Several Episcopal Churches to Honour Earth Day 2005

On 22nd April, several Episcopal churches and congregations will honour Earth Day 2005 as people around the world come together to celebrate its 35th anniversary in actions, studies and celebrations that focus on environmental themes.

St. Boniface Church in the Diocese of Southwest Florida has planned a Creation Weekend with something for all ages connected with a cruise on Sarasota and Roberts Bay. At St. Matthew’s Church in Sterling, Virginia, environmental service will be held, focusing on adopt-a-trail project and on Sunday, creation themes will be emphasised at all three liturgies.

Other Dioceses also prepared interesting programs such as exploring spiritual foundations of creation care and presentation on energy sources and conversation on family organised by St. Paul’s in Benicia. St. David’s in Page, Arizona will do clean-up activities and hosting a booth at the Earth Day fair in the City Park.

Interesting projects will be made in the diocese of New Jersey which will prepare a workshop, "Greening Your Church: Protect the Earth and Reduce Energy Costs" as a part of an annual diocesan program "Equipping New Jersey for New Life and New Mission."

Earth day is a day to show interest to care and protect the environment. It is usually celebrated on April 22nd according to the first Earth Day celebration in 1970 founded by Gaylord Nelson, but many of the events and festivals are also to take place on the weekends before and after this date.

There is no official organisation or group appointed as the Earth Day organisers, but many non-profit groups and coalitions organise activities and gather information on the important events being held in the United States and in other countries.

Since the first Earth Day, people around the world celebrate the blue planet through a variety of individual and community activities. But Earth Day is not only about observing the beauty and vitality of the nature. It is also important to remember it is man's responsibility to save the living planet.

"Earth Day is a perfect time to raise awareness about threats to the planet’s natural habitat. With threatened coral reefs, endangered species and global warming on the rise, we need to take advantage of Earth Day to let people know about the importance of protecting the earth," said Conservancy’s Great Place Network.

Even though many events take place for this day, it is also important what you do at home or at work and in your community. Truly everyone can participate in events, activities and projects prepared to focus on restoring, cleaning up and preserving our environment.