Bicycling for your neighbour,
goes the motto of a group of Hungarian cyclists from the Carpathian
Basin, who set out on bike during the Week of Creation, travelling from
east to west. The cycling relay, taking place between Beregszász
(Berehove, Ukraine) and Sopron, Hungary, is part of the Ecumenical
Pilgrimage in Europe, whose final destination is the United Nations
Climate Change Conference to be held in Paris at the end of this year. A
report by Parókia Portal.
People from all around the world are joining a pilgrimage for
climate justice, which has been organized by the World Council of
Churches (WCC). The pilgrims, some on foot, others by bicycle, are
expressing their solidarity with their neighbours who are gravely
affected by the effects of climate change. Similarly, a group of
European Christians wish to express their unity and willingness to act,
by participating in a relay pilgrimage, which will reach Paris at the
end of November, in time for the beginning of the twenty-first United
Nations Climate Change Conference. The pilgrims wish to stand up for a
more fair and sustainable form of coexistence. The conference is
significant because members of the UN are planning to adopt a resolution
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to such an extent that it would
limit the global temperature increase to 2 °C above pre-industrial
levels.
As pointed out during a programme this year organized by the
Ecumenical Working Group for Creation Protection, which operates in
Hungary, riding a bicycle emits 10 times less carbon dioxide than does
driving a car. If all of us in Europe chose to cycle just 5 kilometres a
day, we could reach half the goal of the Transport Sector’s
carbon-dioxide reduction plan by 2050, thus reducing the greenhouse
effect, the frequency of extreme weather conditions, as well as the
destruction of the living space of those inhabiting developing
countries.
The bicycle pilgrimage in the Carpathian Basin, called “Bicycling for
your neighbour,” coincides with the Week of Creation, meaning it is
taking place at present. The pilgrims left from Beregszász (Berehove,
Ukraine), and after visiting the Hungarian cities of Kisvárda, Tokaj,
Budapest, Pannonhalma, as well as various smaller towns, they are going
to arrive in Sopron, which lies on the Hungaria-Austrian border. The
reason this city has been chosen as the end point is that its Lutheran
church hosts the Ecumenical closing worship of the Week of Creation. The
pilgrimage will be continued by our Austrian brothers and sisters
towards Germany.
At each stop, the pilgrims put a handful of soil, taken from where
they live, into a thin vessel. This symbolic act was also performed in
Budapest on Thursday morning. The cyclists assembled in front of the
offices of the Ecumenical Council of Churches in Hungary (ECCH), where
they were greeted by Lutheran pastor Vilmos Fischl, General Secretary of
ECCH, who said a prayer and blessed the participants. Five pilgrims
undertook the journey from Budapest to Tata, while the previous weekend
there were about fifty to sixty cyclists who rode together.
Those setting out from Budapest shared their thoughts with us on what
drives them. “My bike is indispensable to me in my everyday life. I use
it whenever and wherever possible, and it is also my hobby. During the
weekends, I ride it in the mountains, spending my summer holiday this
way. Apart from the fact that bicycling is my passion, I am also glad
that I can contribute to the protection of the created world by choosing
not to drive a car,” answers Ivett Csontos, a Methodist participant of
the pilgrimage.
“Our actions have an impact on the environment, but our actions are
not for themselves: we perform them in order to achieve our goals. But
our goals are not for themselves, either. They stem from our values,
which in turn originate in our faith and convictions. Therefore if you
are encouraged to ride your bike more often, and you are thinking merely
on the level of actions, you look outside the window and say: “Not now,
it’s windy and cold outside.” If, on the other hand, this resolve has a
basis in the depths of faith, you find yourself to be a lot more
determined, and the changes are more permanent,” says Gábor Rohály.
As the head of “Naphimnusz” Creation Protection Association, a
Catholic organization, points out, there is an increasing amount of
emphasis on creation protection in Catholic circles. “On Tuesday, a
conference was held in the Hungarian Parliament’s Upper House Hall
entitled ‘The Created World is our Common Home,’ with the participation
of church and political leaders. Already in 2008, the Hungarian Catholic
Bishops’ Conference issued a circular letter called ‘Our Responsibility
for the Created World,’ which is actually a significant study. And
early this summer, Pope Francis issued an encyclical on the protection
of creation, copies of which we distribute at each stop of our journey.
The aim of our association is to encourage individual communities to
consciously work on the issues discussed in higher circles.” Speaking
about the Ecumenical pilgrimage, Gábor Rohány added: “Pope Francis wrote
the encyclical not only to Catholics, but to everyone. The protection
of our common home is an issue that concerns each and every one of us,
and if we want to make a stand for the world, we have to participate in
this cycling pilgrimage together.”
“All over the world, this week is celebrated as the Week of Creation.
The question arises what it is that we are celebrating. The world is
becoming increasingly aware that unless we preserve our created world,
we will cause great harm that cannot be undone, because currently we are
using far more of our resources than necessary. This cycling campaign
highlights that we are covering this great distance using our strength,
taking into consideration our potential, at times at a painful cost. We
wish to draw people’s attention to the fact that this world has been
given to us by God. And to get this important message across, we need to
use any means necessary, including bicycles and promotion T-shirts,”
said Vilmos Fischl to the reporter of our web portal. The General
Secretary of ECCH also shared with us the fact that he himself also
rides a bike on a regular basis: he cycles around the major lakes of
Hungary every year, and he also swims across them. “I frequently take
pilgrimages to Lakes Balaton, Tisza, Fertő and Velence, which gives me
the opportunity to reflect on certain issues and clear my head.”
„This Ecumenical bicycling pilgrimage is not only about cycling, but
also about encounters,” remarks Reformed pastor Tamás Kodácsy, one of
the organizers. “We have visited communities in Tata, Pannonhalma and
Répcelak which are sensitive to the protection of creation, such as the
Reformed congregation or the Reformed secondary school in Tata.” The
international Ecumenical pilgrimage initiated by WCC was launched by the
Norwegian Church, and later joined by German, Dutch and Scottish
churches, members of which set out to Paris on foot,” the pastor
explains. “With our participation, the original north-south direction is
complemented by an east-west one, therefore when we hand over this
“baton”, it will symbolize a larger area of Europe, providing a greater
support base for the church leaders participating in the climate summit.
This is why it is so significant that Sub-Carpathia, Hungary and
Austria were able to join the programme, while Slovakia and the Czech
Republic contributed with other actions.
According to Tamás Kodácsy, regardless of the efforts made, the Paris
climate change conference will not reach the desired result as far as
the reduction of carbon-dioxide emission is concerned. “We are aware
that this goal will not be achieved, while we also know how important it
would be to succeed. And yet we are still trying to make a change – not
at multinational corporations or large economic systems, but on the
level of individual lifestyles. This may be a mere drop in the ocean,
but at least it is a step forward. Our aim is to voice our hope which
can defeat apathy. This is the duty of the church.”
Text by Ágnes Jakus/ Parokia.hu
Photos by Vargosz
Translated by Erzsébet Bölcskei