinian religious leaders with a shared understanding of the human and environmental challenges facing the region.

"Our work facilitates environmental change alongside healing to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," Neril said. "We also enable these religious leaders to find common cause through common teachings on environmental sustainability and human coexistence."

"We are accountable because we are not here permanently. We have to leave the earth behind clean for the next generation," Shomali said. "Earth is like our home and those who live in the same home should know how to cohabitate. If the earth is polluted it is polluted for Muslims, Christians and Jews together," he added.