VIPL Service Learning Project

Resources available for Episcopal churches in Vermont

Did you realize that The Episcopal Church actually passed a resolution at the 70th General Convention affirming the responsibility of its members for the earth in this and future generations?

It calls on Episcopalians to reflect on their personal and corporate habits in the use of God’s creation, share with one another ideas for new responses, and act as individuals, congregations, diocese, and provinces of the Episcopal Church in ways that protect and heal all interdependent parts of creation. The full text can be found at: http://www.webofcreation.org/education/policystatement/episcopal.

Many Episcopal churches in Vermont actively try to carry this mission out. Several, interviewed by Middlebury College students in fall 2004 as part of a project with Vermont Interfaith Power and Light, provide good suggestions for ways to do this.

The Jerusalem Gathering Church in Bristol mentioned that they receive regular emails from the Peace and Justice branch of the Episcopal Church alerting them to actions in Congress that pertain to the environment, which they then discuss.

At the St. James Episcopal Church in Essex Junction, they have special services devoted to care of creation four times a year. They discuss issues around natural resource use, pollution, and forestry. On St. Francis Day, they even have a blessing for the animals and discuss the importance of caring for all animals.

The All Saints Episcopal Church in South Burlington explained how the Diocese of New England strongly encourages care of creation by passing resolutions and providing curriculum materials to individual churches who would like them. In their church, they use compact fluorescent light bulbs, recycle, reuse their coffee cups, and even try to promote carpooling. They also discuss climate change specifically.

The New England Diocese is doing a lot too.

In February of 2003, the Episcopal Bishops of Vermont published a letter about how to serve Christ in all creation. They include a paragraph specifically on climate change:

"One of the most daunting challenges we face is global climate change. Many scientists agree that if we burn fossil fuels at expected rates, global warming caused by human activities could raise worldwide average temperatures between 3 and 11 degrees Fahrenheit in this century. In New England, climate change may cause flooding in coastal areas, reduce the quality of our region's fresh water, imperil agriculture, and increase the outbreaks of infectious disease. Within this century, New England may lose its maple, birch, and beech trees. We face the loss of our spectacular fall colors and the end of fall-foliage tourism, as well as the destruction of our region's maple sugar industry" (1).

The full text of the letter, along with links to other resources, can be found online at: http://www.dioceseofvermont.org/Environment/BpsEnvLtr.html.

See resources for other religious groups:

American Baptist
Episcopal
Jewish
Roman Catholic
Society of Friends (Quakers)
United Methodist
Unitarian Universalist
Zen Buddhist

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