Social Justice Ministry

We show our respect for the Creator by our stewardship of creation. Care for the earth is not just an Earth Day slogan; it is a requirement of our faith. We are called to protect people and the planet, living our faith in relationship with all of God's creation. The environmental challenge has fundamental moral and ethical dimensions that cannot be ignored.

A Reading from the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah:      Jeremiah 9: 9-15

Dirge Over the Ravaged Land
Over the mountains, break out in cries of lamentation,   
over the pasture lands, intone a dirge.
They are scorched and no man crosses them,
unheard is the bleat of the flock; birds of the air as well as beasts,
all have fled and are gone.

I will turn Jerusalem into a heap of ruins, a haunt of jackals;
the cities of Judah I will make into a waste, where no one dwells.
Who is so wise that he can understand this?
Let him to whom the mouth of the Lord has spoken make it known.
Why is the land ravaged? scorched like a wasteland untraversed?
The Lord answered: Because they have abandoned my law, which I set before them
and have not followed it or listened to my voice,
but followed rather the hardness of their hearts and the Baals, as their fathers had taught them;
therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel:
See now, I will give them wormwood to eat and poison to drink.
I will scatter them among nations whom neither they nor their fathers have known;
I will send the sword to pursue them until I have completely destroyed them.

The Word of the Lord.
 

Environmental 10 Commandments

The Dangers of Plastic Bags

Some Simple Things You Can Do to Care for God's Creation

Use:
Soy ink printer cartridges
Recycled paper products
Paper, not Styrofoam, disposable cups and plates (or simply use real dishes and wash)
Replace traditional light bulbs with long-lasting, low energy usage bulbs (the funny-looking coiled ones) when old bulbs burn out
Fair trade coffee 
Products produced by environment-friendly companies
Reusable cloth bags instead of plastic bags
 

Recycle:
Paper (after reusing copies for office memos)
Aluminum cans
Milk jugs
Plastic bottles (like the 2 liter soda bottles)
Newspaper
Cardboard
Batteries (AA, C, D, etc. – NOT car batteries)
Glass bottles (washed)

Responsible Shopper
Responsible Shopper reports on global research and campaign information in order to alert the public about the social and environmental impact of major corporations, while providing opportunities for consumers and investors to vote with their dollars for change.

sdrose@bellsouth.net
6-21-2008