UMW Green Team members gather for envirnomental justice-learning event

United Methodist Women Social Action Coordinators, Green Team members and Women's Divison directors meet in Washington, D.C. for Ecumenical Advocacy Days in Alexandria, Virginia. (Photo by Naomi Yaeger-Bischoff)

Climate Change Tops Ecumenical Advocacy Days

by YVETTE MOORE*

Forty-seven United Methodist Women social action and environmental justice leaders shared organizing tips and boned up on legislation affecting women, children, youth and the environment at the 7th Annual Ecumenical Advocacy Days in the Washington, D.C., area, Mar. 12-16. The “Enough for All Creation” ecumenical advocacy event convened more than 600 people from various denominations and faith groups to focus on the urgent need for legislative action around climate change.

Even event workshops on Africa, peace, hunger and economic justice examined the impact of global warming on those issues.

“As Christians, we must be truth-tellers,” said the Rev. Sean McDonagh in the opening plenary worship of the ecumenical event. “If we continue in the way we are going, by 2100, a third of the earth will be desert. So children I baptize this year -- whom I would hope would live to be 100 -- they will be here when this happens. … This is a Kairos moment. Pray courage for individuals and courage for our leaders. We have the technology. The world has the wealth. But the world still doesn’t have the political will to act -- and we have a window of about 10-20 years to effect change.”

Read the whole story on the GBGM UMW website here