Bishops gathered in Canterbury for their once-a-decade meeting, the Lambeth Conference, say their discussions have proved that the changing climate is already a pressing concern in many countries, where crops are failing and deserts growing.They say the church must provide moral leadership in warning of the dangers of increasing pollution and in telling worshippers to repent of their ecological sins.
Safeguarding "God's creation" should also be a prominent part of a set of rules being devised for the 80 million-strong worldwide Anglican Communion, they say.
The Rt Rev George Browning, Bishop of Canberra, said: "The church has only itself to blame for giving the impression that it is in the business of saving souls only. The environment is what we are about."
He insisted going green is not a "new religion" but a Biblical imperative drawn from the description of creation in the book of Genesis.
The Anglican church has been driven to the brink of schism over sexuality, with hundreds of bishops boycotting Lambeth in protest at the presence of liberal Americans and Canadians who have elected an openly gay bishop and blessed same-sex unions in defiance of tradition.
But the head of the Episcopal Church of the USA, the Most Rev Katharine Jefferts Schori, warned that internal divisions will be irrelevant if the church does not work to preserve the environment.
She said: "If we do not pay attention to the health of all creation, the other issues will not be important."
The Rt Rev Denis Sengulane, Bishop of Lebombo in Mozambique, told how his country's critical production of cashew nuts was under threat from climate change.
"Today, cashew nuts have gone mad with trees dropping their nuts out of season. We have messed up the environment in such a way that even the production of cashew nuts is unpredictable."
In an early draft of a set of "reflections" of the three-week conference, bishops say: "Stories shared from bishops around the Communion give a picture of a global crisis.
"There are many examples including water pollution, dumping of toxic waste, air pollution, deforestation, irresponsible dumping of garbage.
"Environment is the top priority for some provinces and must be a high priority for all of us. In the Global South, safeguarding creation is a day-to-day activity, not an intellectual exercise."
They claim the church should portray the destruction of the environment as a "spiritual issue" and should urge "repentance of ingrained habits that are ecologically irresponsible".
The prelates also say they should set an example by offsetting carbon emissions from travel, not using plastic in churches and by improving recycling facilities at future meetings.
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