Is your church a "green church"?

[RedEarth]

The church I attend is taking the initial steps toward becoming a green church...passing a green resolution, green committee formed, CF bulbs when standard bulbs burn out, planning church-wide and community green programs...etc. It's all in the initial stages, but at least it's a first step. And honestly, it's something we all need to do.

There are a number of sources available to churches that have an interest in becoming a green church. Sierra Club and Earth Day are two that come to mind. Another site is Creation Care, however, I'm not too familiar with their resources.

Here is a link to the Religious Outreach page of the Earth Day web site ...... it has numerous links to other sites that should be helpful.

Religious Outreach
Celebrating Earth Day Menu of Activities for Communities of Faith

Ask your clergy to give a sermon on climate change and be a part of 2,007 communities of faith participating this year! – Register your Earth Day Sermon

Choose a reading about stewardship of the Earth for your service
Post educational flyers and brochures about Earth Day 2007 in your place of worship

Hold a potluck after service to discuss becoming a Green Sanctuary
Have a “walk to worship” effort to encourage members to walk or take public transportation to the service

Encourage youth groups and other children’s groups make a presentation about Earth Day

Hold a potluck after service to discuss environmental improvements you can make at your place of worship. Find out if your religious institution has standards for such initiatives. Learn more about The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™ from the U.S. Green Building Council

Sample Global Warming Sermons

Read about Congregations Making a Difference for themselves and the Earth

Tips for changes you can make at home


Earth Day Links for Communities of Faith and Climate Change

http://www.earthday.net/programs/religious/default.aspx

[Lydia Leftcoast]

1. I'm on a committee called Earthkeepers, which is trying to nudge our

parish in the right direction.

People aren't hostile to environmental issues as much as clueless about ways in which they can make even small contributions to the well-being of the planet. We've already gotten them to have an energy audit of our nearly one-hundred-year-old building, and the vestry is working on this. We also are working on getting bike racks for the parking lot and looking at more earth-friendly landscape.

We also sponsored a talk by polar explorer Will Steger, who spoke and showed slides about how he has personally observed the effects of climate change during his twentysome years in the Arctic and Antarctic.

The parish to emulate in our area is St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church in Minneapolis--which is in the forefront of a lot of issues and just barely keeps itself from getting into trouble with the hierarchy.