Earth Day From the Pulpit

Materials to download:

A Variety of Responsive Readings

A Few Thoughts for Preaching the 23rd Psalm

Why Earth Day is a Jewish Holiday

Dear Leaders of the Faith Communities:

Caring for the well being of God’s creation can be a significant expression of our desire to live in healthy, whole, and just relationships with all life. With the global reach of today’s economic forces and high levels of consumption, it is becoming more apparent that threats to the health of our planet are interrelated with sources of injustice against many members of the human community.

As we near “Earth Day” (April 22), the Interfaith Environmental Council encourages you to speak about the importance of the natural environment and the larger community of living beings with whom we share the planet Earth.

To help this happen, we have prepared some resources from a variety of religious traditions in the form of “responsive readings.” As many of them as you care to use may be reproduced in your worship bulletin or simply read by worship leaders.

These materials have been compiled for your use by the Interfaith Environmental Council, a coalition to repair, protect and preserve our environment while integrating God’s vision of sustainability, responsibility, and advocacy for creation.

Working in partnership within our own faith communities, the IEC is a collaboration of religious institutions established to examine the spiritual connection to God’s world and to explore and advocate ways to make environmental issues a significant focus of life in Southern California.

We seek to identify ways to improve, repair and pass on to future generations a planet that is peaceful and shares resources equally. Through outreach, education, advocacy, participation in public policy discussions and moral leadership, we seek to develop a growing understanding of the religious and human connection to the natural world. We will strive to serve as a passionate and effective advocate of environmental protection.

Our Green Sanctuaries Program is a pilot program dedicated to implementing sound and equitable environmental practices at churches, synagogues, mosques, temples and other affiliated faith institutions throughout the City of Los Angeles and to instilling the principle of environmental stewardship in present and future generations. While encouraging faith institutions across the city to make the most of solar power, green power, energy efficiency and conservation measures, and other environmentally friendly initiatives available to them, the program serves as a model of environmental action to the various communities of Los Angeles.

We believe that churches, synagogues, mosques, and other gatherings of faithful people can play an important role in reinvigorating public awareness and support for environmental stewardship. We ask you to join us in this effort by using some of the enclosed material in a service near Earth Day.

Please copy whatever materials you choose to use (cut & paste) from the enclosed pages, or download them from www.LAIEC.org Feel free to call the IEC office at (310) 841-2970 if you need more information.

With peace,


The Interfaith Environmental Council