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Evangelical
Perspectives on Urban Life and the Environment
"What Would Jesus Drive?"
Call
to Action for Christian Leaders
The Evangelical Environmental Network
As Christians we confess Jesus Christ as our
Savior and Lord. The Lordship of Christ extends
throughout every area of our lives. Nothing is
excluded from His Lordship. This includes our
transportation choices. The Risen Lord Jesus is
concerned about the kinds of cars we drive because
they affect his people and his creation.
Obeying Jesus in our transportation choices is
one of the great Christian obligations and opportunities
of the twenty-first century. Pollution from vehicles
has a major impact on human health and the rest
of God's creation. It contributes significantly
to the threat of global warming. Our reliance
on imported oil from unstable regions threatens
peace and security.
Making transportation choices that threaten millions
of human beings violates Jesus' basic commandments:
"Love your neighbor as yourself" (Mk.
12:30-31); and "Do to others as you would
have them do to you" (Lk. 6:31).
In making our transportation choices with the
Risen Lord Jesus, we believe He wants us to travel
in ways that reduce pollution and consumption
of gasoline.
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We therefore
invite the evangelical community to engage in
a serious, sustained dialogue with these urgent
questions: What transportation choices would Jesus
make? "What Would Jesus Drive?"
If we do that with faithful submission to biblical
truth and humble exploration of the best scientific
data, biblical Christians can help create a better
society for our families and our children’s
children.
For ourselves, as we renew our confession of
Christ as Lord of every corner of our lives we
pledge:
- to walk, bike, car pool, and use public transportation
more;
- to purchase the most fuel efficient and least
polluting vehicle available that truly fits
our needs;
- to educate others about the moral concerns
and solutions associated with transportation;
- to encourage automobile manufacturers to
produce the most fuel efficient and least polluting
vehicles possible that fit the needs of the
American people; and,
- to urge government leaders to support public
transportation, a significant increase in fuel
economy standards, and research and development
for promising new transportation technologies
that reduce pollution and increase fuel efficiency.
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