Christian Ethical Reflection on Climate Change and Human Responsibility

Climate change caused by the destruction of the ecological environment in many parts of the earth is very serious. In particular, climate change can have serious adverse effects on humanity as a whole and on to future generations, not only on humans but also on the order of creation as well as all living creatures, and can be fatal unless some measures are taken immediately. For this, since the 20th-century German philosopher Hans Jonas(1903-1993) published his book The Principle of Responsibility (Das Prinzip Verantwortung), and the topic of human responsibility for creation has become a keyword in moral theology. The church announced the encyclical Laudato Si, on May 24, 2015 which must be observed by everyone in this era. Responsibility means that a person with independence and the ability of self-realization feels a sense of duty for the act performed by his free decision and carries out the task himself. Since man is an ethical subject who acts for himself with free decisions and is able to distinguish between good and evil, he is responsible to himself, to his fellow human beings and to God. Because of this responsibility, God can ask man to keep the commandments, and a relationship is established in which man must respond to God for this demand. Since this responsibility is given to human beings from the divine authority of creation, human beings act as responsible subjects, and the whole world, which is a gift from God to human beings, is the object of that responsibility. In addition, human beings are the image of God, and as human beings who represent God's will, they must fulfill their duty of responsibility for creation in this world in the name of human beings. Climate change caused by the destruction of the ecological environment around the globe is truly serious.