
December 8, 2009
Dear Colleagues,
We greet you as the year ends and Earth turns towards the Sun, regenerating the cycle of life. This is a rich season of celebrations affirming light and rebirth. Clearly we will need such revitalizing energies for the work ahead. As we turn over the garden in our yard and plant winter rye to restore the soil, we are reminded of the gift of life that grounds our efforts. With all of the challenges our planet is facing, we have much to be thankful for, especially in the collective and creative work in religion and ecology around the world. With the wind moving gently through the pines and across our small, raked rock garden, we are filled with gratitude for the communities of concern that are emerging.
It is no longer the case that religious and spiritual efforts for the environment are at the margins. They are being invited to the table and are partners in many new alliances. What is noteworthy is that there is both a deepening of reflection on the role of human-Earth relations at the same time as there is active engagement with the pressing issues of environmental degradation and protection. The spectrum of reflection and engagement ranges from the world's religions, to indigenous traditions, to environmental ethics and cultural approaches different from institutional religions.
One of the great leaders in this movement for transformative change passed away this year on June 1st. Thomas Berry was our teacher, guide, and collaborator for some 40 years. The celebrations of his life and legacy have been numerous. The Memorial service the Forum organized at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine in New York drew more than one thousand people. It was filled with music, joy, and a sense of the participation of the whole Earth community (
www.thomasberry.org). His two last books of essays carry forward his reflections on the world's religions (The Sacred Universe) and on Christianity (The Christian Future and the Fate of Earth).
With Thomas' inspiration, both the field and the force of religion and ecology have grown immensely. The academic field is flourishing across North America. A Canadian Forum on Religion and Ecology has been established. The "Religion and Ecology" group at the American Academy of Religion is thriving. Courses are being taught in many colleges, universities, and high schools. Here at Yale the Master's Program in Religion and Ecology is attracting students. There is still the challenge of bridging different disciplines so that an integrated field can be established. There are now two interdisciplinary journals in the field, namely, Worldviews: Global Religions, Culture, and Ecology and Journal for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture.
The force of religion and ecology is evident in a series of conferences and engaged activities that occurred this year. For example, in October the Japanese government held a conference called "Policy Approaches for Realizing a Sustainable Future: Building a New Framework on Climate Change" (
www.gea.or.jp/top_en.html). At the opening session, the Crown Prince, Naruhito, spoke eloquently regarding the interdependence of life. The new Prime Minister, Yukio Hatoyama, also called for Japan to reduce greenhouse emissions by 25% by 2020. The other sessions included green policies, technologies, and finance for a sustainable energy future. However, the session that received the most discussion was on the challenge to create a new educational and ethical framework for the transition required. The Forum's contribution was well received in this context. We highlighted the shared values of religion and environmental ethics, namely, reverence and respect,
restraint and redistribution, responsibility and renewal.
At the end of October, the Ecumenical Patriarch, Bartholomew, convened his 8th Symposium on Religion, Science, and the Environment. Titled "Restoring Balance: The Great Mississippi River," it brought together people from the fields of science, engineering, public policy, media, and religion. It focused on past efforts to control the Mississippi River and the problems this created when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans (
www.rsesymposia.org). The Forum assisted in chairing several sessions, including one that featured the film we are working on with Brian Swimme, titled Journey of the Universe. This film provided a large-scale context for these discussions, as it narrates the story of Universe-Earth evolution, pointing toward our ecological roles in that story.
Finally, the year concluded with two significant interreligious events. The first, held at Windsor Castle in England, was hosted by Prince Philip and UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, and was organized by the Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC). It featured environmental commitments of selected representatives from the world's religions (
www.windsor2009.org). The second, sponsored by the Council for the Parliament of the World's Religions, was held in Melbourne, Australia, titled "Making a World of Difference: Hearing Each Other, Healing the Earth." The Forum organized panels on world religions and ecology, the Earth Charter, Thomas Berry's thought, and the films Renewal, Numen, The Arctic: The Consequences of Human Folly, and Journey of the Universe (
www.parliamentofreligions.org).
Future Forum plans include an interdisciplinary meeting in India focused on the Yamuna River. It will be sponsored by the Forum on Religion and Ecology at Yale along with The Energy Research Institute (TERI) directed by Dr. R.K. Pachauri, and Friends of Vrindavan led by Acharya Shrivatsa Goswami, who is head of Sri Radharaman Temple. In addition, the Forum is planning a conference in Beijing with the Institute of World Religions at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences on traditional religious thought and its relationships to environmental ethics in China. This will be in collaboration with our Forum colleague, Professor Tu Weiming, formerly of Harvard and now directing a new Institute for the Humanities at Beijing University.
With all good wishes for your work on behalf of the Earth community,
Mary Evelyn Tucker and John Grim
Co-Directors of the Forum on Religion and Ecology at Yale
www.yale.edu/religionandecology
Link to Service
http://www.greenspirit.org.uk/thomasberry/a-final-farewell-to-thoma...
June 1, 2009
Dear Friends,
Our friend and mentor to many of us, Thomas Berry, died peacefully at 6:35 AM this morning. We are all grateful to him for his generosity of spirit and of mind, his love of marrying science and religion, his integrity and passion for justice and especially eco-justice, and his hard work in learning, teaching and mentoring. He was a man of wisdom and a man of grace.
Below is a link to a few words I spoke a few years ago at a gathering to honor him and he was present for that gathering. (This has been posted on my web page for a few years.)
Now Thomas joins the ancestors. And he leaves behind much work for all of us to do. All part of the Great Work of which he wrote so eloquently.
Cordially,
Matthew Fox
http://www.matthewfox.org/sys-tmpl/tberry/
See also:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/04/us/04berry.html?_r=2&scp=1&am...berry%22&st=cse
http://ncronline.org/news/ecology/thomas-berry-environmentalist-pri...
http://www.thomasberry.org/Biography/tucker-bio.html
http://www.thomasberry.org/Biography/grim-bio.html
http://www.thegreatstory.org/tb-audio.html
http://thankgodforevolution.com/node/1869
http://www.greenspirit.org.uk/resources/TBerry.shtml
Memorials:
The Thomas Berry Foundation was established in 1999 to foster his work. Donations to continue his legacy may be sent to:
The Thomas Berry Foundation
c/o Mary Evelyn Tucker and John Grim
29 Spoke Drive
Woodbridge, CT 06525