3013 Green Sanctuary Program Workshop (Repeat)
Seventh Principle Project
Speakers: Katherine Jesch & Rev. Clare Butterfield
(Repeat of #2049, Friday)Green Sanctuary: A congregation-based program addressing eco-spirituality.
"Imagine for a moment a church community that had a fundamental, bottom-line commitment to living in harmony with the earth.
"The program of such a church would be continuously infused with environmental ideas, actions, and spiritual ceremonies. There would be at least one children's religious education curriculum taught each year on the environment. The adults in the church would carry on a "Simplicity Circle" to help each other take actions in their lives that minimize their footprints on the planet. There would be field trips to sites of environmental concern and to places of great natural beauty. Community meals would emphasize locally-grown sustainable foods, free of biocides, with nothing wasted.
"Worship would normally invoke elements of the earth and our human connectedness to it. There would be environmental prayers, music, altar objects, and readings. There would be services outdoors. On a regular basis, the minister and congregational leaders would focus sermons on the community of life and the challenges faced by this ecological community.
"Image the building such a church would own. Its location would be accessible by human-powered and public transportation and would enhance rather than detract from wildlife habitat. It would capitalize on solar, wind and water energy to the fullest extent possible. The building would be built with native materials as much as possible, be well-insulated, lighted with natural light, cooled by natural breezes and heated by the sun. Appliances would be energy-efficient at every turn.
"Image the grounds of such a church. Recognizing the importance of living well in one's particular place, the plant community would reflect native and well-adapted species for the eco-zone of the church. Water applied to landscaping would be at relatively consistent levels with those occurring naturally. Chemicals would be avoided, shading for the building would become important, and vegetables would be grown for the community with compost produced through community meal preparation.
"In such a church, the administration would be mindful of conservation in all its policies. Such policies would include recycled paper products, reusable dishes, cloth diapers, and the use of non-toxic cleaners, soaps, and art supplies. Church programs would include mending bees, swap programs, work parties, and recycling of paper, glass, metal, and plastic products used by the church and its members. Church investments would emphasize socially and environmentally responsible funds.
"Finally, such a church would embrace an external leadership role in highlighting environmental responsibility in the larger community, especially in relation to issues of eco-justice. The church would recognize that poor people and people of color are the first victims of environmental poisons and natural disasters, that the problems of the ecosystem cannot be solved without facing the problems of inequality. The church would undertake "projects", perhaps on an annual cycle--Impeding irresponsible industry or governmental action, developing appropriate land use planning, protecting critical habitats, cleaning up the environmental atrocities of the past, distributing environmental degradation equitably reducing unneeded consumption. The church would participate in teaching the community that it exists not only in space but also in time--extending backward through memory and tradition, and forward--seven generations--through vision and legacy." -- From the Seventh Principle Project web site, sponsors of the Green Sanctuary Project
A workshop conducted during the 2002 General Assembly in Quebéc included a brief overview of the Green Sanctuary Program, a discussion of the process a congregation would go through to have their church recognized as a Green Sanctuary Congregation, and a question and answer session to address issues by those currently in the process of developing this program within their own congregations.
According to the Rev. Claire Butterfield there are several obstacles that congregations may meet in developing their Green Sanctuary process:
- Limits on time. Many congregations find that their congregants have a difficult time for ANOTHER meeting.
- Fear of change. Adopting the Green Sanctuary principles typically means significant changes in the way people usually go about their lives.
- Limited resources. This may include not only time, but a certain financial commitment.
Solutions may require creative approaches to implementing this eco-friendly program. To begin with, the group who will manage this process should not be limited to just the environmental activists within our congregations. It is critical to the success of the program that this committee represents a good cross-section of the congregational leadership. Recommended members include: RE, financial committee, social justice, community outreach and more.
This program is an exiting approach to combining spirituality with environmentalism. The end result: a better place for ourselves, our children, and our children's children.
For more information please visit the Seventh Principle Project's web site at www.uuaspp.org, or write (on recycled paper, of course) to UU Seventh Principle Project, Attention: Katherine Jesch, Director of Environmental Ministry, Post Office Box 1523, Arlington, VA 22210-9998. Or call (703) 920-3615.
Reporter Phil Hoffman, Editor Jone Johnson Lewis; Web Designer Anna Belle Leiserson
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