Episcopal Life Online Daybook -- Today is Monday, August 6, 2007. The Church calendar remembers The Transfiguration of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
* Today in Scripture: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/82457_ENG_HTM.htm * Today in Prayer: Anglican Cycle of Prayer: http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acp/index.cfm * Today in History: On this day in 1809, Alfred Lord Tennyson, English poet and Anglican, was born in Lincolnshire, England.
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MISSION
Ecumenical Eco-Justice program urges wise summertime water ethic
By Phina Borgeson
[ENS, NCC] During the hot and dry months of August and September, the National Council of Churches (NCC) Eco-Justice Program is asking churches to use water wisely as part of their Adamah Congregations action program.
The NCC hopes to reach people through organizing bible studies on water across the nation.
"The sacredness of water in our faith tradition is stated clearly throughout the Bible," says Cassandra Carmichael, Eco-Justice Programs director. "The average American uses 80-100 gallons of water per day. We pray that as congregations study the scripture that they will be moved to protect this precious gift."
Ron Thomson, a member of the Four Winds Native American Congregation in Sacramento, California, responded: "Bible studies on water! Yes!"
Thomson, who serves as director of Water Programs for the National Tribal Environmental Council, noted that water is a "resource that is dwindling and becoming polluted."
"In my work I'm involved in discussions with local, state, federal and other stakeholders interested in the future of western water planning and management," he said. How nice it would be to have the Episcopal Church also be a part of this discussion, and to explore the care of our environment in our churches' educational programs."
Joyce Wilding, Environmental Ministry Leader in the Episcopal Church's Province IV, recalled that the General Convention in 2003 resolved to advocate public policy which ensures accessible clean water for all.
"Every parish member needs to learn more about the scientific and ethical principles that govern a solid water ethic," says Wilding, who earlier this year organized the conference "Water for Life: Conserving Water for Nature and People" conference in Sewanee, Tennessee.
Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79901_88818_ENG_HTM.htm
Register and download resources at http://www.nccecojustice.org/adamahh2o.html
Find the General Convention resolution on water issues at http://eenonline.org/educate/gc/2003/res-03-d070.htm
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Catalyst: "Earth and Word: Classic Sermons on Saving the Planet" from the Continuum International Publishing Group, edited by David Rhoads, 300 pages, paperback, c. 2007, $24.95
[Source: Continuum International Publishing Group] With temperatures warmer than they have been in decades and major hurricanes and storms occurring with increasing frequency, the fragility of the environment is on everyone's mind these days. For centuries, the Christian religion has preached a dominion of the earth, which has turned into one community's exploitation of the environment in the name of religion.
As the sermons in Earth and Word demonstrate, a vast portion of the Christian community does not endorse or condone the destruction of the environment in the name of God. This singular collection gathers the voices of many environmentalists, theologians, preachers, and activists who have spoken in support of saving the planet. Included in this collection are compelling and provocative sermons from such influential figures as Wendell Berry, Thomas Berry, John Cobb, William Slone Coffin, Bill McKibben, Sallie McFague, Joseph Sittler, and Barbara Brown Taylor. In each of these sermons, the authors explore the deep relationship between thinking religiously and thinking ecologically.
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