BeFriending Creation
QEW favors energy conservation, opposes subsidies for nuclear power
At its 2007 Annual Meeting in October, the QEW Steering Committee gave preliminary approval to a Minute from the Sustainability: Faith & Action interest group, arguing that nuclear power is not a solution to global warming and objecting to multi-billion-dollar loan guarantees for the nuclear industry, under legislation to be considered by Congress in the next few months. The Minute begins,
Quaker Earthcare Witness cannot support nuclear energy as a part of the solution to the problem of harmful climate change. Based on everything that we know about the current state of nuclear technology and our understanding of its impact and risks for people and the earth; for moral, spiritual, and practical reasons, we are strongly opposed to current efforts to increase nuclear power. Specifically, we are opposed to the proposed loan guarantees in the U.S. Congress for funding new nuclear power plants....
The rest of the Minute, which addresses the risks and economics of nuclear power, was referred to QEW's Continuing Counsel for final wording after the business session was not able to reach unity on the draft. Some Friends wanted certain statements in the Minute to be given more scrutiny to assure scientific soundness, while others said nuclear risks need to be assessed in the larger context of risks of alternate electric power options.
In a related activity, QEW supporters Bob and Nancy First of Northampton (Mass.) Friends Meeting, organized a political "letter-writing party." Procrastination-prone Friends had no excuse not to share their Quaker perspective with Congressional representatives on pending legislation that would cut greenhouse gas emissions enough to prevent further irreversible ecological damage. Some writers included their objections to proposed legislation that would give more than $50 billion in loan guarantees to the nuclear fission industry to encourage construction of many new nuclear plants.
QEW mini-grants now available to Meetings
Friends Meetings and churches now can apply for QEW mini-grants to further their environmental goals. Five QEW matching grants of up to $200 are available for a wide variety of environmental projects, from educational programs to energy-conservation measures.
The deadline for applying is May 1, 2008. Funds will be available by July 1, 2008. The form soon will be on <www.quakerearthcare.org>.
Friends also can earmark contributions to the QEW Mini-Grant Fund.
For more information, contact the QEW office at 802/658-0308, or e-mail Ruth Hamilton at <Ruth@ArtsCanHeal.com>.
New from QEW! Friends and the challenge of climate change
Harmful climate change is the topic of a new pamphlet that is being enclosed as a gift to QEW supporters in the annual appeal letter being mailed out this fall.
In creating the new quad-fold, the aim of the QEW Sustainability: Faith & Action interest group was to bring a spiritual perspective to a life-and-death issue that is often entangled in arcane scientific language and self-serving statements from politicians and special interest groups.
It was also important to include in this publication what QEW supporters believe is the truth about the causes and likely effects of harmful climate change and to summarize the kinds of lifestyle, technological, educational, and political changes that must be carried out before emissions of greenhouse gases become part of a vicious spiral of ecological system collapses and new releases of greenhouse gases.
AS WE DISCERN how to meet this particular global emergency, we are discovering that care of the earth is a sacred obligation. QEW's Vision & Witness statement calls us "to live in right relationship with all Creation, recognizing that the entire world is interconnected and is a manifestation of God." To our traditional Quaker testimonies of peace, equality, simplicity and integrity we may now add Earthcare. Each of these testimonies is not a separate endeavor. Each requires the others; all call us to that which is eternal.
We are rising to a new understanding of who we are and what is our place in the community of life. It is time to take the matter of Earth-care into our hearts, with full awareness of its importance in our spiritual life. It is time to pray and discern together what each—and all—of us are called to do.
Copies of the new pamphlet can be ordered from the QEW office. •
EarthLight shines again in this 'best' and new articles collection
EarthLight—Spiritual Wisdom for an Ecological Age
Friends Bulletin, 2007. ISBN 0-9700410-2-0 $20.00 US
Although BFC's "sister" publication, EarthLight magazine, stopped publishing a couple of years ago, devoted readers cherish their back issues as sources of spiritual wisdom and encouragement in these often gloomy times.
Now, with the help of Friends Bulletin, EL's 15 years of "celebrating the living Earth and our 13-billion-year story of the universe" have been distilled into a 344-page book, along with many new articles in the same tradition of spirituality and ecology.
Articles by more than 40 leading thinkers and writers are grouped according to the seven EarthLight principles of "Conscious Evolution," "Sacred Relationship," "Collective Wisdom," "Mutual Learning," "Conscious Choice," "Inclusivity," and "Celebration."
In his inspiring introduction, "Spiritual Ecology: a Practice of the Heart," former EarthLight Editor K. Lauren de Boer writes, "More than just a theory, spiritual ecology describes a way of being in the world. It is ancient in the sense that peoples have lived it in many times and places. It is contemporary in that it integrates the discoveries of science and a new sense of our evolutionary story."
For more information please contact the Friends Bulletin editor at <friendsbulletin@aol.com> or go to <www.westernquaker.net>.
A resource from QEW!
Earthcare for Friends
A Study Guide for Individuals and Faith Communities
THIS 270-PAGE, 18-unit study guide is designed to help Friends understand:
- Specific ways that human activities have been despoiling the Earth, God's creation, and how this damage is intensified by today's materialistic culture.
- Different ways of living and thinking that can bring harmony among humans and between humans and the natural world.
- Why stewardship—living in ways that protect the health of the earth—is necessary for a vital relationship with God and with others.
- What the Bible, Christian tradition, and Quaker tradition teach about care for the Earth and its inhabitants.
- How Earthcare is a natural expression of the historic Quaker testimonies of peace, equality, justice, simplicity, and integrity.
- The remarkable convergence of modern science and faith traditions in understanding that all things are ultimately interconnected.
Earthcare for Friends provides practical adult education materials, including:
- Thought-provoking articles and practical steps that can be taken as individuals and faith communities.
- Helpful questions and queries for reflection and discussion.
- Sources of inspiration—songs, scripture, prayers, sample sermons, and responsive readings.
- Earthcare resources—books, websites, organizations, videos, etc.
- Activities to illustrate basic ecological issues and help us see where to focus our energies.
Available from the Quaker Earthcare Witness office, for $18.00 US plus $4.50 postage and handling. ($1.08 tax added for Vermont residents.)
