Leadership is what the 15,000 of us here in Durban are waiting for.

As Dr. Jesse Mugambi said yesterday, “We’re not seeing statesmanship here in Durban. We’re seeing politics and that’s not the same thing. Statesmanship means you’re prepared to give leadership even when there’s a political cost.”

My heart pounded when we sang Amazing Grace in our service on Sunday here in Durban.

“… I once was lost, but now am found; was blind but now I see.”

Soul-naked words that stir hearts everywhere. Words that transcend all boundaries because they speak to the universal human experience of being confronted with a choice between good and evil.

John Newton wrote this hymn when he needed to make a choice. He was a slave trader – wealthy, no doubt. His heart was changed when he realized that he had to choose between moral and immoral commerce.

Moderator Mardi Tindal at the end of the Global Day for Action march on December 3, 2011 in Durban, South Africa.

Before leaving home for the COP17 climate talks, my climate advisor, environmental journalist Alanna Mitchell declared, “It will be like going into the epicentre of an earthquake before it happens, knowing that you might be able to do something to prevent it.”

As you plan to worship and pray tomorrow, Sunday, December 4th, please consider joining your prayers with ours as faith leaders at the COP17 climate change conference in Durban, South Africa.

The high-powered Canadian Youth Delegation here at the COP17 has the look of hope. Today hope looked like a bake sale to, as the youth say: ‘buy back our future’.

Canadian youth delegates have been busy cooking up “bitumen balls” to sell here in Durban, a bid to offset Canada’s rich subsidies to the oil and gas industry. To the youth delegates, those subsidies mean that Canada’s climate policy that has been “bought by the fossil fuel regime.” They’re orchestrating a buy-back, one tasty ‘bitumen ball’ at a time.

One of my tasks here at COP17 is to pray for courage.
 
It takes courage to listen humbly.

In her opening words to the COP17 this morning Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) quoted Nelson Mandela, “It always seems impossible until it is done.”

For those of your on Facebook, Trinity-St. Paul's United in Toronto invites you to share your support for faith leaders involved in the climate change issue. On November 27, please change your Facebook status to say,