Interfaith Council

“Adam was put in the garden to ‘work it and protect it.’  The two jobs are complementary, but they are also contradictory.  From what are we to protect Eden, if not from our own work?  The more we work the earth —by which I mean not only tilling but the whole spectrum of human meddling, from setting grass fires to splitting the atom — the more we are obliged to protect it.  If we fail to do either, we fail to be fully human.  The Ecology of Eden, Evan Eisenberg, p. 97.
 
    As clergy we believe that how we “work and protect” our world is the single most important theological challenge facing us today.  At the heart of this issue is how we use and/or waste energy. Our dependency on fossil fuel has morphed into a world threatening addiction that has contributed to global warming, more appropriately titled, “global scorching.”. High energy costs swallow up income and other resources that might be used to improve the quality of life for people here and throughout the world.  Though the problem seems too big for any little local effort to really matter, the truth it does matter. If every household in the USA switched one incandescent bulb for a compact fluorescent light bulbs (cfl’s) it would save enough energy to light 7 million homes and save 600 million dollars in utility costs.

   For years the Food & Fuel Fund has helped people absorb these high energy costs.  Last spring, after much discussion and soul searching, the Interfaith Council decided that we had a religious and moral imperative to do more.  As a result, we set in motion a plan to expand the mandate of the Food & Fuel to advocate, educate and promote energy efficiency. Thanks to grants from the Vermont Community Foundation, New England Grassroots Environment Fund and  Efficiency Vermont we will be launching several new programs in addition to the direct assistance we provide.
 
    Throughout the winter and spring we will distribute free cfls to people who receive assistance through the Food & Fuel Fund.  In addition to education about the benefits of cfls we will be explaining safe ways to dispose these bulbs We will also highlight seven ways that households can reduce energy expenses. We will be distributing refrigerator magnets with this information too.  In addition volunteer groups from participating faith communities will be making door snakes used to  stop drafts under doors that will be available free of  charge. Eventually we hope to partner with the owners of rental  properties to find ways to make their units as energy efficient as possible  within cost restrictions, for example, by installing set back thermometers, adding insulation, and encouraging more aggressive winterizing.
 
    With respect to the world, there is no “not in my backyard”.  Caring for the earth knows no religious differences, dogma or doctrine subtleties.  God’s holy presence fills the entire world.  As the age Jewish saying goes, “the day is short, the task is great….you are not asked to do it yourself; yet you are not free to avoid it…
 
    As people of faith, we believe, that “[T]he significant problems we have cannot be solved at the same level of thinking with which we created them.” (Albert Einstein)
 
Rabbi Howard Cohen                                    Mother Anita Schell-Lambert
Rabbi Emeritus                                            Rector
Congregation Beth El                                    St. Peter’s Episcopal Church
Bennington                                                 Bennington