“Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.” Genesis 1:31

Is God saying the same thing about Earth, our planet home, today? Is He proud of the way we have cared for His creation? Or is He sad and dismayed at the lack of respect and protection we have provided for the air He gave us to breathe, the water He gave us to drink, and the land He gave to sustain us and other creatures? The environmental stewardship committee of the Chapel of the Cross invites you to consider your personal answers to these important questions.

Environmental stewardship is not a new concept in our faith. Thirty years ago, the Episcopal Church adopted a resolution to: Recognize the relation between Christian Stewardship and prudent use of the Earth; encourage responsible and thoughtful use of our natural resources; and instruct Churchmen in their responsibilities as stewards of God’s Earth, its inhabitants and its environments.

In 1991, the 70th General Convention adopted a resolution affirming our responsibility for the Earth in trust for this and future generations.

Specifically, the resolution:
∑ Declared that Christian stewardship of God’s created environment ... requires
response from the Church of the highest urgency
∑ Called on Episcopalians to live their lives as good stewards with responsible concern for the sustainability of the environment and with appreciation for the global interdependence of human life and the natural world
∑ Urged all Episcopalians to reflect on their personal and corporate habits in the use of God’s creation.

It is now 2003. What are we, as parishioners of the Chapel of the Cross, doing to demonstrate our respect for these resolutions and our commitment to caring for God’s creation? Are we living our lives as good stewards? Are we concerned for the sustainability of our environment? Do we appreciate the global interdependence of human life and the natural world? Have we meaningfully reflected on our personal and corporate habits in the use of God’s creation? Have we acted with the highest urgency to respond to current global environmental threats? Or, are we even aware of them?

If your answers to these questions are less than overwhelmingly affirmative, the environmental stewardship committee invites you to reflect on them in the most serious and humble way possible.

One way to do this is by calculating your ‘ecological footprint,’ that is, to measure the impact of your lifestyle on the planet, the resources that you consume, and contemplate what it would mean if every member of the world’s population lived your life style. Go to: http://www.lead.org/leadnet/footprint/intro.htm and fill out the simple questionnaire. Some of you will be surprised. Some of you may be shocked. We hope that all of you will be moved to learn more about the current state of our environment, our Earth, and seek to become better stewards of God’s creation.

The environmental stewardship committee meets the first Tuesday of each month at 6:00 p.m. in the parish library. We invite you to join us.