Faith Leaders Join Kentucky Sisters Raising Moral Voice for Clean Energy Sources

Pipeline Activists to Release Statement at Interfaith Prayer Ritual

3 p.m. Dec. 10 in Nelson County, Ky.

WHAT: Three religious communities in Kentucky’s “Holy Land” have co-authored an Energy Vision Statement that articulates the religious beliefs behind their work for clean energy solutions. They will release the statement at an interfaith prayer service, which will feature remarks on the call to reverence the sacredness of Earth in many faith traditions. To date, the statement has been signed by more than 60 faith communities and almost 500 individuals.

Details: http://www.lorettocommunity.org/interfaith-prayer-ritual-for-clean-energy/

WHO: Statement co-authors are the Loretto Community, the Dominican Sisters of Peace and Associates, and the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth and Associates. Together these communities include some 1400 Sisters and 1000 Associates and Co-Members.
Prayer ritual presenters/speakers include:

Sister Susan Gatz SCN: President, Sisters of Charity of Nazareth

Bo Tipton: Native American spiritual leader

Mary Berry: Christian advocate for sustainable land use, daughter of respected environmentalist Wendell Berry, reading a personal message from Wendell

Russ Greenleaf: Member of Jewish Voice for Peace

Camille and Kabir Helminski: Sufi authors and speakers

Anne Walter: President of the Board of Directors of the Drepung Gomang Institute, Louisville’s Tibetan Buddhist Temple

Susan Classen: Loretto Community Member, and Sister Claire McGowan, Dominican Sisters of Peace

All presenters available following the service for comments.

WHERE: Boone family farm in Nelson County, Ky. Leslie Clark Road, New Haven, Ky. – end of the road, 1 mile from Rte. 457 (no existing street number but follows after 800 Leslie Clark Road) The Boone family refused Bluegrass Pipeline access across their property. Current proposed pipeline route nearby.

WHEN: 3-3:45 p.m. ET Tuesday, Dec. 10

WHY: This year, these three religious communities have joined Kentucky landowners in a campaign to stop construction of the proposed Bluegrass Pipeline in their region. People around the country and beyond have applauded the Sisters’ activism, which culminated most recently in a 36,000-name petition against the pipeline delivered to Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear. By sharing the spiritual and ecological principles that motivate the Sisters’ efforts, they hope to inspire more people of faith to take leadership in seeking alternatives to hydraulically fractured natural gas, tar sands oil and other fossil fuels.

VISUALS: The prayer ritual will take place on a family farm, outdoors, weather permitting.* Native American, Christian, Muslim, Jewish and Buddhist speakers – some in religious dress – will share the stage. The ritual will include symbols of extractive industries