Tri-Abrahamic Panelists Agree Their Religions Should Defend Creation Together

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Disasters and Climate Change

A United Methodist Insight Special | Sept. 9, 2025

The worldwide climate crisis may succeed in uniting three faiths that all claim to be descended from the biblical patriarch Abraham for a desperate purpose: defending the Earth from extinction from global warming.

The Parliament of the World’s Religions brought together representatives of Judaism, Christianity and Islam Sept. 7 for an online panel to discuss commonalties that could support common action on the climate crisis. Revived in 1993 after a century in abeyance, the Parliament is an international movement dedicated to fostering “interfaith harmony to address the issues of our time,” according to its website.

“The Tri-Abrahamic Dialogue on the Climate Crisis: What Do Our Faiths Demand?” focused on three faiths that claim the biblical patriarch as their spiritual ancestor: Judaism and Christianity through Abraham’s son Isaac by his wife Sarah and Islam through the patriarch’s son Ishmael by his concubine Hagar. Historically, the three faiths have been at odds with one another for hundreds of years; even today, despite efforts at reconciliation by religious leaders, extremists of all three faiths continue to inflict violence on the world.

Hence, the Parliament’s webinar, which was attended by around 50 people including United Methodists, represented a bold attempt to foster interfaith amity and cooperation by focusing on the mutual threat to what the late Pope Francis called “our common home” in his groundbreaking 2015 encyclical Laudato Sí.

The climate webinar took place during worldwide observance of Season of Creation Sept. 1-Oct. 4, a time of religious attention to environmental care and conservation.

The climate webinar was introduced by Kaleb Nyquist, chair of the Parliament’s committee on climate and a strategist for organizations working at the intersection of sustainability, spirituality, and democratic reform.

“The world is desperate for solutions to the climate crisis,” said Nyquist. “The Abrahamic faiths represent more than half the world’s population, and we hope this is the start of a longer conversation.”

The panelists were:

  • Rabbi Jennie Rosenn, founder of Dayenu, an organization mobilizing the American Jewish community on climate action;
  • Fr. Joshtrom Kureethadam, professor of philosophy at Salesian Pontifical University in Rome and proponent of the vision of Laudato Sí; and
  • Dr. Ibrahim Ozdemir, vice president of academic affairs at American Islamic College, Chicago, and an adviser to global sustainability initiatives who helped shape UNESCO’s work on environmental ethics.

The panel was moderated by Ashley Kitisya, currently serving as Programs Manager Africa at Laudato Si’ Movement, a Catholic organization founded to carry forward the vision of Pope Francis’ encyclical through ecological conversion, full sustainability and prophetic advocacy for climate justice.

Ms. Kitisya began the discussion with a question: “What does your faith demand in a time of climate emergency?”

Rabbi Rosenn responded, “This is such a big question!”

The rabbi then quoted from the Midrash Kohelet Rabbah, known as a classical rabbinic commentary on the book of Ecclesiastes: “Take heed that you do not destroy my world, because if you destroy it, there will be no one to come after you to mend it.”

“This statement has resonance right now,” Rabbi Rosenn continued. “We brought about the climate crisis, and we have the ability to do something about it.”

Dr. Ozdemir framed his response in terms of “our common home.”

“Justice is at the heart of the Qu’ran,” the Muslim scholar said. “We must look at our daily life and systems with an ethic of compassion, and that includes animals and everything created by God. We must be humble; we have responsibilities toward generations to come.”

Fr. Kureethadam, who noted he teaches cosmology (the study of the universe and its origins), said he first thinks of creation’s beauty.

“We faith leaders must recover looking at the natural world as God’s creation,” the Catholic scholar said. “Earth is home to millions of creatures but it’s God’s too, it’s sacred. We need to recover our prophetic heritage and raise our voices.”

Ms. Kitisya said that creation care is still perceived as optional or secondary in most religions. She asked the panel how to make creation care central to believers’ lives.

Dr. Ozdemir said that Muslims first must learn the Prophet Muhammad’s teachings to look at the world through a “green lens.”

“The first generation of Muslims saw creation as God’s creation, but we’ve lost that perspective,” he said. “We have a moral responsibility to respect and protect creation. We need to re-think and come up with new perspectives, new solutions, new patterns of action.”

Fr. Kureethadam said he thinks that in today’s complex world, it’s imperative to develop an “integral ecology approach” that supports multiple solutions.

 “We should get all disciplines to dialogue among themselves, propose new economics, new politics,” he said. “We must work together to create networks.”

Rabbi Rosenn agreed with Fr. Kureethadam’s communal approach.

“Faith leaders and faith communities are uniquely positioned to raise moral questions,” the rabbi said. “The ‘elephant in the room’ now is that the climate crisis is accelerating at a pace that’s surprising even scientists. We must keep the climate crisis front and central as the existential issue of our time.”

Even with the prospect of adverse climate effects accelerating, faith communities must encourage hope and action, Rabbi Rosenn added.

“We must remind people of their agency, their strength, their ability to do hard and courageous things so we can collectively change,” she said. “It’s almost too much to bear, what we’re experiencing (from climate-intensified natural disasters). Imagine what our offspring will experience.”

Rabbi Rosenn suggested faith groups can “spiritually resource” climate action by creating spaces where people can grapple with their anxiety and grief over what has happened. Then people will be able to confront the climate crisis “with eyes and hearts open,” she said.

Given the historic and current animosities among the Abrahamic religions, Ms. Kitisya asked the scholars for one phrase from their traditions to carry forward in creation care.

Fr. Kureethadam suggested the “ten commandments” of Laudato Si, which include living as a community, as a family, to cultivate “ecological virtue.”

Dr. Ozdemir said, “Muhammad says, ‘when all is crashing, peace.’ Keep peace. Don’t give up; don’t give up hope, God can help us find the solution. Accept in humbleness the wisdom of all traditions.”

“The future of the world is in our hands,” said Rabbi Rosenn. “We have science, resources, people and power to close the gap between the world as it is and how it should be.”

Then she quoted God’s instruction spoken through Moses to the Hebrews in Deuteronomy 30:19*:

“I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live.”

*Scripture quotation from The Holy Bible, New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Cynthia B. Astle serves as Editor of United Methodist Insight, an online journal she founded in 2011 as a media channel amplify news and views for, by and about marginalized and under-served United Methodists.

This article is part of United Methodist Insight’s continuing coverage of the global climate crisis as part of Covering Climate Now, a collaboration of more than 500 news outlets worldwide.