By Santosh Digal

Mumbai: A group of women have urged Cardinal Oswald Gracias to push for a climate change desk for the Church in India.

The demand came at the South Asian Regional Conference on “Climate Change impacts on Vulnerable Groups and Women’s Perspectives,” held the Center for Social Action, St. Pius College campus, Goregaon, Mumbai.

The January 18-19 conference address the theme, “Climate Change impacts on Vulnerable Groups and Women’s Perspectives.”

On behalf of the participants, Sr. Lilly Francis, a lawyer based at the central Indian city of Nagpur, requested Cardinal Gracias on Jan 18 to use his influence to press the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) to open a climate change desk. Such a desk would give a great impetus for people who work on environmental issues and concerns for the cause of climate change, said the nun, a former secretary of CBCI Women’s Commission.

The CBCI desk would coordinate, animate and address ecological concerns in the spirit of Pope Francis’ encyclical on ecology issued in June 2015 “Laudato Si” (On Care for our Common Home), said Sister Francis, a member the Salesian Missionaries of Mary Immaculate.

Cardinal Gracias is the president of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferenced (FABC) that has already set up a climate desk in Mumbai for the region. The bishops of Bangladesh set up a climate desk last year and their counterparts in Sri Lanka are planning one for the island nation.

Cardinal Gracias said he will take up the women’s request at the 29th plenary assembly of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India-Latin Rite (CCBI) that he heads as the president. The assembly is scheduled for January 31-February 8 at Bhopal, capital of the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.

The cardinal said he would personally take interest on the matter and talk about it with other bishops in the country.

“I can assure that I do my best for pushing for it. However it all depends on the bishops to decide to have a new desk on Climate Change at CBCI level,” the Cardinal said.

At present CBCI has 14 offices/councils on various activities and apostolates.

Cardinal Gracias opened the seminar jointly organized by the Climate Change Desk and Office of Laity and Family of the Asian bishops and , Women’s Desk of CBCI Council for Women.

As many as 45 delegates from Bangladesh and Nepal, besides India, attended it. The participants were related to climate change, women’s organizations and secretaries of women’s commissions and councils, diocesan and regional secretaries of women’s commission and grass root leaders.

Addressing the participants on Jan 19, Bishop Jacob Mar Barnabas of Gurgaon, said climate change is a crucial issue for the Church.

The Syro-Malankara bishop, chairman of CBCI Council for Women, assured that participants that he would support a climate change desk at the CBCI level.

“Setting up the climate change desk is not the matter, though it might be a need. What matters most is how people would work and promote the cause of climate change and implement it in all aspects of life in a sustained manner for the common good of people and society,” the prelate said.

Reacting to the concerns of the participants, Sister Talisha Nadukudiyil, executive secretary of CBCI Council for Women, said the bishops have to deliberate on the issue before planning any structure for climate change.

The member of the Sisters of Destitute congregation expressed the hope that the bishop would realize the importance of climate change issues, in keeping with Pope Francis’ document.

SD