Green Sanctuary

Check out the press release from the Tar Sands Action Interfaith Day at the Inspired Faith Effective Action blog.

Also, read Rev. Craig Roshaven’s reflection on his arrest and how you can continue to support the efforts of the Stop the Tar Sands folk!

UUs are continuing to gather in DC to risk arrest, witness and support the protest, and sign petitions and call the White House to urge the Obama Administration (who has the sole decision making on whether or not the pipeline is approved) to Stop the Tar Sands Pipeline and to invest in clean energy instead.  Please keep these people in your thoughts and hearts and they witness based on their UU values.

Over 300 people gathered today in Lafayette Park across from The White House to participate in the Tar Sands Action civil disobedience.Today was interfaith day.  The Key Stone XL Pipeline is something that will affect everybody in the United States and beyond our borders.  Rose Berger and Tim Kumfer brought together people from various faith traditions (Christians, Jews, Buddhists, Muslims, Franciscan priests, and Unitarian Universalists) to show that faith communities are concerned about the environment, the inter-connected web of life, and the environmental injustices this pipeline will cause.

The day started out with a Jewish Song Service.  The leaders of this service explained to us that in Jerusalem, traditionally, the Jews and Muslims, gather to sign together in the square before going to their respective worship services and wanted this to be a reflection of that.  Singing happened for about 45 minutes – Rev. Craig Roshaven led the group in “We are a gentle angry people.”  This was followed by a short interfaith service.  Unitarian Universalists (UUs) were represented by Barbara Ford.

Then the rally started – Bill McKibben spoke as did James Hansen about how important this action was today and how brave people were being.  “What started out as a protest has become a movement” McKibben stated.  And all those there today and the previous 7 days are a part of this movement.

The group lined up in front of the White House, and, after “refusing to follow a lawful order”  (standing in front of the White House) around 143 people were arrested.  Today’s protest has become the largest day of arrests at the pipeline protest.

UUs were well represented among the protesters.  Approximately 40 people were there on behalf of their faith community.  14 UUs were arrested, while 11 others served as observers and support people, and one chaplain was present and available for pastoral concerns.With the faith community being so large, the tone for the protest was peaceful and involved lots of signing.  James Hansen, climate scientist, decided he wanted to be arrested with “religious folk” and gave a shout out to the Methodists.

The police systematically arrested the women and then the men, putting them into vans for transport to Anacostia Detention Center.  It was a long hard day for all involved.  UUs started their day at 9am and were all finally released (after post-and-forfeiting $100) by 3:18pm.  Most were tired, exhausted, and a bit dehydrated.  At the same time, they all seemed proud, changed, and glad that they represented their faith community and its values by witnessing for it.  Several UUs commented that they also appreciated seeing UUA staff support at the Tar Sands Action Rally.

I’ll be following up with individual stories over the next week or two so make sure you check back to learn more about what inspired each of the 14 arrested UUs to participate in this act of non-violent civil disobedience.

Due to Hurricane Irene, this Sunday’s service at All Souls Unitarian Church has been cancelled.  The local electric utility, Pepco, has warned us that widespread power outages are likely.

If the power is on (it would be a good idea to call the restaurant to make sure they have power), we will meet for lunch at 1:30 p.m. as originally planned at:

Busboys and Poets
2021 14th St NW (near 14th & V)
Washington, DC
(202) 387-7638

If the power is out at Busboys and Poets, they will be closed. An alternate place to gather for lunch at 1:30 is the lobby of the Renaissance Hotel at 999 Ninth Street NW, Washington, DC 20001. We will stay in the lobby or the hotel restaurant until 2:00 p.m. but if the hotel restaurant is closed, we may need to go elsewhere for lunch. We’ll leave a message with the concierge or the front desk.  Craig Roshaven will be wearing his yellow Standing on the Side of Love t-shirt. This is located close to Mount Vernon United Methodist Church. See below for directions to that location.

Sunday, August 28th 4 p.m. – 9 p.m. Mandatory Training: Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church at 900 Massachusetts Ave. NW, D.C. (Mt. Vernon Square Metro on Green/Yellow line) for Tar Sands Action training and legal briefing. (A meal will be provided.)

• 4 p.m. – 5 p.m. The religious contingent will meet to strategize about Sunday. Please make yourself known to Rose Berger or Tim Kumfer as soon as you arrive.
• 5 p.m. – 9 p.m. will be the nonviolence training and legal briefing.

Monday, August 29th 10am Interfaith Tar Sands Action Rally we will start assembling around 9:45am.

Contact Information:  Craig Roshaven: CRoshaven@uua.org
Robin Nelson: RNelson@uua.org

Last week, Rev. Craig C. Roshaven, UUA Witness Ministries Director, and Barbara Ford, UUMFE member and past-President, asked UUs to join them in non-violent civil disobedience on the Tar Sands Action Interfaith Day .

Since then, a number of UUs have contacted Robin Nelson, UUA Environmental Stewardship Manager, to indicate that they will join Craig and Barbara in risking arrest. We are so excited to see the momentum for this movement building and encourage others to join and support us in whatever ways they can.

The Tar Sands Action started on August 20^th and will continue until September 3^rd.  On Saturday, August 20^th 75 people were arrested and 50 of those were held over the weekend awaiting arraignment on Monday.  Bill McKibben, author, educator, environmentalist, and one of the driving forces behind the Tar Sands Action, passed along a statement from the central cell block where he was held since Saturday through Monday saying “Hello everyone! We don’t need sympathy, we need company. It’s clear to us that police were hoping to deter this action, and it’s equally clear to us the opposite will be the result.”

Terry Tempest Williams said this about Tar Sands: “The act of civil disobedience is the act of taking our anger and turning it into sacred rage. It is a personal and collective gesture of resistance and insistence….We can travel to Washington, D.C. mentally, create an image of support to those who can be there on the front lines physically…. We can participate in building this climate change movement, each in our own way, each in our own time with the gifts that are ours. We can become the fire of hopeful action that burns through corruption and complacency. We can be the river of concern that cools our sweltering planet. And we will be the voice of resistance that says yes to a more compassionate way of being in the world and face those who say no with the force of our steady gaze.”

Ways in which you can support Tar Sands Action Interfaith Day and the UUs who are participating:

• Attend All Souls DC service at 10:15am on Sunday, August 28^th where Tar Sands Action participants will be recognized.
• Join Tar Sands Action folks for lunch after the service to show your support.
• Attend the rally at Lafayette Park on Monday, August 29^th around 9:45am to show support for those risking arrest.
• Risk arrest by participating in non-violent civil disobedience on Monday, August 29^th – a required interfaith gathering and training and legal briefing for our witness will take place on Sunday, August 28th from 4-9 p.m.
• Sign the Stop the Tar Sands Petition. The petition will be delivered to President Obama during the Tar Sands Action.
• Sign the Religious Tar Sands Petition.
• Write an op-ed to  your local news editor. (Check out the editorial in Monday’s New York Times.)
• Talk with your friends, neighbors, colleagues, congregation members, etc. about the Key Stone XL Pipeline and how it is a danger to our environment and get them to take action.
• Make use of the End Big Oil subsides tool kit.
• Make a donation to the UUMFE or become a member.  The Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth (UUMFE) is a non-profit organization whose supporters envision a world in which reverence, gratitude, and care for the living Earth is central to the lives of all people.

 For Earth,

UU Ministry for Earth (UUMFE) Board
UUA Environmental Stewardship
UUA Witness Ministries

Nancy King Smith, Co-Chair UUMFE
Irene Keim, Co-Chair UUMFE
Barbara Ford, UUMFE member and past President
Terry Wiggins, Former UUMFE Treasurer
Pamela Sparr, Environmental Justice Consultant to UUMFE
Robin Nelson, UUA Environmental Stewardship Manager
Rev. Craig C. Roshaven, UUA Witness Ministries Director
Kat Liu, UUA Witness Ministries Program Associate
Rev. Terry Ellen, Executive Director of UUs for Social Justice
Jo Ann Bachar, First Unitarian Society of Milwaukee
Linda S. Cooper, First UU Society in Burlington, VT
Lynn Dash
Wes Ernsberger, UU Congregation of Binghamton, NY
Celeste McCollough Howard, Unitarian Universalist Community Church of Washington County, Hillsboro OR
Vincent Pawlowski, UU Congregation of North West Tucson, AZ

By Lynne Nittler
Member of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Davis, CA

“Would you host Tim DeChristopher for the May California Student Sustainability Coalition?” asked UCD Student Lauren.

I gasped.  The Tim DeChristopher who stopped the illegal auction of public lands in Utah, Bush’s parting gift to the oil companies just before he left office?  The young man who drove up the bids with no money, and when he was caught, simply confessed?  His action stopped the auction and before it could resume, President Obama declared the auction illegal.  For his civil disobedience, Tim was found guilty on felony charges and awaited sentencing.

Tim walked in my house, glanced around, and said, “So you’re a Unitarian?” noting the hymnal on the piano.
“I need the moral foundation. The principles ground me, keep me on course,”  I said.

He nodded agreement.  He is a member of the Salt Lake City UU Church with its huge and active congregation.

Tim has an agreeable, gentle manner.  He taught kids outdoor adventure and loved being in the wilderness. He appreciated the peacefulness of my home, biking to campus, the enthusiasm of the students.

He’d been “in training” for awhile, studying Martin Luther King and Gandhi and soaking in coaching by writer Terry Tempest Williams.  He realized that it took only a few brave souls willing to take risks to ignite the civil rights movement, and soon the whole country took up the challenge.  He believed the same could be true for our present climate crisis.  It might only take a few people to stand up against the fossil fuel industry to tip the scales.

Here’s the thing, though.  I thanked Tim for his action for all of us, hoped he would receive the mildest sentence, and admitted I lacked his courage.  Tim looked right at me.

“I thought it would be a sacrifice, risking going to prison.  But the minute I took action, I was free.  I could never go back to being a victim now, having tasted freedom.”

Tim told the judge at his recent sentencing.  “You have control over my life, but not over my principles.”    I’m not worried about Tim in prison; he knows exactly what he’s doing and now he’s writing and thinking.

Already Tim’s activism is inspiring others to take action.   More than 2,000 committed individuals are arriving in Washington DC in waves for two weeks of peaceful sit-ins August 20 – September 3.  He’s also inspired the interfaith community to take action nda plan a specific Tar Sands Action Interfaith Day.

Dear friends,

We want to invite you to join us in an effort to stop the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.  The UU Ministry for Earth (UUMFE), All Souls Unitarian in Washington, DC and other national and local UU groups are joining with interfaith leaders from Jewish, Catholic, Christian, and Buddhist communities on August 28^th and 29^th to protest the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline (the proposed pipeline to transport Tar Sands to the US for refinement).

The Keystone XL Pipeline will be built from the Tar Sands in Canada, across the US, down to Texas refineries.  First Nations communities in Canada and Native American tribes along the pipeline route in the U.S. have demanded the destruction of their sacred lands cease.  People impacted by the construction and the “state of the art technology” predicted to leak every seven years don’t want to see it built.  People of color and the poor are at a significantly greater risk of health impacts from dirty fossil fuels, and are amongst the first to suffer from the impacts of climate change.  Concerns about the Tar Sands Pipeline include the risky extraction methods, the dangers of the pipeline itself, and the long-term climate change consequences.

The Tar Sands Action rolling wave of civil disobedience (or “divine obedience”) is shaping up to be the longest civil disobedience on climate change in U.S. history. The Obama Administration has the sole authority in deciding whether or not the pipeline will be built which is why folks across faith communities are participating in a rolling series of demonstrations, including risking arrest, from August 20^th – September 3^rd.

More than a dozen UU’s from around the country are coming to DC to participate. We invite you and members of your congregation to participate if you feel called in one or more of the following ways:

• Join the religious contingent (including UUs) and risk arrest at the rally on Monday, August 29^th.  A required nonviolence civil disobedience training and legal briefing for our witness will take place on Sunday, August 28th from 4-9 p.m.

• Attend the rally at Lafayette Park on Monday, August 29^th at 9:45am to show support for those risking arrest.  The legal witness in Lafayette Park will begin mid-morning, probably around 10 a.m. Look for the Green Sanctuary Banner in Lafayette Park to stand in solidarity with other UUs.

• Sign the Stop the Tar Sands Petition. Those who can’t join the rally can join the movement to stop the Keystone XL pipeline by signing the petition that will be delivered to President Obama during the Tar Sands Action.

• Write an op-ed (or letter to your local news editor).

• Join the UUMFE.  Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth is a non-profit organization whose supporters envision a world in which reverence, gratitude, and care for the living Earth is central to the lives of all people. As a 501(c)3 organization, contributions are tax deductible to the full extent of the law.

• Please contact Robin Nelson, Environmental Stewardship Manager for the UUA, if you or people from your congregation will be attending the rally, especially if you are intending to risk arrest (Rnelson at uua dot org, 617.948.4251). Robin will be providing a support role and organizing UUs.  Watch for more timely information on the UUMFE Facebook page.

In faith,

Rev. Craig C. Roshaven, Witness Ministries Director
Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations

Barbara Ford, UUMFE member and past President