The Rev. Margaret Bullitt-Jonas has recently taken up a new ministry focused on environmental spirituality for the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts.
The Rev. Margaret Bullitt-Jonas may have recently taken up a new ministry focused on environmental spirituality for the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts, but it is topic that has long been a focus for her.
"I've been increasingly concerned about climate change. In particular, I've been trying to help people of faith understand that tackling climate change is an urgent spiritual and moral issue," said Bullitt-Jonas, who has been involved with environmental activism for 20 years. She is part of an upcoming panel at the Springfield Central Library.
"It's climate change that wakes me up in the middle of the night -- more outbreaks of disease, rising sea levels, difficulty producing food. I worry about my son and my grandchildren. I think about climate change as the most urgent problem that faces human beings today."
Bullitt-Jonas, who, since 2004, had been priest associate at Grace Episcopal Church in Amherst since 2004, began her part-time position this month. The position is funded through an anonymous donation given to the diocese last fall for that purpose.Bullitt-Jonas said she is thankful that environmental issues are also a focus for the Right Rev. Douglas J. Fisher, who became diocesan bishop a year ago.
"When he arrived, he said that tackling climate change was right at the top of his concerns, and he really wanted the Church to play a leadership role in inspiring people to make changes in our personal lives in terms of how we drive, how we heat our homes, and how much we consume," she said.
"The climate crisis is too big to be solved by personal actions alone, so we also need changes in policy at a much larger level."
Bullitt-Jonas said protecting the Earth is something all religious faiths can agree upon, and she envisions forming relationships and partnerships with other faiths relating to this issue.
"We need voices of the faith community to speak up," she said. "We're at such an impasse politically and globally. I think we need the energy of people of faith to say God is with us in this struggle."
Bullitt-Jonas expects part of her time to be spent speaking with people in the diocese, preaching and leading retreats on related topics. She will also meet with other faith groups to brainstorm ideas, and lead climate change panel discussions. She is part of a panel discussion on divestment from fossil fuels is planned for Jan. 25, from 10 a.m. to noon, at the Springfield Central Library.
Sponsored by 350ma.org, Better Future Project and Climate Action NOW-Massachusetts, the panel is part of statewide public discussion forums whose focus is state fossil fuel divestment legislation (S. 1225) as a strategy to address climate change. The panel will be composed of experts on student divestment, faith based divestment and the financial sector, according to Climate Action NOW's website (climateactionnowma.org/)
Other duties include representing the diocese at environmental conferences, developing a strategy for action and helping to execute the plan.
Bullitt-Jonas said she knows many people think not much can be done to address climate change.
"It's scary and overwhelming," said Bullitt-Jonas of climate change issues. "People feel so small. We really have to find ways to support each other and sustain each other; this is quite a struggle. It's another reason we need to draw upon our spiritual resources - to explore what the resources are that give me hope."
Bullitt-Jonas received her undergraduate degree from California's Stanford University, a doctorate in comparative literature from Harvard University and a master of divinity degree from Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge.
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