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Making Peace with the Earth: 
A Green Ritual of Passing the Peace
For Mission 4/1 Earth
Easter Season, 2013

If your congregation is adventurous and usually moves around during the Passing of the Peace, 
	you might try inviting them to make peace with the earth over the course of a few Sundays.

	Week One: Reconciling with the Earth
 		Have several baskets of different kinds of soil sitting on pedestals around the sanctuary. 
		(Have some towels alongside the baskets, for wiping hands.) 

		Each basket would be accompanied by a card 
			explaining what the soil needs to forgive humans for: 

			-the reduction of its fertility 
			due to extensive use of petro-chemical fertilizers and pesticides, 			
			-the compaction and destruction of its structure and 
			the ruin of natural drainage systems 
			by mass landscaping such as is practiced for new subdivisions, 
			
			-the erosion and loss of soil by those and other practices, etc.

		Ask parishioners to extend the hand of peace to the dirt, 
			by pressing their hands into the soil 
			and praying for reconciliation.

	Week Two: Reconciling with the Waters
		Create a similar set-up with large glass bowls and clear pitchers on each pedestal. 	
		Fill pitchers with water from various natural and human-managed sources. 
		One pedestal should have commercially bottled water, rather than a pitcher. 

		Placards with explanations can include: 
			-forgiveness for pollution from run-off from parking lots, 
			pesticide and fertilizer use in our yards, 
			and improper disposal of cleaning or painting supplies in the storm sewers, 

			-forgiveness for the commodification (selling) of water 
			when scripture tells us clean water is a right of every creature 
			(this should go with the pedestal with bottled water), 

			forgiveness for the failure to share water with God’s other creatures 
			by our water use programs that literally dry up rivers and lakes.

		Ask people to extend the hand of peace 
			by pouring some water from the pitcher into the bowl 
			and praying for reconciliation.

Week Three: Reconciling With the Trees and the Forests
		Place potted saplings around the sanctuary. (Plan ahead of time to donate them to a public garden 			or the grounds of a shelter or to plant them on church grounds.) 	
		Alongside them have cut ribbons of varying colors. 

		Placards can explain that we need trees’ forgiveness for: 
			-cutting down old growth forest for disposable products 
			like tissues and writing paper and disposable chopsticks, 

			-for failing to use recycled content paper of every kind, 

			-for allowing grading practices in home construction 
			that permit contractors to cut down every tree on the acreage.

		Ask people to extend the hand of peace 
		by tying a ribbon on the branches of the sapling 
		and saying a prayer for reconciliation.

Making Peace with the Earth: Green Rituals for Passing the Peace during Mission 4/1 Earth was written by the Rev. Betsy Taylor Flory of the UCC Environment and Energy task force. Other Mission 4/1 Earth materials may be found at http://www.ucc.org/news/mission-for-one-earth-website.html

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