A deforested and burned area is seen on a stretch of the BR-230 highway in Humaita in Brazil's Amazonas state on September 16, 2022 [File: Michael Dantas/AFP]
Mother of life,
in your maternal womb Jesus took flesh,
the Lord of all that exists.
Risen, he transfigured you by his light
and made you the Queen of all creation.
For that reason, we ask you, Mary, to reign
in the beating heart of Amazonia.
Show yourself the Mother of all creatures,
in the beauty of the flowers, the rivers,
the great river that courses through it
and all the life pulsing in its forests.
Tenderly care for this explosion of beauty.
Ask Jesus to pour out all his love
on the men and women who dwell there,
that they may know how to appreciate and care for it.
Excerpt from an Exhortation in Querida Amazonia, Pope Francis
“The rainforest is neither a void that needs occupying nor a treasure trove to be looted. It is a flowerbed of possibilities…”
President Luiz da Silva of Brazil
Yesterday and today representatives from eight South American countries gathered in Belem, Brazil for a meeting about the future of the Amazon region. Representatives from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname and Venezuela will join the two-day meeting of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization have convened for the first time since 2009. Belem is at the mouth of the Amazon River, so an important symbolic location for the conference.
During the disastrous term of right-wing President Jair Bolsanaro, sometimes called the Trump of the South, protections for the Amazon were all but abandoned, deforestation and illegal mining was rampant, and the rights of Indigenous peoples were trammelled. The Amazon region was once a massive carbon sink, acting as a set of lungs for the planet. It has become a carbon emitter because of the exploitation by Brazil but other countries as well.
According to a STAND.earth press release:
- Amazon Summit: Amazonian Indigenous leaders call for a Global Pact to protect 80% of the Amazon by 2025
- At the pre-Summit in Leticia, Indigenous organizations from all over the Amazon defined 10 immediate actions to protect 80% by 2025 and reverse the tipping point.
- Priorities include: recognition of Indigenous rights and territories, moratoriums on industrial activity in key priority areas, ensuring the preservation of ecosystems through financing mechanisms for climate, biodiversity and land management such as debt forgiveness, among other solutions.
In addition today, these Amazon countries will meet with leaders of the Congo, the DRC and Indonesia, looking to issue a joint statement from the world's three major rainforest basins. Norway and Germany, which have funded Amazon preservation, and France, which controls the Amazon territory of French Guiana, will also participate.
You may recall the conference held at the Vatican in October of 2019 which brought Indigenous representatives and church leaders from South America together. There was considerable respect demonstrated for Indigenous wisdom and spirituality. That event resulted in a papal document issued in 2020 called Querida Amazonia, or Beloved Amazon. The Roman Catholic church in Brazil was courageous in resisting Bolsanaro despite the hostile response and even under the leadership of President da Silva they have been a voice for the voiceless.
This also happens to be World Indigenous Peoples Day, which is serendipitous or providential or both.
We can certainly pray for the outcome of this important gathering and for all those who are working toward the preservation of the Amazon, including Indigenous peoples, along with the religious and spiritual leaders who support them. We can also uphold the government of President Luiz da Silva -- Lula -- of Brazil in its leadership role.
This Guardian piece is worthwhile:
Amazon Synod 2019
2 comments:
Yes, this is so heartening. The political atmosphere in Brazil has changed, and not a moment too soon. K
I agree, Kathy, and I hope other nations respond to the call for financial support to preserve what is an irreplaceable planetary treasure.
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