On Saturday, October 30, the Orange County Interfaith Coalition for the Environment (OCICE, a Cooperation Circle of URI located in Southern California, USA) will hold a one day conference titled "Caring for Creation."
The keynote address will be given by Bishop William Swing, Founder and President of URI. The question to be explored is as follows:, "Is Environmentalism a Religion?"
Bishop Swing writes: "When an individual moves from being indifferent toward the environment and then becomes passionate about the environment, this transformation appears to be similar to a religious conversion experience. One of the words often used to describe a religious conversion is the word "repentance." Repentance means to turn around and face in the opposite direction . People all over world are repenting about how they/we have abused the environment and are intent now on saving the planet. Their zeal has an almost religious fervor. Has environmentalism become a religion? Or is it just a close kin?
Are religion and environmentalism coincidentally two phenomenon on parallel tracks or is there a religious dimension to environmentalism? The genesis of religions usually appear with a Creation Story while environmentalists of all stripes understand the created order as foundational in their values system. Is this an accidental overlap in focus or.....is there something relgious about environmentalism or something basically environmental about religions? Let's explore this."
To register for the conference, or learn more about the workshops that are being offered, visit the OCICE website.
