e's afraid, she doesn't show it. anyway sara is too busy picking up passengers. there's more real news that affects real people like you and me. at our new-look website. take a look - aljazeera.com. [ ♪♪ ] this time it's not a federal scientific agency, a set of scholars or the united nations warning about the danger of climate change. it's the head of the roman catholic church, pope francis. does the leader of more than a billion catholics around the globe have a different audience, a different impact when he tells the world it's time to make big changes in our daily lives.

the pastor and the planet - it's the "inside story". welcome to "inside story", i'm ray suarez. when you lead a religion that counts more than a billion followers in every corner of the globe, what you say gets attention, positive and negative. if it strikes you as odd that pope francis might have something to say on the environment. it shouldn't. popes issued in letters to the church on a wide range of subjects looking at all aspect of human life through the lens of catholic theology. in this latest encyclical, the issue was taking care of the planet in the wake of climate change. the topic touched a nerve with

some candidates in the 2016 presidential race. pope francis is asking governments around the world to cut the use of fossil fuels. republican presidential candidate jed bush, a catholic, declared his independence. i don't get economic policy from my bishops or my cardinals or my pope, and i'd like to see what he says as it relates to climate change, and how that connects to these broader, deeper issues, before i pass judgment. >> pope francis supports established science that burning fossil fuels are warming the planet. the pope says global warming poses a threat to the world's poor. the pope's teaching, known as an encyclical is putting some catholics in an awkward position, particularly these five preparing to receive the presidential nomination. each criticising the tax. the pressure may be intense when

mr bush, the former florida governor, and marco rubio, a former senator. last year, a u.s. scientific study identified miami as a u.s. metro area vulnerable to damage. in the past marco rubio said he doesn't believe human activity is causing climate change. and the senator argued capping emissions would be a mistake. >> i can tell you it would have a devastating impact on economy. >> last weekend he said: announcement... >> lamedies and gentlemen, this is

a piece of coal. >> former senator santorum talked about fossil fuel and dismissed the pope with this: before joining the seminary, pope francis, known then in argentina as jorhey. given the pope's popularity, political strat gets say the -- strategists say the candidates are wise to by homage. >> he's drawing people to the faith, all of which, as a converted catholic, is cool. >> in the same thought, the candidate gave a clear indication that the u.s. climate octane. >> religion ought to be about

making us better as people, and less about things that end up getting into the political realm. this. >> reporter: if you are catholic or not, were you interested in what pope francis had to say about the environment and the climate. did his standing as a religious leader add or detract from the position set out in the encyclical. if he went to maths, did he expect to hear something about the environment and human possibility. joining me is father, a professor. what is an encyclical. what is it n meant to do? >> well, an encyclical is a circular letter sent around to all the bishops in the church. in the last 50 years or so they've been addressed to all people of goodwill, and is meant to focus on a theme, analyse a theme and give guidelines to how

we night respond. >> and when you read this encyclical, is it a good idea to keep in mind that pope francis is not just the pope for some 70 million american catholics, but catholics in some of the most vulnerable places on earth. pacific. >> yes, and that's a theme of the encyclical and the papacy. he's saying we have to take special care to look at the poor and the marginalized, the people left out of policy decisions in the world, and we have to look to see how the decisions may impact these people, because they'll be the most vulnerable. >> we heard the senator santorum and governor jed bush try to make a differentiation between teaching about things like

morality and theology, and care of the earth. almost setting them out about two different things. in the encyclicual, doesn't the pope route for the earth in morality and theology. >> exactly, he doesn't use the expression. i would say what he's trying to outline is what he would call a spirituality for the long hall. he's saying this is a complex problem. it's not going to have a quick and easy solution. we have to change our attitudes, our policies, and we have to be norrished and supported in this by a change while we look at creation as a gift from god and our role in it is to be stewards of that, and not just for ourselves. that's a change in our spirituality, and how we are going to live out the spirituality in our world.

>> in the plane text of the encyclical. as you read through it chapter by chapter, is there anything there different in tone or specifically different from what a catholic would have heard in catechism. from the palpit, just in catholic culture over the last several decades. >> yes, i think there's a big difference, and the big difference is this - this pope, pope francis, and this encyclical, is not going top down, but is starting at the grass roots saying how does the environment - what do we see happening in the environment today. how is it affecting people. let's listen to their experiences, and then try to device programs, policies, spirituality et cetera that will deal with this in a practical and a long-lasting way. whereas in the past, to be frank, sometimes you could read

an encyclical and cataclysm. and come away with the impression. the pope has all the answers. and listen to what the church says, in this encyclical the pope is underlining over and over dialogue. dialogue with science, with other religions, with every part of the world. and that, a dialogue is a 2-way conversation. >> over and over again on the encyclical. pope francis quotes earlier popes. is it important right now, when it delves into climate change, to root what he has to say in the long-term teaching of the church, so that people don't take it as something new. exactly. not only is she quoting three ol onlians in the past.

he's quoting others around the world, and is quoting the bible in considerable detail. ultimately the theology is grounded in our understanding of the god's revelation. that we find in the bible. it's coming together in an integrated way, making the basing argument that this isn't his own personal public platform, but he's standing in continuity, not only for pope benedict before him, but all the way back to jesus christ, but back to the book of genesis. >> there are catholic lay workers who base what they do on the church's teaching around wealth and poverty. there are people involved in ministries around the criminal justice system working around capital punishment.

would an encyclical like this fire up catholics, loosen catholics, push them into the arena around environmental subjects in a way they haven't been before. >> most definitely. the encyclical was leaked last monday, and i read it italian, i had been in rome for a number of years. and there was blogs and other organizations and when it was released on thursday, it was redoubled. certainly he has a big audience. >> father james bresky a professor of moral theology in madison wisconsin. thank you for joining us. still ahead - more than half-a-dozen current and prospective candidates are roman catholics. when st. john paul was pope, he embraced his public positions. will they just as easily dismiss

what this it 1st century pope was teaching. the pastor and the planet. it's the inside story.

>> we're here to fully get into the nuances of everything that's going on not just in this country but around the world. getting the news from the people who are affected. >> people need to demand reform... >> ali velshi on target weeknights 10:30p et you're watching "inside story", i'm ray suarez. for american politicians depending on the issue, and depending on the religious identity of the politician, saying "i agree with the pope", or "i disagree with the pope" can present opportunities and challenges. during the long pontifficant of john paul ii, politicians were happy to site the pope's anti-communism, opposition to abortion, and stinging critiques of modern death

penalties. catholic democrats paid homage to the church's concern for the poor, and had to find the right language to distance themselves planning. >> on a young pontificate. pope francis aligned the church with a search for the planet and scolded those that want to go slow on big changes. will the cyclical have an impact on the politics of the debate. we continue a look at the pastor and the planet. what did you make of both the plain text and the implications of the encyclical? >> i think the implications are the thing that ultimately are going determine where the pope's message ultimately leads, both in terms of catholic theology,

how it's feud, and the american political scene. now, he pointed out that, in essence. we need to take actions, that things need to be done. the question here was what will be done. what will the implications be of all of that. i know that in the conversation with father bretsky that millions and millions and million of catholics live in parts of the world that are vulnerable to different kinds of climatic challenge, and it's absolutely true. what we don't want to do, i think, is impose policies that would deny these people access to electricity or make their access to electricity more difficult. that is where - i think the pope has to be careful. because if he favors policies that will ultimately put some of the good things about modern

life out of the reach of the most vulnerable. he will ultimately wind up perpetuating poverty, and putting himself behind policies that will lead to shorter life expectation cities and that's is not something any of us want. >> both the most vulnerable people and the people who need economic growth the fastest and the most serious way are some of the same people living in some of the same places. >> indeed they are. and i think we - i think we have to begin by looking at the momentous economic changes of the past 30 years. it's a cliche, but it's true to say that more people have been lifted out of poverty during the past 30 years through standard processes of market driven economic development that in any

time in human history. and so the moral gap between the market and the wellbeing of those among us may not be as great as one would infer from the words themselves of the pope's encyclical. at the same time, the pope, speaking from a distinctive personal experience, no doubt has seen substantial portions of south america and other places, environmentally despoil, to some extent, through development. and i am sure that had an impact on his thinking. but he does not want to throw the baby out with the bath water, and a critique of consumerism, european or american style is not quite to the point. when we are talking about people

mired in poverty for generations and who districtly want to get out of it. >> one phrase jumped out at me, ecological spirituality. we don't usually talk about that. conversation. >> he does. >> he comes by it honestly. >> he chose the name francis very deliberately. what is so conspicuous for the non-path lick reading the encyclical is the passionate invocation of st. francis, and the reference rans for all aspects of god's creation that practised. >> as the pope recognises in one of the more theo logical lighter passages of the encyclical, how referencens for creation, as it is, comports with any

interpretation of man's dominion over the earth, and the command to use it for the improvement of human life which is, in genesis, as the pope nose, i think that relationship in this encyclical is a work in progress. >> we'll continue the conversation. does the continuing policy and scientific debate present adifferent challenge to catholic politicians. some suggest that the pope stay in his name and stick with moral and theo logical issues. and that taking care of the earth is a moral issue. pastor and the planet - it's tonight's "inside story". >> bold... >> he took two m-16's, and he crawled...

>> brave... >> ...do what you gotta do... >> then betrayed... >> why do you think you didn't get the medal of honor? >> a lifetime without the honor they deserved... >> some say that it was discrimination... >> revealing the long painful fight, to recognize some of america's bravest... >> he say.. be cool...be cool... >> ...proudest moment in my life.. >> honor delayed a soledad o'brien special report only on al jazeera america

welcome back to "inside story". i'm ray suarez. one of the architects of the modern conservative movement called the pope's encyclical on the environment a confusing distraction that dill uth his moral -- dill utes his moral authority. former governor jed bush says i think religion should be more about people and less about the political realm.

many have to say something about pope francis's contention, that pollution is harming our home. me. what do you make of it. could this have, as the race evolves, an impact on it? >> i think it will have an impact. it's difficult at this point to determine what kind of impact. the pope, after all, will be back in the united states at the end of september, to deliver a mass in mass in philadelphia. i am sure the issue will be raised there again. also in the run up to and during the u.n. sponsored climate change concept. i am sure his words will be evoked. the question is how much will the spillover into 2016, and in what form, and there, i think you can begin to see the outlines of the debate taking place.

namely, i expect the republican side to - irrespective of who the candidate is, we have no idea who had will be, to say we need to be careful in going about this, because first of all do know harm. don't impose policies that ultimately hurt people, denying them access to the many amenities of modern ingenuity that made or lives more liveable than those that our parents, grandparents and great grandparents can possibly have imagined. i think on the democratic side, where there's probably less questions as to who the nominee will be, you'll probably see the pope's words he wrote many, many times. how the american electric, catholic and otherwise will

respond is another question. the pugh center did mean surveys on issues that are of concern to americans. and climate change finishes dead last. in year after year. so i think this is going to be a fascinating debate. it will be a heavy lift for those who want to ab vo kate policies are that economically disruptive to those in our society, at the bottom who least afford to pay the expenses that come into play once energy prices as a result of certain policies rise. >> bill, is that the path towards reducing the downside risk for catholic and non-catholic candidates alike. the threat to lifestyle that is posited? >> i'm going to be a sceptic on this one? >>

the brookings snaugs where i worked happily has a projected on religion and public policy. we have executed a number of surveys ourselves, and we are struck by the fact that in these partisan, politics, they are driving theo logical presentses more than theology drives political preferences. catholics will find moral and emotional sustenance in the words of the pope, that conservative catholics will find ways of distinguishing what they like about the pope and his message, from what they don't like about this particular encyclical, and it's not clear to me that a lot of votes are going to shift. as a matter of fact, the more

liberal catholics intensified their advocacy of this document. the more conservative catholics are likely to rally around the points of opposition. >> there's a note the calendar, a papal visit and the paris conference on climate change at the end of the year. does that work in favour of elevating this issue? >> it may work in favour of elevating this issue text rarely. but, the american people right now have a lot of other things on their mind. and if i may be so bold, i don't think that lectures on the lead to throttle back consumerism will have a big impact in the united states. people feel that they thrive a lot by joys.

and the moves, and the austerity even if it's infused with, you know, the marvellous papal theology. >> william gall stop, bonner cohen from public policy research, great to have you both. i'll be back in a moment with the last word on politics and faith, and whose ox is gored. pastor and the planet.

it's been a frequent motive in american politics. religious theology conveniently

changes the subject when it does not. with the two political parties, you see the tendency clearly. republicans embracing the ban on abortion, and not saying much of anything about the preferential option about the poor, embedded in catholic teaching and democrats doing the opposite. notice how seldom you see a politician get up in front of an audience and say i support the policy. i can't follow my own conscience because of the teaching of my faith, and people who cited the will of god. the legendary activist may have said it best "i distrust those people that know so well what god wants them to do, because i notice it coincides with their own desires." i'm ray suarez, that's the "inside story".

>> announcer: this is al jazeera. hello there, welcome to the newshour i'm laura kyle in doha, and these are the top stories - the fight for kobane - i.s.i.l. fighters re-enter the strat eebleic town on the sir -- strategic town on the syrian-turkish boarder. >> we are one step, one step far from famine a looming crisis - tens of millions of people are at risk of starvation in yemen last-minute talks continue in