Environment (general)

Deep Green Faith: Holy Forest Kinship

Image courtesy of http://beeckencenter.sewanee.edu

In September 2019, the Beecken Center and the Center for Religion and the Environment are offering a conference that approaches the connections of faith and ecology to trees and forests. Presenters include Matthew Sleeth, MD, Karen Kuers, PhD, Connie Keetle, and Robert Gottfried, PhD. This conference plans to investigate how trees natural interactions with the ecosystem around them and scripture’s engagement of trees may teach us how to live.

 

To learn more about the conference or to register, click here.

National Letter to President Concerning Environmental Roll Backs

Image courtesy of ccarnet.org

In October 2018, 132 faith communities, including seven Ohio-based faith communities, signed a letter to President Trump, EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler, and Secretary Ryan Zinke to implore them to maintain the environmental protection measures, including the clean water rule.

You can access the letter here.

Living Lent

Picture courtesy of livinglent.org

Living lent is a resource from The Joint Public issues Team. Their goal is to help people recognize that changing the climate is a lifestyle, not just an activity. They offer six different commitments to make not just during lent, but all together. They offer facts supporting why each commitment is important and how to stay committed. This is part of their goal to make climate action a lifestyle and to help people “Live Lent”. To read more about Living Lent and the six commitments, click here.

 

Muslim-American Views on Climate Change: A National Survey

Picture courtesy of advocacy.isna.net

The Muslim-American Views on Climate Change: A National Survey is a survey conducted by the Islamic Society of North America, in coordination with ecoAmerica. It is meant to measure the attitudes of Muslim-American communities about climate change and its causes, impacts, and responses.  A clear message from the Qur’an states that unhealthy and unsustainable lifestyle will disrupt the balance that God created on planet earth and the negative repercussions are detrimental to all of creation. From the 30th chapter of the Qur’an:

”Corruption has flourished on land and sea as a result of people’s actions and He will make them taste the consequences of some of their own actions so that they may turn back” (30:41).

To read more on the Muslim-America views on climate change, click here.

Sisters of Earth: Hopes and Dreams

Picture courtesy of globalsistersreport.org

How to Face the Mess We’re in without Going Crazy, is the subtitle of Joanna Macy’s book Active Hope, which was the inspiration for Sisters of Earth gathering that took place July 12-15 at Mount Saint Joseph, home of the Sisters of Charity in Cincinnati, Ohio. Cincinnati was chosen as the location partly because of the ancestral inspiration of Sister of Charity Paula Gonzalez, who promoted solar power and sustainability projects and teachings throughout the Catholic world. This year, nearly 100 women from the United States and Canada began by remembering Sister Paula and discussing questions like: Who are we? Where are we? How did we get here and what is possible? And — where do we go from here? To read more on the Sisters of Earth and the Cincinnati gathering, click here.

Laudato Si’ in Spoken Word

Picture courtesy of catholicclimatecovenant.org

Laudato Si’ in Spoken Word is a poem video of Pope Francis’s teaching on the environment. It is meant to convey the essence of the Pope’s encyclical in a multimedia representation. It also includes a discussion guide to accompany the video. To watch the video or download the discussion guide, click here.

Green Churches Three Year Plan

Picture courtesy of greenchurches.ca

Green Churches Network plans to expand their organization, and to help them do so, they have created a Three Year Plan. The Three Year Plan, 2017 to 2020, includes expanding green churches, increasing education activities, and more. The plan lays out Green Churches goals year by year and includes what actions they will take to reach them. The plan also describes the positive impacts these actions will have. To view the entire plan, click here.

Activities on Spirituality of Creation

Picture courtesy of greenchurches.ca

Activities on Spirituality of Creation is a faith education activity from Green Churches Network. They believe that the continuity of the Church depends on preaching the gospel and the continuity of the biodiversity on the planet will require our appreciation and care for creation. They offer two different activities: one about the seven days of creation and another focused on seeking the Kingdom of God. To read or download these activities, click here.

Prayers about Creation

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Picture courtesy of greenchurches.ca

Prayers about Creation is a resource from the Green Churches Network. It includes links to longer prayers and their own shorter prayers as well. They believe that people should follow the example of Jesus withdrawing into nature to pray and encourage everyone to praise God with all creatures. To read more about Prayers about Creation, click here.