Cool Congregation: Saint Matthew’s Episcopal Church
Congratulations to Saint Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Fairbanks, Alaska, our newest Cool Congregation! Saint Matthew’s was nominated by Mary Walker, the Project Coordinator of Alaska IPL, for implementing a successful Carbon Fast during Lent last year.
Conservation efforts come naturally to the members of Saint Matthew’s, an old log church nestled by a river in a picturesque landscape of summer flowers and winter snow. Many of Saint Matthew’s congregants are native Alaskans and have, as Andrea Backlund explains, an innate understanding of what it means to “live lightly on the land.” Backlund and her husband Oliver help coordinate the church’s creation care programs, efforts that Backlund describes as offering a theological context to actions many church members are already taking to care for the earth.
Last year during Lent, twenty households at Saint Matthew’s participated in the church’s first Carbon Fast, a program modeled after a Lenten resource developed by North Carolina IPL. Participating families received informational packets containing weekly guides to thought, prayer, and action concerning global climate change. Pledge cards provided participants with specific ideas for cutting down on carbon emissions as well as information on the value of each action for the environment. The cards also included quotations from scripture highlighting the Christian responsibility to care for creation.
Oliver and Andrea Backlund pose next to Saint Matthew’s colorful tree, which they used to represent the church’s progress throughout last year’s Lenten Carbon Fast.
Each Sunday, participants in the Carbon Fast signed and returned pledge cards to report their energy saving actions. The carbon savings were then tallied and reported to the congregation. The Backlunds also created a poster to serve as a visual representation of the church’s progress. The poster began as a bare tree, but with each pledge card submitted, the tree gained leaves, flowers, butterflies, bird’s nests, eggs, and birds. Each of these symbolized a certain amount of carbon emissions saved from the atmosphere.
Over the course of six weeks, participants in Saint Matthew’s Carbon Fast saved or pledged a grand total of 50,000 pounds of carbon emissions, and the once-bare tree in the Parish Hall teemed with new life. The tree provided the congregation with a reminder of the importance of creation care. Participants in the program also gained a better understanding of the Christian responsibility to care for creation.
Congratulations again to Saint Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Fairbanks, Alaska, for holding a Carbon Fast during the Lenten season that has earned Saint Matthew’s the title of a Cool Congregation. For more information about how your church can hold its own Lenten Carbon Fast this year, check out North Carolina IPL’s website [http://ncipl.org/content/publications/] to download their Lenten resource, and contact your state’s IPL [http://www.theregenerationproject.org/State.htm] for help getting started.
Cool Congregations are faith communities recognized by the national Interfaith Power & Light campaign for their outstanding work toward reducing their carbon footprint and promoting creation care.
Cool Congregation: Congregation Beth HaTephila
Congratulations to Congregation Beth HaTephila in Asheville, North Carolina, our newest Cool Congregation! Nominated by Richard Fireman, the Public Policy Coordinator of North Carolina IPL, Beth HaTephila is being honored for its comprehensive and longstanding commitment to creation care.
The members of Congregation Beth HaTephila, a Reform congregation in the mountains of Western North Carolina, have an understanding of the call to care for creation that is rooted deeply within the Jewish tradition. Idelle Packer, a member of Beth HaTephila’s Social Justice Committee, explains that for Jews, “ the environmental crisis is a religious challenge.” For example, the tenants of tikkun olam, a Hebrew phrase that means, “repairing the world,” include a responsibility to take care of the earth. Other Jewish values stress the danger of waste and the importance of preserving what we have been given for future generations.
While the congregation has always been concerned with creation care, it was only recently that this issue became the main concern of the Social Justice Committee at Beth HaTephila. Before, the committee was working on issues ranging from conflict in Darfur to economic justice, but they began to wonder how effectively they engaged members of their community. So the committee took the advice of the Religious Action Center, the social justice arm of Reform Judaism, and decided to refine their approach by building an organizational structure based upon the interests of their congregants.
Six months later, the members of the Social Justice Committee had conducted a total of 55 one-on-one interviews with a diverse selection of the congregation’s members. The results from these interviews indicated that members of the congregation not only share a concern for the environment; they also share a common expertise on the topic that makes creation care an ideal focus for the congregation.
In response to these results, the Social Justice Committee at Beth HaTephila formulated a new action plan called “Preserving Our Planet.” The committee formed working groups that began planning around what developed into the four foci of the initiative: Energy, Recycling, Transportation, and Agriculture. Each working group approaches creation care from a unique angle, which allows Beth HaTephila to address the issue comprehensively. For example, the agriculture committee connects congregants to a Community Supported Agriculture program that allows congregants to purchase produce from local farmers.
Congratulations again to the members of Congregation Beth HaTephila and the Social Justice Committee, whose comprehensive Preserving Our Planet initiative has earned Congregation Beth HaTephila the title of a Cool Congregation!
Cool Congregations are faith communities recognized by the national Interfaith Power & Light campaign for their outstanding work toward reducing their carbon footprint and promoting creation care.
Religious Leaders from Around the World Meet with U.N. Secretary-General at Windsor Castle
IPL Executive Director Susan Stephenson, the Rev. Canon Sally Bingham, HRH the Prince Philip, His Excellency Mr. Ban Ki-moon
Religious leaders from all major world religions gathered this week at Windsor Castle to meet with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Prince Philip, presenting ideas and committing to protect Creation.
Ban believes in the enormous influence that religious leaders have in addressing moral issues, saying they have a unique position in the discussion on the future of the planet.
IPL’s founder and president, the Rev. Canon Sally Bingham and executive director Susan Stephenson attended the summit.
“Up until recently,” Bingham said,” the religious community had abdicated its responsibility to care for creation.” Bingham told the audience at Friends House in London, “I believe that clergy talking about environmental stewardship from the pulpit will have more influence than will scientists or a politician.” [Source]
California IPL Featured on CNN HLN Local Edition
A recent appearance by Southern California Outreach Director, Allis Druffel, and David Mowry of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Riverside, a CIPL member congregation, on CNN Headline News, Local Edition.
Listen to Sally Bingham’s Radio Interview
Earlier today, the Rev. Canon Sally Bingham was Steve Goldstein’s guest on Here and Now, a program on Phoenix’s NPR station, KJZZ 91.5. Sally is in Phoenix to officially launch Arizona IPL and speak at the Episcopal Diocesan Convention. She also discusses why climate change is a moral issue rather than a political issue.
The clip below is just over eight minutes long.
Click here to listen (to download, right-click and select “save target as…”)
Blog Action Day 2009: Climate Change
Every year, Blog Action Day focuses on an important issue facing the world and asks all bloggers to post on the issue at the same time. This
Doug and Rob, two members of the AZ IPL steering committee watching a slideshow on the construction of the Church of the Brethren
year the issue is, as you have probably guessed, climate change.
We thought we would take this opportunity to give you a snapshot of what’s happening around here today, and just remind you of some of the important ways that people of faith around the country are participating.
- Our founder, the Rev. Canon Sally Bingham is currently in Arizona, at the official launch of Arizona IPL and giving a keynote lecture tomorrow at the Episcopal Diocese of Arizona Conference, after stops this month in University Park, PA for the Religion and the Ethics of Climate Change Conference, Wisconsin for the Interfaith Earthkeeping Conference, New York, and Washinton D.C. Next week, she will be on her way to New Orleans to meet with Patriarch Bartholomew. She’s been keeping us updated with photos from Arizona all day from her iPhone.
- We’ve been excited to hear about everyone’s plans in the faith community for the 350.org’s Oct. 24th Day of Action. Maine IPL will be gathering at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception to ring the bell 350 times, raising a ruckus both for a strong agreement in Copenhagen and to get the attention of their senators to pass the climate bill.
- California IPL has been gearing up for the Third Annual Energy Oscars on Nov. 10 at Grace Cathedral here in San Francisco.
And here’s a reminder about all the ways you can get involved:
- Join thousands of others in sending a message to your senators urging them to pass the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act.
- Visit your state’s Interfaith Power and Light.
- Sign up for email alerts and join the IPL Online Activist Team for more frequent action alerts.
- Discount prices for energy-efficiency products: ShopIPL.org – Coupon code: shopipl
- Measure your congregation’s carbon footprint: CoolCongregations.com
- Purchase a copy of Love God Heal Earth by Sally Bingham
- Connect with IPL on: Facebook | Twitter | Subscribe to the IPL Blog
And finally:
Your tax-deductible contributions help us mobilize a religious response to global warming.
October Brought to You by the Number 350
There are two numbers to remember this month: 350 and 24. Experts say 350 ppm CO2 in the atmosphere is the safe limit for humanity. And on Saturday, October 24, many communities of faith across the land will be gathering for the 350.org Day of Action. Their activities will include prayers, celebrations, worship services, and creative messages using the number, such as ringing a church bell 350 times.
If you would like to get your faith community involved, or you want to attend an event that is already planned, visit 350.org/faith to get started.
You can also contact your state IPL leader to get plugged in to events happening around you.
Today, Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org, and Mary Evelyn Tucker, of the Forum on Religion and Ecology sent out this message to faith leaders:
Friends—We need you to help at the last minute, and here’s a few sentences to get you inspired. They come from an op-ed that one of our leading 350.org spokespeople, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, just wrote for the African newspapers:
‘In South Africa we showed that if we act on the side of justice, we have the power to turn tides; on October 24 we have a chance to start turning the tide of climate change.’
He’s right—October 24, which is the 350 day of global action, has taken off like a great wave of hope. People all over the world—especially young people and people of faith—have done such an amazing job of organizing that this looks like it will be the most widespread day of political witness the world has ever seen, with several thousand actions and events in more than 150 countries. Every one will be focused on those three numbers, 3-5-0, because scientists tell us that it’s the most important number on earth: it’s the most carbon we can safely have in the atmosphere, at least if we want a planet “similar to the one on which civilization developed and to which life on earth is adapted.”
So there will be climbers high on the melting slopes of Mt. Everest with 350 banners. And the entire cabinet of the government of the Maldives has been taking scuba training so they can hold an official underwater meeting on Oct. 24 to pass a 350 resolution. I was just in Bethlehem to meet with activists from across the region: on the Israeli shore of the Dead Sea, activists will use their bodies to make a giant human 3, and in Palestine a giant 5, and on the Jordanian shore an enormous 0.
We need you and your community to join in: to join thousands of churches in ringing the steeple bell 350 times, or use that week’s Torah portion—the story of Noah—to make the case for creation care. Here’s how Archbishop Tutu put it:
Buddhist monks and Muslim congregations are joining in the same kind of hopeful actions. Everywhere participants will be worried about the fate of their own particular places—but they’ll also be standing up for the weakest people and places on earth, whose voices simply must be heard. People in almost all the nations of the earth are involved—it’s the same kind of coalition that helped make the word “apartheid” known around the world.
Cool Congregation: First Unitarian Church of Salt Lake City
Congratulations to the First Unitarian Church of Salt Lake City, Utah, our newest Cool Congregation!
First Unitarian was nominated by Elaine Emmi of Utah IPL, who praised the congregation for developing an “amazing program that involves more than just their faith community.” This program has developed with the support of Rev. Tom Goldsmith and the church’s Environmental Ministry Team, and it has a strong foundation in the church’s educational efforts, which include discussions and lectures, movie screenings, workshops, book groups, and other events that inform both church members and the wider community about a variety of environmental issues.
Members of First Unitarian Church in Salt Lake City, UT, put their faith into action on a workday in the church’s community garden.
First Unitarian’s educational programs not only inform their members about the importance of environmental issues; these programs also provide congregants with a strong foundation for faith-based action. Joan Gregory, the current coordinator of the Environmental Ministry, explains that classes such as the Northwest Earth Institute Course that inspired her to join the ministry provide a “common grounding in environmental topics that serves as a basis for future actions.” This action begins in the church itself with programs such as a community garden, recycling and composting, and even pursuing LEED certification for the church’s new sanctuary.
First Unitarian’s faith-based also extends beyond church walls with advocacy that takes shape on a number of levels. In June, congregants worked to pass an Action of Immediate Witness (AIW) at the General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association to mobilize Unitarians across the country to support America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act. This national legislation would permanently protect more than 9 million acres of wilderness-quality land in Utah from drilling and mining, off-road vehicle damage, and other threats. The church’s efforts to pass this AIW reflect the deep, spiritual connection that many congregants feel to their local lands. Gregory explains that these lands are “deeply cherished by people from many different spiritual traditions as places of inspiration, connection and renewal.” Congressional hearings for the Red Rock Wilderness Act are expected to occur this month.
First Unitarian also encourages its members to confront difficult questions about the nature of environmental advocacy. In January, the church hosted a discussion about the role of civil disobedience. This event was prompted by the bold actions of Tim DeChristopher, a participant in First Unitarian’s Environmental Ministry Team who put himself on the line last December to protect Utah lands from oil and gas drilling. DeChristopher will face a trial this month on felony counts of disrupting a government auction, and he could receive up to 10 years in prison and $750,000 in fines for actions that stemmed from his deep moral conviction about the urgency of our climate crisis. First Unitarian’s program provided support for DeChristopher as well as a forum for the community to discuss his actions and the nature of our responsibility as people of faith to protect creation.
Congratulations again to First Unitarian Church of Salt Lake City, a congregation committed to both educating their community about climate change and encouraging members to act to protect creation. The church’s comprehensive and challenging creation care program has earned First Unitarian the title of a Cool Congregation!
Cool Congregations are faith communities recognized by the national Interfaith Power & Light campaign for their outstanding work toward reducing their carbon footprint and promoting creation care.
Spotlight on Ohio IPL
Greg Hitzhusen, Oh IPL Executive Director with Tom Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture
An event sponsored by Ohio IPL was part of President Obama’s recent Interfaith Service Week. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack was joined by a diverse delegation of interfaith leaders to distribute compact fluorescent light bulbs at Maple Terrace, a senior citizens public housing facility in Zanesville, Ohio. The event, sponsored by Eastside Community Ministry and Ohio Interfaith Power and Light, was part of an effort by people of faith to recognize the need to be good stewards of the earth.
You can read the full story at USDA’s blog.
Big upcoming event:
Come to London! Ohio that is (you don’t have to jump the pond to get there). Participate in Ohio IPL’s inaugural Green Summit:
Ohio’s first Green Summit for faith-community environmental work, Oct. 2-4, has an amazing line-up of nationally renowned faith-environment speakers and workshop leaders. Come hear Matthew and Nancy Sleeth, Mike Schut, Job Ebenezer, Stacey Kennealy, Nancy Roth, Leanne Jablonski, Greg Hitzhusen, Bee Moorhead and many others! If you’re wondering how to become a more faithful steward of God’s creation, or how to build environmental ministries in your community, don’t miss this first annual gathering for Ohio faith communities on St. Francis Day weekend – online registration ends Sept. 29 (pdf flyer).
Muslims Around the World are Promoting a ‘Green Ramadan’
A period of fasting has a measurable effect on a carbon footprint, and raises consciousness about the environmental impact of everyday habits. Christians are beginning to incorporate this intentionality into their observation of Lent.
As the holy month of Ramadan begins, Muslims around the world are encouraging one another, as well as non-Muslims, to promote environmental awareness during this year’s observation.
