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For sustainability researchers and global policy makers it is lucid clear that a radical turnaround of modern societies is needed to approach sustainable development paths. Pope Francis takes his stand on a basic paradigm shift in his Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’: Care for our Common Home (2015). He calls for a radical shift of mindsets and ecological and cultural conversion which are needed for sustainability and a life in dignity for all. The author compares aspects from sustainability research and Laudato Si’ and shows how science and Francis spiritual-theological take converge. Both call for the need of new mindsets and spiritual resources to nourish just life-styles and sustainable societies.

The author emphasizes the crucial relevance of religious liberty and freedom of expression for a harmonious and peaceful development of modern societies. He follows the prophetic Declaration of Religious Freedom of Second Vatican Council (1965) with its constitutional limitation of governmental powers in matters of religion. The high value of religious freedom is judged as bulwark of all human rights and true capstone of sound human and societal developments, which have to be guarded against any form of infringements. In this regard, a reasonable education in religious freedom and liberty is indispensable for young people of the twenty-first century. Education in religious freedom in the context of moral and religious formation is based on the dignity of every human person and promotes a deeper mutual and cultural understanding by respecting the conscience of every human person. It thus carries the potential to diminish conflicts and clashes in a sustainable way. Educational reforms in countries have to include the high value of religious liberty and freedom as a main element and condition for human dignity and a peaceful global development.

A growing focus on God’s mercy and forgiveness emerged in the wake of the recent Pontificates of John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis. Our time with its multiple crises cries for healing, forgiveness, and the experience of God’s mercy. In social, political, and global terms, humanity craves for “lasting peace, born of the marriage of justice and mercy” (John Paul II, 2001, no. 15). The experience of God’s forgiveness, merciful healing and new life has been expressed many times in the Bible. But, theologically, it has never been formulated as directly as in Hosea 11:8, when God’s own heart becomes “turned over”, “converted” following the blaze of his own overwhelming compassion, paving the way for a fundamental spiritual transformation, rooted in forgiveness and mercy, that opens wellsprings of dignity, healing, and new life for all.

The article sets off from a speech given by Benedict XVI in the German Bundestag in 2011, where he requested an ecological learning process to aim at sustainable human development. Appreciating the Ecological Movement, he asked to learn to listen to Nature’s language and act accordingly, which he applies analogically to “human ecology”. The article bridges elements of “Listening to Nature” and the Natural Moral Law Tradition in Benedict’s speech and in Francis’ Encyclical Letter Laudatu Si’ inview of serving human flourishing in an ecological civilization. Keywords: Natural Moral Law; Nature, Laudatu Si’, Benedict XVI, Francis; Ecological Civilization/生態文明, Sustainable Development, Ecology of Man.

This dissertation is a comprehensive academic examination of the characteristics and complex historical progress within the Pentecostal and Charismatic Movement in Macau Protestant Churches. Since Macau hosted the first Pentecostal and Charismatic missionary, Thomas J. McIntosh, who entered China in 1907, the history of the Pentecostal and Charismatic Movement in Macau lacks a consistent and synthesized research until now. Thus, primary and secondary resources have been analyzed and reconstructed and historically interpreted to gain a better and deeper understanding of the emergence and development of the Pentecostal and Charismatic Movement within Macau’s Protestant Churches from the beginning up to the present day. This academic review makes an important contribution to Macau with respect to its historical development and will fill the gap in knowledge within the Global church history of the Pentecostal and Charismatic Movement. Key Words: Charismatic, Christianity in China, History of Missionaries in China, Macao, Macau, Pentecostalism, Protestant, T. J. McIntosh

The global living standard improved significantly in the last decades and China moved 800 million people out of poverty since 1980. However, production and consumption in their current forms are unsustainable in matters of resource and energy use and involved emissions with their significant ecological impact. The global human community committed itself in the COP21 Agreement of Paris 2015 to reduce Green House Gas (GHG) emissions based on National Determined Contributions (NDCs) in order to limit the increase of global average temperature below 2°C or better 1.5°C above pre industrial levels. This commitment entails a comprehensive transformation of the current social and economic system in view of decoupling economic growth from both resource extraction and GHG emissions, in view of fostering a resource sensitive and CO2 neutral Circular Economy (CE) based on Sustainable Development (SD). China submitted its first Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) in 2015 with policies and measures affecting 15 major areas. In 2020, President Xi Jinping announced the commitment to peak China’s carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality before 2060. Proper and Integrated Resource and Waste Management is central on the way to achieve the transformation into a CE. The State Council of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) released its plan “生活垃圾分类制度实施方案” to promote source separation of household waste on March 30, 2017 aiming at the recycling rate for household waste to reach 35% by 2020 for the selected cities. The first China’s Mandatory Waste Source Separation Law “廣州 市生活垃圾分類管理條例” was enforced by the city of Guangzhou on July 1st, 2018. One of the key strategic plans in China is the development of the Greater Bay Area (GBA) with its comprehensive development plan released on February 18, 2019. Following the INDCs by China, parts of the GBA Development Plan emphasize that the development of the CE systems and the implementation of extended producer responsibility (EPR), are effective principles to provide financial incentives in view of reducing embedded emissions in material and processes. The present research studied, analysed, and compared the MSW treatment strategies, rules, regulations, and retrievable data, which lead to MSW source separation and the reverse logistic of separated waste among 4 selected cities Guangzhou, Zhuhai, and the 2 S.A.R.s of Hong Kong and Macao. The experience and comparison from Guangzhou and Hong Kong revealed that a Top-down approach in environmental policy decision making is more efficient and is able to implement necessary policies faster. However, the experiences from Guangzhou and Zhuhai indicate, that also a more participatory implementation process is crucial, as it enables the involved stakeholders to express their experiences and opinions properly, which can lead to a higher level of policy feasibility and acceptance and a smoother operation accompanied with a higher effectiveness. For the two SARs, to achieve the objective to increase the recycling rate, the local Government must seek approval from China’s Central Government to allow locally generated recyclable material, in their original form, to enter mainland China for further treatment and to be turned into secondary raw material. Without such a proper support by a reverse resource logistic from the mainland, the CE schemes, such as the Mandatory Waste Source Separation, Producer Responsibility Scheme (PRS), Waste Charging Scheme, are not able to be implemented effectively. The current approach of the Local Government purchasing of recycling and exportation services of recyclable materials from private companies, and the sole reliance on existing market forces to handle, process, and export recyclable material out of the S.A.R.s cannot ensure a reliable and continuous operation in view of mitigating involved emissions. By way of a comparative analyses, the present investigation works out and distils suggestions for best practices of implementing the CE to comply with targets of emission reductions

The researcher aims to understand how Christian and Muslim communities in East Timor cope with and recover from trauma arising from war, violence, and conflict. The research seeks to identify critical spiritual and religious coping mechanisms as present in East Timor (Timor Leste) that could help victims heal and reconstruct their lives after a war trauma experience. The study uses a mixed method, first deploying a quantitative investigation of Christian and Muslim communities in East Timor. The questionnaire aimsto understand how religion and spirituality feature in individuals' coping with trauma and the healing practices prescribed or encouraged by religious institutions and practices. In addition, a qualitative research and thematic analyses have been conducted and added with the facilitation of 6 Interviewees, 3 Muslims, and 3 Christians. This study aimed to investigate trauma levels and religious coping strategies among participants from East Timor. The quantitative findings indicated that the participants experienced a moderate level of trauma, with trouble sleeping being the most significant symptom. The qualitative findings revealed in some participants a high level of traumatic experiences. Recurrent thoughts of traumatic events and feeling jumpy were also prevalent. However, feeling strange around people or objects and feeling personally damaged by the trauma were less common. Regarding coping strategies, participants tended to rely on positive religious coping, seeking a stronger viii connection with God, finding comfort in religious communities and beliefs, and using spiritual interventions to manage emotions and worries, finding healing and a path toward the future. Both Catholics and Muslims employed positive religious coping strategies, with Catholics showing a slightly higher level in their utilization. However, the difference between the two groups was minimal. Positive coping strategies were more frequently used by participants from both religious backgrounds, highlighting their importance in dealing with trauma. Positive religious coping did not significantly impact trauma symptoms, showing no decrease or increase. However, a notable positive correlation existed between negative religious coping and more severe trauma symptoms. Individuals relying on negative coping strategies were more likely to experience heightened trauma symptoms. These findings align with previous research, emphasizing the positive association between Islamic appraisals and religious coping with better post-traumatic adjustment, while trauma-related appraisals are linked to worse adjustment. The study underscores the need to respect individual coping variations and recognizes the impact of negative religious coping on trauma experiences