Sunday, 7th November, 2021. I find myself with a number of other young people from the Young Christian Climate Network in the dim twilight of St Mungo’s Tomb in Glasgow Cathedral alongside Bishop Kevin, the Primus, the Moderator of the Church of Scotland, the International Leader of the Salvation Army, a Swedish Archbishop and countless other church officals. From the space where Kentigern’s tomb had once been placed an Orthodox bishop reads out a short prayer for COP26. We all then file out, and on the way up the steep stairs I reflect on all that has happened in 2021 and how this was not at all what I expected my COP26 (or year) to look like.
But how did we get to this point? The world of bishops and politicians felt a long way away from the early days of our 1,200 mile climate walk to Glasgow, back in January when the world was locked-down and all was on Zoom.
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| The Relay at the Scottish Border |
It was January, 2021. The Young Christian Climate Network was discussing over Zoom, in the midst of lockdown, what its campaign would be for the year. It’s a young organisation, founded in the summer of 2020, to be an ecumenical network where Young Christians passionate about the climate crises could come together to support one another, pray and campaign. After much long discussion, we decided that we would try and hold a pilgrimage that would start at the G7 in Cornwall in June and arrive at COP26 in Glasgow in a bid to raise awareness of climate finance and global inequality. The walk would be 1,200 miles long, split into sections and organised as a relay so everyone would walk a couple of days, allowing as many people as possible to get involved. (To see picture albums of the Relay, scroll to the bottom of the page via this link: https://www.yccn.uk/relay-resources ) This I remind you was decided on Zoom, in the middle of a lockdown which at the time had no guaranteed end. If you asked me then whether it would happen, I think would have probably responded enigmatically – “it’s possible, but surely not probable!”
Needless to say, we somehow managed to pull it off. It would fill a whole church magazine to list the numerous challenges that took place for the Relay to happen; from creating a volunteer system from scratch to convincing churches and Christian charities to support us, to how we learned to advertise widely across all our different connections, about how we managed to secure funding for a full time paid mobilisation coordinator etc. How bishops started getting involved in England (and later in Scotland), which helped gain the attention of media outlets, including BBC Songs of Praise! (Link for those interested: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0b1vmwf ) There were times of great stress, of falling outs and falling back-in, of emergency prayer meetings and moments of great joy. Of our own Bishop Kevin wearing a T-shirt (!), of lightening candles in Cathedrals and countless church puddings. Of Border Crossings, of Kirk Elders, of Episcopal Breakfasts and of course, the terrible, oh so terrible Scottish weather accompanying our final days walking to Glasgow.
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| At Holy Trinity Motherwell with Bishop Kevin |
And yet COP26 was a mixed experience. The joy of 70 people walking the final stretch from Uddingston to Glasgow, ending with a wonderful closing service at the St George’s Tron, and the excitement in being involved with the official service at Glasgow Cathedral, being tempered by the half-promises and delayed decisions that took place during the climate conference itself. And sadly by the end of the two weeks, the Conference essentially decided to push many of the hard decisions, including those around climate finance which we had campaigned on, onto to the agenda of COP27 in Egypt. Yet, I am not disheartened, as throughout the year thousands of Christians and hundreds of churches (most who had never done anything regarding climate change) decided to speak out and get involved with our pilgrimage to Glasgow. We had played our part, even if the result was not what we had hoped for.
Ultimately climate change is by far the biggest issue for a large percentage of my generation. Many folks, including friends of mine, suffer from climate grief where the magnitude of the problem overwhelms them. However, one of the comforts of being a Christian is knowing that we live in a world made and sustained by a loving God. At my confirmation service in St Margaret’s last summer I was asked by Bishop Kevin, “Will you work for justice and peace, honouring God in all Creation?” A heavy duty to ask on someone when you think about it - but thankfully the correct response is not “Yes I will do this by myself” but instead “With the help of God, I will.” As Christians I do believe we have a duty to work to combat the climate crises, but I take great comfort that regardless of the results of conferences like COP26 I can pray that incredible line from the old hymn; “Through endeavour, danger, failure, Father be thou at our side.” The days may be dark, the task at hand large, but with God’s help we need not despair.
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