Overture 47

On Amending G-3.0300c, Christ’s Faithful Evangelist, to Add a Section on Caring for God’s Creation—From the Presbytery of Heartland.

The Presbytery of Heartland overtures the 217th General Assembly (2006) of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to do the following:

1. Reaffirm the statements of the 183rd, 187th, 192nd, 193rd, 195th, 196th, 199th, 201st, 202nd, 204th, 205th, 206th, 208th, 210th, 211th, 213th, 215th General Assemblies (1971, 1975, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2003) reflecting the determination of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) that protection of the environment is an essential part of the Christian faith.

2. Direct the Stated Clerk to send the following proposed amendment to the Book of Order to the presbyteries for their affirmative or negative votes:

Shall G-3.0300c(3) be amended by adding a new section, “(e),” and re-lettering section “(f)” as “(g)” to read as follows: [Text to deleted is shown with a strike-through; text to be added or inserted is shown as italic.]

“(e) protecting the environment and promoting sustainable living, reverently working as responsible and faithful stewards of God’s creation,

“(e) (f) [Text remains unchanged.]”

Chapter III of the Book of Order defines the church and its mission. This overture will expand our call as Christ’s Faithful Evangelist to reflect G.3.0101 (God’s Activity), “God created the heavens and the earth and made human beings in God’s image, charging them to care for all that lives ... .” The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) continues to interpret this charge to include all life and the environment that sustains it. Therefore, amending the Book of Order to incorporate caring for God’s creation is appropriate.

Scripture proclaims, “... You are the Lord, you alone; you have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. To all of them you give life, and the host of heaven worships you” (Neh. 9:6). Ours is a God concerned not only with humanity but all of creation, a God whose spirit is the breath of all life and whose glory is manifest in the creation we share.

Justice, peace and the environment are interrelated. Whenever we humans abuse the environment, whenever we engage in non-sustainable consumption of our earth’s finite resources, we are not only endangering the future of life on our planet, but we are committing acts of violence and injustice against other life—both present and future. Protecting and restoring creation is central to our own survival.

Caring for the environment is another way to care for people. We care about people who are hungry and impoverished as well as people who are the victims of pollution and resource depletion; we care about people who share the planet with us today as well as future generations. When we think of loving and caring for our neighbor as Jesus taught us, let us realize that we all live upwind and upstream from someone elseæboth in time and space. Ecosystems and people systems are intricately interwoven and interconnected, forming the tapestry of life.

We in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) have a rich tradition of justice and reverence for life. Included in our mission is responsible and faithful stewardship of God’s earth. We have been commanded to tend the garden.

Historical References:

In 1954, the Presbyterian church stated:

... We call upon the Christian conscience to recognize that our stewardship of the earth and water involves both a land-use program that recognizes the interdependence of soil, water and man and the development of a responsible public policy which will resist the exploitation of land, water, and other natural resources, including forests for selfish purposes and maintain intelligent conservation for the sustenance of all living creatures through future generations. (Minutes, PCUSA, 1954, Part I, p. 198)

This stewardship commitment has been repeated and reaffirmed by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and its predecessors, as follows:

1967 The Confession of 1967 stressed the justice of sharing resources and the interdependence of resources and living creatures.

1971 The 183rd General Assembly (1971) accepted the “Christian Responsibility for Environmental Renewal” statement that called for a new order of values based on an “eco-ethic” and a Statement on Environmental Renewal (Minutes, UPCUSA, 1971, Part I, pp. 578-83).

1975 A recommendation was made to the 187th General Assembly (1975) to affirm advocacy of the protection of wildlife areas and parklands (Minutes, UPCUSA, 1975, Part I, p. 59).

1980 The 192nd General Assembly (1980) voted to (1) develop educational resources on the adverse impact that careless technology has on the environment and health of the unborn; (2) instruct the Board of Investment Committee to review corporate responsibility regarding manufacture of dioxins (Social Justice Compilation, 1980 Statement to the Mission Board, Item 1, 6.2.4).

1981 The 193rd General Assembly (1981) pledged support of the United Nations Drinking Water and Sanitation Decade, 1981-1990, calling upon Presbyterians “to develop lifestyles that are consistent with the necessity to conserve water” (Minutes, UPCUSA, 1981, Part I, p. 254).

1983 The 195th General Assembly (1983) urged the session of each congregation in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to consider making a “Commitment to Peacemaking” that included making peace with the earthæinvolve the congregation in efforts to protect and restore the environment (Minutes, 1983, Part I, p. 438).

1984 The 196th General Assembly (1984) called upon Congress of the United States to reduce the emissions of sulfur dioxide and the oxides of nitrogen to a level that will protect the most sensitive environment and stated that human stewardship is not a dominion of mastery and called us to exercise respect for the integrity of natural systems and for the limits that nature places on economic growth and material consumption (Minutes, 1984, Part I, p. 349).

1987 The 199th General Assembly (1987) voted to urge the United States government to assure acceptable disposal sites for high-level nuclear waste. It also voted to urge each presbytery and local church to encourage and support alternatives to pesticides and support the victims of pesticide poisoning (Social Justice Compilation, 1987, Item 4.a., 6.2.6.).

1988 The Environmental Justice Office is created to study past environmental policies of the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. and the Presbyterian Church in the United States to create a combined report of environmental concerns for Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). The Environmental Justice Office is a ministry of the General Assembly Council of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), lodged in the National Ministries Division, Social Justice program area, and is now actively involved in creation care and environmental justice issues.

1989 The 201st General Assembly (1989) calls for governments to strengthen regulations and enforcement regarding transportation of oil and hazardous substances, in response to the Exxon-Valdez tanker spill in 1989 (Minutes, 1989, Part I, p. 642).

1990 The 202nd General Assembly (1990) passes “Restoring Creation for Ecology and Justice” affirming “creation cries out in this time of ecological crises,” calling the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to respond to this cry and engage in an effort to make the 1990s the “turnaround decade,” providing the foundation for the work of the Environmental Justice Office. Also, the 202nd General Assembly (1990) calls attention to the problem of global warming and encourages the United States government to take steps toward incorporating environmental damage and depletion into “full-cost pricing” (Minutes, 1990, Part I, p. 646-70).

1992 The 204th General Assembly (1992) directs all future General Assemblies to print all official reports on recycled and recyclable paper and to direct all related bodies to use recycled and recyclable paper for all reports and publication (Minutes, 1992, Part I, p. 846).

1993 The 205th General Assembly (1993) reaffirms the “Call to Restore Creation,” receives the document “World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity” as a prophetic word to the church, urges President Clinton to follow new policies from the Earth Summit, and directs the Social Justice and Peacemaking unit to advocate for policies that will reduce carbon dioxide emissions (Minutes, 1993, Part I, pp. 896-97).

1994 The 206th General Assembly (1994), within the context of its “Resolution on the United States in Its Asia-Pacific Relations,” listed five basic principles by which past General Assemblies have been guided related to international affairs. One of the principles, and the resolution that follow it, relates specifically to the environment. “The General Assembly has advocated new understanding of the relationship among human life, institutions, and the total stewardship and care for the planet, which is the common heritage of all peoples ...” (Minutes, 1994, Part I, p. 310).

1996 The 208th General Assembly (1996) approves the paper “Hope for a Global Future: Toward Just and Sustainable Human Development” as policy for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Just and sustainable human development is the comprehensive enhancement of the quality of life for all, present and future; it necessarily involves the integration of economic, social, political, cultural, ecological, and spiritual dimensions of being (Minutes, 1996, Part I, pp. 524ff).

1999 The 211th General Assembly (1999) calls upon the United States to ratify the protocol negotiated in Kyoto and urges Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) congregations and institutions to pursue energy efficiency and conservation in their buildings and property (Minutes, 1999, Part I, pp. 669-70).

1999 The 211th General Assembly (1999) again calls upon the U.S. to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, urges the United States to go beyond Kyoto targets for carbon dioxide emission reductions, directs the Presbyterian Center in Louisville and all other properties of the General Assembly to minimize fossil fuel energy (along with urging local congregations to do the same), and directs the General Assembly to promote education regarding global warming and other environmental concerns (Minutes, 1999, Part I, pp. 668-70).

2001 The 213th General Assembly (2001) calls to issue and disseminate the “Call to Halt Mass Extinction.” The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) calls Presbyterians, other citizens, governments, and societal institutions to face the severity of this threat and to take steps to prevent mass extinction and preserve the biodiversity essential to the flourishing of life (Minutes, 2001, Part I, pp. 473-75).

2003 The 215th General Assembly (2003) calls on the United States government to join the world effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to develop and enact a national emergency response, underwritten by law, with adequate financial support, and economic enforcement mechanism, to be fully functioning by 2005, with targeted reductions by that time (Minutes, 2003, Part I, p. 617).