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Caring for God's Creation Love and gratitude for God's creation lie deep within religious life. From mountaintops to forests, green pastures to still waters, stars in the sky and lilies of the field, we experience the grace of our Creator and the gift of our presence here. With Earth in grave environmental peril, many religious Americans are seeking to respond through our faith. Through the many gateways and galleries of this website, we offer resources and accounts of how people of faith are acting upon God's mandate to be stewards of our precious Earth. Partners in Stewardship The National Religious Partnership for the Environment is an association of independent faith groups across a broad spectrum: the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the National Council of Churches U.S.A., the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life, and the Evangelical Environmental Network. Each Partner — in common biblical faith but drawing upon its disctinctive traditions — is undertaking scholarship, leadership training, congregational and agency initiative, and public policy education in service to environmental sustainability and justice. Together, they seek to offer resources of religious life and moral vision to a universal effort to protect humankind's common home and well-being on Earth. |

Orange County Interfaith Coalition for the Environment North Tustin, CA The Orange County Interfaith Coalition for the Environment (OCICE) was the lead organization in the "International Day of Climate Action", which took place on October 24, 2009 at the Irvine Ranch Outdoor Education Center in Orange, CA. The event included a morning hike with the Sierra Club, 5K walk, and a bicycle rally (groups came from various locations around Orange County and rode...
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Jewish Community Center of Greater Baltimore Jewish, Non-denominational The Owings Mills campus of the Jewish Community Center has within its ...
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Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center Falls Village, Connecticut Jewish, Non-Denominational Isabella Freedman rests on 450 acres of forested land and lush meadows in the foothills of the southern Berkshires. As fall home to the Teva Learning Center and year-round home for the Adamah Jewish Environmental Fellowship, the Isabella Freedman Retreat Center is a living model of what it looks like to steward the land based on Jewish environmental ethics. Guests at the retreat center's...
Read moreSisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Monroe, MI Article by Holly Knight, IHM Sisters Communications and Marketing Director, taken from The Immaculate Heart Of Mary Quarterly, Autumn 2008. In 2003, before the sisters' big move back to the Motherhouse, they decided to produce a DVD on the sustainable renovation of this grand, old convent. Toward the end of the production, several sisters were interviewed and taped about their newly "green" home. Sister Paula (Marie Paula)...
Read moreSanta Rosa, CA The Religious Campaign for Forest Conservation, based in Santa Rosa, California, is surrounded ...
Read moreSt. Andrew Christian Church Kansas City, KS Disciples of Christ Having church walls made of straw, concrete, ...
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Diocese of Joliet, IL Article by Mark Indreika taken from Catholic Explorer 7/23/2008 As the Catholic Church continues to raise its voice in defense of the environment, people across the Diocese of Joliet are heeding the call, participating in educational programs and implementing new, environmentally friendly technologies. Education JustFaith was a series of workshops in the Diocese of Joliet, a 30-week program on Catholic social teaching. Maribeth Meaux, coordinator of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development in...
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Madison Christian Community, Madison, WI It’s a ministry that scatters seeds of hope for incarcerated people. Madison Christian Community, an ecumenical partnership between Advent Lutheran Church (ELCA) and Community of Hope (UCC) in Madison, WI, works with a nearby correctional facility to offer a restorative justice-based horticulture program in its 6000 square foot garden. “The garden ministry is one way to bridge the racial, economic and social barriers that exist between people today,”...
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Diocese of Joliet, IL The University of St. Francis is one of the Catholic Universities leading the way when it comes to environmental stewardship. According to the university’s Greening of Campus mission statement: Greening, a philosophy rooted in Catholic Franciscanism, is a philosophy for life. The ultimate goal of Greening of the Campus is to cultivate among students, faculty, and staff a humble recognition that God made humanity the steward of creation, with personal responsibility...
Read moreMinter Lane Church of Christ Abilene, TX It was a difficult time at Minter Lane Church of Christ in Abilene, Texas. Marge Wood describes ...
Read moreAu Sable Institute for Environmental Studies, MI A version of this article by Peter Illyn originally appeared in the Fall 2007 issue of Creation Care magazine.
Read moreFirst Presbyterian Church of Brooklyn, Brooklyn, NY It’s a green oasis in the gritty city—a restful “Peace Garden” on the grounds of The First Presbyterian Church of Brooklyn, NY. The building of this garden along with other efforts of the congregations active “Green Team” have helped the congregation expand its understanding of the “priesthood of all believers” to include the “priesthood of all living things” according to associate pastor Rev. Beth Waltemath.
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Catholic Committee of Appalachia, WV The Catholic Committee of Appalachia produced "Climate Change: Our Faith Response,” a 10 minute DVD and accompanying study guide. This religious education program teaches the church’s social teaching principle of care for creation. The project was funded in part by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change. CCA offers spiritual and educational opportunities such as the “Pilgrimage to the Holy Land of Appalachia,” religious ...
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West Gloucester Trinitarian Congregational Church, Glouchester, MA What began as one person’s worry over Styrofoam cups at coffee hour has turned into a greening commitment by the West Gloucester Trinitarian Congregational Church (UCC) in Glouchester, MA. When a church member realized the impact that Styrofoam has on the environment, she recognized that by using the cups, the church was sending a negative message about its values. She worked with other members to form a group...
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