It was an honor to be in dialogue last fall with Dr. Ibrahim Özdemir, Rev. Dr. Joshtrom Isaac Kureethadam, and Ashley Kitisya as part of the Parliament of World Religion’s webinar. We spoke about what our faith demands of us: to care for creation in this time of climate emergency. I shared a Jewish teaching, based on a line from Kohelet/Ecclesiastes. (Kohelet Rabba 7:13) 

ְּב ָׁש ָעה ֶׁש ָּבָרא ַה ָּקדֹוׁש ָּברּוְך הּוא ֶאת ָאָדם ָה ִראׁשֹון, נְ ָטלֹו וְ ֶה ֱח ִזירֹו ַעל ָּכל ִא ָ ילנֵי ַּגן ֵעֶדן, וְָא ַמר לֹו, ְר ֵאה ַמֲע ַׂשי ַּכ ָּמה נָ ִאים ּו ְמ ֻׁש ָּב ִחין ֵהן, וְ ָכל ַמה ֶּׁש ָּבָר ִאתי ִּב ְׁש ִב ְ ילָך ָּבָר ִאתי, ֵּתן ַּד ְע ְּתָך ֶׁשֹלא ְת ַק ְל ֵקל וְ ַת ֲח ִריב ֶאת עֹו ָל ִמי, ֶׁש ִאם ִק ְל ַק ְל ָּת ֵאין ִמי ֶׁשיְ ַת ֵּקן ַא ֲחֶריָך 

When the Holy Blessed One created Adam the first human, God took Adam and showed him all the trees in the Garden of Eden, and God said to him: ‘See My creations, how beautiful and exemplary they are. Everything I created, I created for you. Take heed that you do not ruin and destroy My world, for if you do destroy it, there will be no one to mend it after you. 

We exist in a time of striking contradiction. Although enlightenment pioneers could not foresee how technologically, economically, and communicatively connected humanity would become, we still seem increasingly fractured by fear, bias, and political divide. At a time when global cooperation is more important than ever—whether we’re facing climate change, biodiversity loss, war, forced migration, or growing inequality—the places where people of different faiths and worldviews can meet with respect and humility are becoming even more precious. 

For this reason, the Parliament of the World’s Religions remains one of the most significant moral institutions of our time. Since its historic beginning in Chicago in 1893, the Parliament has offered far more than a conference of religious leaders. It has cultivated a global culture of encounter, demonstrating that dialogue is not a luxury reserved for peaceful times but an ethical imperative during periods of crisis, as Pope Leo’s recent messages underline.

The summer drawing to a close in the Northern Hemisphere has been yet another wake-up call for humanity, reminding us that the habitability of Earth, our common home, for human communities and the rest of the biosphere is increasingly under threat. According to the World Meteorological Organization’s August 2026 report, the ten warmest Julys on record have all occurred since 2016, with the past four years (2023–2026) taking the top four spots. North America, Africa and Asia all experienced their warmest summer on record.

The crisis of our common home is now so widespread that it is impossible to ignore. This summer, communities in Asia, home to nearly 60% of the world’s population, experienced unprecedented extreme weather events. Japan and the Republic of Korea experienced exceptional and record-breaking heat in the first week of August, as did other parts of the continent. China, the Philippines and neighbouring countries mobilized their emergency management and response efforts, including mass evacuations, ahead of Typhoon Dolphin’s landfall in the first week of August.