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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. |
Episcopal Diocese of Ohio, OH The Episcopal Diocese of Ohio is changing attitudes about global warming by helping churches change light bulbs. Bishop Mark Hollingsworth and intern Andy Barnett are leading a campaign titled “How Many Light Bulbs Does it Take to Change an Episcopalian?” The program provides up to $250 per church to all 95 churches throughout the diocese to replace incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). “Almost any bulb under 250...
Read moreLutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC) Chicago, Illinois Seminarian Steve Jerbi says, “I chose LSTC ...
Read moreFellowship Church Knoxville, TN Evangelical Free Church of America Lyndsay Moseley wasn’t sure what lay in ...
Read more![[Intergenerational] Family Fun on the Farm](http://www.nrpe.org/modules/mod_news_pro_gk4/cache/stories.profiles.A_28_01_dava_annansp_181.jpg)
Taste of Adamah at the Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center, Falls Village, CT Dava Schub was looking for something to do with her 6-year old niece and 4-year old nephew that did not involve a lot of bells and whistles. These New York City kids were over-stimulated to begin with, so she wanted an activity that would be more grounded and centered, and perhaps more quiet, but also exciting for them. Having met Adam Berman, ...
Read morePoint Loma Nazarene University San Diego, CA Church of the Nazarene In 2003, when Point Loma Nazarene University student Celeste Howe ...
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St. Ann’s Episcopal Church, Woodstock, IL Keeping water clean is a top priority for the Green Team at St. Ann’s Episcopal Church in Woodstock, IL. When members conducted a green audit to identify ways for the parish to become more environmentally responsible, they identified stormwater management as a key concern. Large concentrations of pollutants enter water systems in developed areas covered with impervious surfaces like roads and roofs. These surfaces don’t allow water to penetrate...
Read moreSt. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church Yarmouth, ME “Becoming a beacon of environmental stewardship has truly been the sum of many small, enduring, ...
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Calvary United Methodist Church Annapolis, MD The mission of Calvary United Methodist Church in...
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Second Presbyterian Church, Carlisle, PA When more than 100 physicians in Cumberland County, PA, published a warning statement about the high levels of diesel particulate matter in the air, Rev. Jennifer McKenna called to find out what they were going to do about it. Upon learning they had no plans to act, she spurred her congregation at Second Presbyterian Church in Carlisle, PA, to advocacy. Together, they formed the Clean Air Board of Central...
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Catholic Coalition on Climate Change, AK, FL, OH Early in its beginning, the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change focused on providing a forum to explore the links between faith and climate change by hosting hearings around the country. In the Spring of 2007, hearings were held in three key states: Anchorage, AK, Columbus, OH, and Orlando, FL. These hearings provided an opportunity to learn about science, theology, and local actions to address the environmental and social impacts of climate change. A...
Read moreSt. John Fisher Chapel University ParishEarth Care Ministry Troy, MI The Earth Care ministry...
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Redwood Rabbis, Northern California Jewish, Non-denominational While many Jewish congregations may celebrate Tu B’shevat, the Jewish New Year of the Trees, with simple rituals of tree-planting or the eating of new fruits, nuts or wine, in 1997, the Redwoods Rabbis of Northern California took their observance of the holiday to a new level. As part of their ongoing advocacy to protect Headwaters Forest -- the last unprotected old growth redwood forest on the Pacific coast,...
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Fermi Project, Suwanee, GA Adapted from an article, “From Nightmare to Dream Come True” by Jeff Shinaberger, in the Summer 2007 issue of Creation Care magazine. Like many Biblical inspirations, this story begins with a dream, or moreover, a nightmare. Jeff Shinaberger dreamt of a boy, about eight years old, four feet tall, no shirt, wearing only ripped up mud-stained pants, with an extended belly. He watched the boy dip a glass into a filthy puddle...
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United Methodist Conference of North Texas, TX The North Texas Annual Conference has created a groundbreaking opportunity for its churches to go green. It negotiated for its 200 churches to buy the equivalent of 10 percent of its energy from renewable sources within Texas.Some congregations are taking greening a step further. Northaven UMC in Dallas, TX, plans to pay a premium to buy 100 percent green energy. According to Pastor Eric Folkerth, “It’s consistent...
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