At the Annual Meeting on June 9, 2019 the congregation will be asked to vote on a statement of conscience from the Environmental Justice Committee affirming our commitment as a green congregation. See below.
Why are we doing this?
- Climate change is threatening our planet for ourselves and for future generations. It is urgent that we take a public stand for climate justice and pledge to preserve and protect the environment.
- Like other USR statements of conscience on racial justice and welcoming it defines our congregation as deeply committed to fully explore and deepen our dedication to our seventh principal to respect and care for our earth.
- The mission of our committee is to learn, lead and empower our congregation to be better stewards of the earth as well as seek more equitable policies for all people. Through the affirmation we are asking that we join together as a congregation to commit to employing green practices both at USR and as individuals. We also seek a commitment to justice for those who bear some of the most potent effects of environmental degradation.
- The affirmation as a “green congregation” is a broad, general, over-arching position statement that we, as a congregation, support the environment.
The effects of the vote will guide the Board, Minister and administration in making future environmentally sound decisions.
Unitarian Society of Ridgewood
Statement of Conscience
GREEN CONGREGATION
BECAUSE we affirm justice, equity and compassion in human relations, the inherent worth and dignity of every person, and respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part; and because we share the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all; and
BECAUSE the concept of protecting the Environment of the Earth links the principles of liberal religion with the values of ecological awareness and racial and class justice, and
BECAUSE we support the free and responsible search for truth and meaning, and we recognize that the overwhelming consensus within the scientific community is that global climate change is real, and that the activities of humans are at least partially responsible, and
BECAUSE, global climate change seems to be producing an extinction event in nature, and over time, could potentially threaten all life on earth,
NOW, THEREFORE, WE, the Congregation of the Unitarian Society of Ridgewood, hereby AFFIRM and DECLARE that:
- We support sustaining the climate so that planet Earth will remain habitable,
- We support and commit to the ongoing greening of USR as steps leading toward our long-term goal of Certification of USR as a Green Sanctuary,
- We affirm ourselves as a Green Congregation, signifying our ongoing commitment to environmental justice, and to preserving, protecting and defending the Environment for all.
May 1, 2019, Environmental Justice Committee
For questions or comments please contact Environmental Justice Committee Co-chairs Marilyn Maney or Peter Orsini
