THE CARBON WAR

Things are coming together just as things are falling apart 257
Online, 24 th September 2015
NBC is covering the Joint Meeting of Congress live. A motorcade of tank-sized
SUVs pulls up on Capitol Hill. It includes a small black Fiat containing Pope
Francis.
He has made his first point.
The chamber is packed, abuzz. The Pope walks in, to protracted clapping,
cheering and a standing ovation. Fully a third of Congress identify themselves
as Catholics. Outside, a vast crowd watches his speech on big screens.
He begins reading, his speech slow, his manner gentle.
I am most grateful for your invitation to address this Joint Session of
Congress in the land of the free and the home of the brave.
Another standing ovation, one sentence in.
He reminds the assembled politicians that they have a duty to defend
and preserve the dignity of their fellow citizens in the tireless and demanding
pursuit of the common good. He says he wants to address the entire people
of the United States, through his audience, their elected leaders. He invokes
great Americans, and alludes to their achievements. He builds his platform
carefully and respectfully.
He speaks of the human tendency to form into polarised camps. All
religions have been subject to extremism, he says. This is why we must guard
against it, in all its forms. The challenges facing us today call for a renewal of
the spirit of cooperation which has accomplished so much good throughout
the history of the United States.
He recalls Martin Luther King’s march for civil rights fifty years ago. He
is pleased that America is a land of dreams.
Second standing ovation.
Dreams which lead to commitments, and action. We are not afraid of
foreigners. Most of us are descended from immigrants. In our treatment of
migrants today we should not repeat the sins of the past. Our world is facing
a refugee crisis of a magnitude not seen since that Second World War. Let us
remember the golden rule. Do unto others as you will have them do unto you.
Third standing ovation.
He talks of common good. Common good includes the Earth. Now he
mentions the encyclical, that he recently wrote in order to enter into dialogue
with all people about our common home.