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info@stpaulsbedford.org

Green Team

Mission Statement 

Creation care is a recognized ministry within the Episcopal Church. Since 2015, the Green Team at St. Paul’s has promoted creation care as an integral part of living out Jesus’ Way of Love. We help discern and implement ways that church operations can become more environmentally sustainable; we encourage and empower fellow parishioners to make similar commitments to environmental stewardship in their own lives; we offer opportunities and resources to connect creation care with our faith, to advocate for environmental and climate justice issues in the public sphere, and to encourage a love and reverence for the natural world. We respond to the Bishops’ letter of 2021 which called for Episcopal parishes across Massachusetts to respond to the growing Climate Emergency by finding ways to Pray, Learn, Act and Advocate on behalf of God’s Creation.

Earth Sunday Outdoor service at Fawn Lake
Black Earth Composting bin at St. Paul's
Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper displaying compostable tableware.
Bedford Forest Eucharist
St. Paul's Parish Garden
Bishop, Rector and green team members in front of St. Paul's solar panels for Blessing of the Solar Panels.

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Ways We Pray

  • We regularly celebrate Earth Sunday on a Sunday close to Earth Day, April 22.   
  • Similarly, the Season of Creation is observed between World Day of Prayer for the Earth (Sept. 1st) and the Feast of St. Francis (Oct. 4th) and has become an integral part of our parish calendar.  On designated Sundays we use prayers, music and special vestments to celebrate God’s Creation.  Sermons reflect the Season and special events are scheduled. 

Ways We Learn

  • We regularly host programs that aim to inform and inspire.  Recently we hosted a 9-session adult formation series entitled Love God, Love God’s World.
  • We share information with the Parish community about local opportunities and events through the monthly Epistle, weekly e-news, and the Green Team bulletin board.

Ways We Act – Eco-Stewardship at church and at home

  • The Green Team works with the Hospitality Committee and others to provide and use compostable paper products and flatware at social events.  We compost these and all food leftovers with curbside pickup service from Black Earth Composting.
  • We regularly promote earth-friendly ways to reduce our carbon footprint and conserve natural resources during parish events and in our homes.
  • We support the annual parish Thrift Sale and ongoing recycling drives, whether organized by our own parish or by the town of Bedford.  We affirm the need to reduce, reuse and recycle responsibly as one part of our commitment to care for creation.
  • Outdoor projects include occasional worship services and collaborating with other parishioners on landscape and gardening projects. 

Ways We Advocate

  • We advocate for climate justice by partnering with the Coalition to Stop Private Jet Expansion at Hanscom or Anywhere.
  • Because climate justice cannot be separated from social justice, we encourage individual advocacy on a range of environmental, climate, and social issues at the state and local level.
  • We use the resources of the Episcopal Office for Government Relations to advocate for social justice at the federal level.

We welcome opportunities to collaborate with other groups within the congregation and beyond who are also seeking ways to care for creation.  

 

Other “Green” Accomplishments of the Parish and the Team

  • We completed an Environmental Stewardship Assessment offered by Massachusetts Interfaith Power and Light to identify areas for carbon footprint reduction. 
  • We installed high-efficiency windows in the sanctuary, increased insulation, and LED lights in the parking lot, with the assistance of two Diocesan ‘Green Grants’ and Parish Capital Campaigns. 
  • Capital Campaigns also made possible the installation of solar panel arrays on the rear roof in 2015 and the sanctuary roof in 2025,
  • And the installation of heat pumps to replace an aging boiler and add air conditioning
  • We subscribed up to 100% green and renewable electricity through the Bedford Community Choice program. 
  • We implemented a robust composting program (see above). 
  • For several years we also experimented with raised garden beds as an opportunity for children and adults to interact with the natural world and provide fresh herbs and vegetables to parishioners and local food pantries.
Outreach

The Outreach Committee coordinates congregational activities including support for immigrants, advocating for bills addressing food insecurity, and helping restock local food pantries. In addition, we have a knitting ministry (including Project Linus), we support the Diocese’s B-Safe summer youth program, and our youth participate in service projects and mission trips. Our international mission includes partnerships with programs in Haiti.

Music

Worship is the centerpiece of our life together in Christ, and music plays a vital role. Our adult choir sings at every Sunday service from September to June. We rehearse at 9:00am on Sunday mornings before church, and again at 11:30am after church. The children’s choir sings approximately once a month, on Family Sundays, and rehearses Sundays after church.

Education

At St. Paul’s we believe that we are all continually striving to learn and understand our faith and our relationship with God more fully. Christian formation with and for our children on Sundays uses a variety of curricula. High school and middle school youth groups meet regularly during the church year. Adult education takes place through study groups, adult forums, and groups for men and women.

Fellowship

St. Paul’s is a family of God, and as a family, we enjoy being together, sharing our time, our interests, and our faith. We share food and fellowship at weekly and annual events throughout the year. We also provide meals, rides, prayers, and other support for our members in times of need.

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