Inter-faith initiative to ‘green’ religion
-23/09/06
Religious leaders across the US
Inter-faith initiative to ‘green’ religion
-23/09/06
Religious leaders across the US are joining together to mobilize an inter-faith response to global warming, and ‘green’ their respective religions.
In the first week of October, in churches, mosques, synagogues and halls of worship across the nation, congregations will participate in an unprecedented inter-religious screening and discussion of educational films about global warming, featuring Paramountís An Inconvenient Truth, HBOís Too Hot Not to Handle and the independent documentary Lighten Up.
The event, called ìSpotlight on Global Warmingî is being organized by Interfaith Power & Light (IPL) a nationwide movement to engage people of faith in the urgency to address global warming.
ìGlobal warming is harming Godís creation: first the poor of the world and eventually all of us and all life,î said the Reverend Sally G. Bingham, founder of IPL and an Episcopal priest at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, CA.
ìWith these screenings and discussion, we hope to inform and inspire people of faith to take personal and collective action to reduce global warming emissions,î said Rabbi Daniel Swartz at Temple Hased of Scranton Pennsylvaniaís oldest synagogue.
ìI have spent my life fighting for civil rights and human rights,î said Pastor Gerald L. Durley of Providence Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta Georgia. ìAfter I saw The Great Warming and An Inconvenient Truth, I have taken on yet another mission. We are destroying our earth. We canít protect human rights if we arenít here.î
ìEveryone has a stake and a role in reducing global warming emissions. Working together we can change history,ì said Souleiman Ghali, a Muslim leader and founder of the Islamic Society of San Francisco.
From Dallas, Texas to Brunswick, Maine, faith leaders are preparing to gather hundreds of thousands of their followers to view the films October 1-8th. In every state, they have compelling stories to tell ó about how they came to this issue, about the power of the religious response to this issue, and the potential for change through the work of congregations and congregants.
In Georgia, Dr. Gerald L. Durley, pastor of the historic Providence Missionary Baptist Church of Atlanta, well known for leadership in the civil rights movement, and initiating ground-breaking outreach programs to strengthen the African American family and community, is enlisting Atlantaís Imams, Rabbis and other faith leaders to hold screenings, and plans a multi-faith screening in some of Atlantaís diverse religious communities. His church is replacing most of their incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescents. Pastor Durley is also encouraging members to pay very close attention to their thermostats. An environment committee is designing a plan for reducing energy and educating the congregation on energy issues which contribute to global warming.
In Pennsylvania, Rabbi Daniel Swartz of Scranton’s oldest synagogue, Temple Hased, has worked for social justice throughout his career and helped to found the IPL in Washington, D.C. He will hold a screening and conscious conversations during Yom Kippur.
In Washington D.C., the National Cathedral will show The Great Warming and An Inconvenient Truth on Saturday, September 30th, and on Sunday October 1 at 11 am the Reverend Dean Lloyd will deliver a sermon on the biblical charge to care for the earth and challenge the faith community to do its part to respond to this environmental crisis.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reports that if the estimated 307,000 places of worship across the United States reduced energy usage by 25 percent, they would prevent more than 5 million tons of carbon dioxide (global warming) emissions — the equivalent of removing 1 million cars from the road — and each year congregations would save a total of approximately 500 million US dollars on power bills.
Inter-faith initiative to ‘green’ religion
-23/09/06
Religious leaders across the US are joining together to mobilize an inter-faith response to global warming, and ‘green’ their respective religions.
In the first week of October, in churches, mosques, synagogues and halls of worship across the nation, congregations will participate in an unprecedented inter-religious screening and discussion of educational films about global warming, featuring Paramountís An Inconvenient Truth, HBOís Too Hot Not to Handle and the independent documentary Lighten Up.
The event, called ìSpotlight on Global Warmingî is being organized by Interfaith Power & Light (IPL) a nationwide movement to engage people of faith in the urgency to address global warming.
ìGlobal warming is harming Godís creation: first the poor of the world and eventually all of us and all life,î said the Reverend Sally G. Bingham, founder of IPL and an Episcopal priest at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, CA.
ìWith these screenings and discussion, we hope to inform and inspire people of faith to take personal and collective action to reduce global warming emissions,î said Rabbi Daniel Swartz at Temple Hased of Scranton Pennsylvaniaís oldest synagogue.
ìI have spent my life fighting for civil rights and human rights,î said Pastor Gerald L. Durley of Providence Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta Georgia. ìAfter I saw The Great Warming and An Inconvenient Truth, I have taken on yet another mission. We are destroying our earth. We canít protect human rights if we arenít here.î
ìEveryone has a stake and a role in reducing global warming emissions. Working together we can change history,ì said Souleiman Ghali, a Muslim leader and founder of the Islamic Society of San Francisco.
From Dallas, Texas to Brunswick, Maine, faith leaders are preparing to gather hundreds of thousands of their followers to view the films October 1-8th. In every state, they have compelling stories to tell ó about how they came to this issue, about the power of the religious response to this issue, and the potential for change through the work of congregations and congregants.
In Georgia, Dr. Gerald L. Durley, pastor of the historic Providence Missionary Baptist Church of Atlanta, well known for leadership in the civil rights movement, and initiating ground-breaking outreach programs to strengthen the African American family and community, is enlisting Atlantaís Imams, Rabbis and other faith leaders to hold screenings, and plans a multi-faith screening in some of Atlantaís diverse religious communities. His church is replacing most of their incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescents. Pastor Durley is also encouraging members to pay very close attention to their thermostats. An environment committee is designing a plan for reducing energy and educating the congregation on energy issues which contribute to global warming.
In Pennsylvania, Rabbi Daniel Swartz of Scranton’s oldest synagogue, Temple Hased, has worked for social justice throughout his career and helped to found the IPL in Washington, D.C. He will hold a screening and conscious conversations during Yom Kippur.
In Washington D.C., the National Cathedral will show The Great Warming and An Inconvenient Truth on Saturday, September 30th, and on Sunday October 1 at 11 am the Reverend Dean Lloyd will deliver a sermon on the biblical charge to care for the earth and challenge the faith community to do its part to respond to this environmental crisis.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reports that if the estimated 307,000 places of worship across the United States reduced energy usage by 25 percent, they would prevent more than 5 million tons of carbon dioxide (global warming) emissions — the equivalent of removing 1 million cars from the road — and each year congregations would save a total of approximately 500 million US dollars on power bills.