THE EARTHKEEPING
MINISTRIES CONGRESS
THE NORTH AMERICAN COALITION FOR CHRISTIANITY AND ECOLOGY

September 13-15, 1996
Summary Report

 

ECOJUSTICE

Understanding that we are all interconnected in the web of life, what does it mean for the churches to stand in solidarity with the non-human as well as the human oppressed of all creation? How does the church model ecological sensitivity and responsibility?

Resource Persons

Jane Blewett, Founder and Director of the Earth Community Center, Laurel, Maryland, is a member of the Citizens Network for Sustainable Development and conducts workshops on "Justice for People, Justice for Earth: Two Sides of the Same Coin."

Walter Bresette, a Lake Superior Chippewa, an award winning author, and a political activist concerned with treaty and environmental issues in Northern Wisconsin, conducts workshops on native communities and culture.

Rita Harris, Executive Director of the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center in Memphis, Tennessee, developed the Toxics Awareness Project and provides organizing assistance to community groups on environmental justice issues.

"The Lord has an indictment against the inhabitants of the land. There is no faithfulness or loyalty, and no knowledge of God in the land . . . bloodshed follows bloodshed. Therefore the land mourns and all who live in it languish, together with the wild animals and birds of the air; even the fish of the sea are perishing." (Hosea 4: 1-3)

"When the Spirit is given to us from heaven, deserts will become orchards, thick as fertile forests. Honesty and justice will prosper there, and justice will produce lasting peace and security." (Isaiah 32: 15-17)

"Eco - Justice: Eco comes from oikos, the Greek word for household, the whole. Ecology explores the relationships in the earth household. Justice is to be in right relationship with the whole household . . . Our appropriate earthkeeping task now is for whatever we take up to be directed primarily to preserving the integrity of the whole earth household.
      "In 1982 over 100 nations in the UN endorsed a Charter for Nature that declares that all creatures, independent of their use, or meaning, or relationship to humans, have rights: the right to be, to habitat, each to fulfill its role in the great community of existence. The international community is now working to define an Earth Charter that one day may hang at the UN above the Universal Declaration of Human Rights." (Jane Blewett)

"People of faith need to become vocal advocates in the struggle for environmental justice. The first thing they must do is to move beyond denial of environmental racism. Sixty percent of the total African American population lives near toxic waste sites."(Rita Harris)

"We were told that the corporation had a permit to build a mine five miles from Lake Superior, and in order to fulfill the requirements of that permit, it was necessary to move hazardous materials to that mine across the Indian reservation.
      "It was as if people were in your house, burglarizing, vandalizing your home, and the burglars say, 'Wait a minute, we have a permit to do this.' And you call the local law enforcement officer, and he says, 'Yes, they do.' What is your choice?
      "Most of us choose to say okay. But others say no. They are vandalizing our home on Lake Superior, and we have a religious duty to stop this, regardless of what that law says about that particular permit." (Walter Bresette)

Current Trends

The cry of the Earth can be heard on all sides — denuded forests, polluted air and water, degraded soils, species going into extinction, neighborhoods poisoned by toxins — all signs of the times that call out for redress from the human community and the Christian family. Awareness is building as movements of Native Peoples, minority communities, women, ecologists, bioregionalists, and scientists join together to create change and work for the future of the planet. Justice for people, justice for Earth are two sides of the same coin, pointing to a recognition of complex and interrelated needs of people and of planet.

Our Vision

Recognizing the urgency of our situation, we trust that by the year 2000, Christian communities will be demonstrating sustainable relations with the earth community, re-defining economics and re-imaging what constitutes our "security." Operating out of a holistic, inclusive context we in the churches will be making alliances to ensure the viability of the life-support systems of the planet; to empower and respect the poor, the oppressed, the elderly and the child.

We will be working for sustainable economics to replace the global system of industrial growth. We will be educating ourselves on the rights of the natural world, and on the realities of eco-racism. We will be forming partnerships with other community groups to work, politically and economically, for environmental and human justice. We will support development of the United Nations Earth Charter protecting the intergenerational rights of all species.

Challenges

Currently, however, our churches in general ignore the plight of the larger community of life. They focus on the human-divine and human-human bond, to the exclusion of the human-earth bond. Like the larger society around them, local congregations are captives of our addictive consumer culture and resistant to change. We are in denial over our guilt in colonization, militarism, displacement of native peoples, destruction of their land and resources, and racism. Since most western interpretations of biblical tradition speak to separation of humans from the rest of creation, our reference point in judging among the competing demands of different species is frequently the short term economic benefit to humanity. Diversity is seen as a problem, not a solution.

Strategies

Therefore, we urge Christian communities to:

  1. Explore alternative interpretations of scripture as well as new sources of information and inspiration, bringing people to a new understanding of the appropriate role for humans in the total community of life.
  2. Commit to personal action at home, in congregations and in the community — to study the local bioregion; listen to the voices of those in affected communities; form discussion groups; educate our leaders.
  3. Build grass roots alliances that create trust and respect for a common agenda — practice inclusion; form partnerships with churches in Black, Hispanic and Asian neighborhoods ; reach out to find common concerns; get children and youth involved.
  4. Mobilize the churches to join community groups to achieve ecojustice. Let other organizations know that the church is there to help them in community organizing efforts on behalf of ecojustice projects.

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