RELIGION AND CLIMATE POLICY IN THE EUROPEAN UNION

In 2019, the European Commission presented the European Green Deal - a package of measures the aim of which was to enable Europeans to benefit from sustainable green transformation. The goal of this strategy is to lead to a situation in which the European Union will be the first climate neutral area in the world in 2050. The necessary actions to achieve this include: ambitious emission reduction, investing in innovative research and innovation as well as environmental protection in Europe. The key to the success of this initiative is the involvement of citizens of the European Union, 70% of whom are Christians (Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox believers), who are expected to change their attitudes to pro-ecological ones and bear significant transformation costs. In the article, we attempt to find the answer to the question of how a professed religion can support the implementation of the EU policy on counteracting climate change by participating in shaping citizens' social attitudes. We focus our attention on Protestantism, because in the ideological circle of Protestantism, the notion of sustainable development has been used for the very first time and current Protestant theology is ecologically oriented. First of all, arguments for the perception of religion as a factor supporting policies and strategies counteracting climate change were cited. The potential of religion in shaping social attitudes was emphasised. Then, the example of the European Union's climate policy was indicated, the result of which would depend, among others, on social support for conducting a costly transformation towards a climate neutral area in 2050. Finally, the attention was confined to contemporary Protestant ethics, in particular eco-theology. Confirmation was sought for the thesis that religious ethics can be a source of a deep sense of individual responsibility for environmental issues, including climate change, constituting a factor supporting the implementation of the ambitious climate policy implemented in the European Union. Biblical tradition and Protestant ethics convey a message about the care of contemporary people for the lives of future generations. This theme could be very useful in the current course of the EU.