Catholic Climate Covenant joined a host of other religious and environmental organizations to participate in the COP29 prayer vigil in front of the State Department building on Tuesday, Oct. 22.
The event was organized by the Washington Interfaith Staff Community Energy and Ecology Working Group and co-sponsoring organizations, including
- Catholic Climate Covenant
- Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life
- Creation Justice Ministries
- Dayenu
- Franciscan Action Network
- Interfaith Power & Light
- Jewish Earth Alliance
- Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns
- Mennonite Central Committee U.S.
- Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate
- NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice
- Presbyterian Church (USA) Office of Public Witness
- United Church of Christ
The Washington Interfaith Staff Community Energy and Ecology Working Group explained the importance of the prayer vigil on their sign-up form.
“The U.S. Administration is preparing to attend the United Nations Climate Summit (COP 29) in November,” the organization said. “As people of faith and conscience, we call on the U.S. to lead by example by taking bold and ambitious action to curb our country’s emissions. This COP comes at a critical moment. As the wealthiest country in the world and the country that has emitted more carbon pollution than any other, the US has a moral responsibility to commit our fair share of funding to solve this global crisis.
“We call on the US government to commit to accelerate ambition on NDCs, increase climate finance commitments, support loss and damage finance, and include climate and environmental justice in adaptation and mitigation.”
Over 50 people attended the prayer vigil.
Kayla Jacobs, the Youth Mobilization Program Manager for the Covenant, attended the prayer vigil.
“It is a powerful experience to pray with people of different faiths for a universal belief in caring for the earth,” Jacobs said. “Many members of the State Department, who will be traveling to COP29 as part of the U.S. delegation, attended and received our blessing and encouragement. It is my prayer that our public witness will be an inspiration for bold climate commitments.”
Dan Misleh, the Founder and Executive Director of the Covenant, also attended the prayer vigil.
“I’m glad the Covenant could attend such an important, unifying event leading up to COP29,” Misleh said. “This prayer vigil was vital not just for unity among diverse beliefs, but to amplify our collective call for stewardship of creation. In a world facing unprecedented environmental challenges, we must stand together, rooted in our shared responsibility to protect the planet for future generations. Prayer fuels our commitment, reminding us that caring for creation transcends boundaries, drawing us closer in our mission for justice and sustainability.”
COP29 will take place from Nov. 11 to 22 in Baku, Azerbaijan.