Lobby governments on climate, Oceania Provinces urge
THE Primates and general secretaries of the Provinces in Oceania have called on other Anglican Churches to lobby governments on behalf of Pacific island states and other nations affected by climate change. A specific appeal for support for Vanuatu’s campaign to for financial consequences — “polluter pays” — for high-polluting UN member states came from the 2026 Fono (council) meeting of Anglican leaders in Vanuatu held from 9 to 16 April. The leaders are also calling on Anglican Churches to press governments to meet their obligations under Article 9 of the Paris Agreement: “[developed] country parties shall provide financial resources to assist developing country parties with respect to both [climate change] mitigation and adaptation.”
Pacific Churches launch decade of environmental action
THE Ecumenical Decade of Climate Justice Action has been launched by the Pacific Conference of Churches (PCC) in Togoru, Fiji, home to what the World Council of Churches (WCC) called “one of the most climate-vulnerable communities in the world”. A ceremony formed part of last week’s Pacific Church Leaders’ Meeting, organised by the PCC. “Togoru is experiencing severe, rapid coastal erosion, with the sea swallowing roughly 1.3 to 1.5 metres of land annually,” a WCC press release said. “Rising sea levels are submerging homes, plantations, and burial grounds, forcing residents to prepare for relocation as traditional seawalls fail.”
PNG Anglicans encouraged to promote condoms
A PROFESSOR of obstetrics and gynaecology in Port Moresby, Dr Glen Mola, has called on the Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea (PNG), through its Anglican Health Services, to become “a thoroughly effective agent and promoter of condom availability in Oro, Milne Bay and the Highlands”. The PNG Church Partnership’s Easter newsletter says that HIV infections have nearly doubled in the country over the past decade: from 6000 annually to about 11,000 in 2024. About 120,000 people are living with HIV, and fewer than half have access to life-saving treatment. “This is largely due to stigma, limited healthcare access, and low awareness,” the newsletter says. In 2024, more than 11,000 deaths were attributed to AIDS-related illnesses, prompting the government and the United Nations to declare a national HIV crisis.
Gallup finds rise in religiosity among young men in US
YOUNG men in the United States exceeded young women in saying that religion was “very important” to their lives, says Gallup, in its analysis of data for 2024-25. Forty-two per cent of the young men surveyed said that religion was very important to them, up from 28 per cent in 2022-23. During the same period, young women’s attachment to religion remained at about 30 per cent. The figures suggest that women of all age groups and older men were at, or near, their historical low, while young men’s attachment to religion was on the rise.