Earth Rise Sunday School

Earth Rise is a new congregation for those who have made a deep connection with nature and want to honor that connection. We are a gathering of environmentalists, nature lovers, hikers and campers, gardeners, recyclers, vegetarians, animal rights activists, teachers, and for those who simply love life and wants to preserve it.

We are a humanistic (nontheist) congregation, created by the New York Society for Ethical Culture. We don't spend too much time worrying about the possibility of a next life or on “supernatural” concerns. These are matters of private choice. Rather, as in the Ethical Culture tradition, during our services there is a chance to interact with other people, sharing with them our love of life, and learning new ways to deepen that connection; to walk more gently on the Earth, to live as fully as we are able, and to bring forth the life-affirming gifts of others.

Our new Sunday School is for families who want to nurture their child’s unique ethical personality while deepening their environmental awareness and natural care for the earth, Please see the about us link at the top left to find out more about our program. This is an emerging congregation, and we will strive to create a program that meets the needs of the families who join.

Earth Rise meets each Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. (March through June). During the service there is contemporary (nonreligious) music, a chance to meet others, opportunities to reflect on our relationship with the earth, and learning new ways to live in harmony with our natural world. The children then join the Sunday School teacher(s) for their learning circle. For the adults, each Sunday, instead of a sermon, groups of actors will present short but meaningful vignettes or mini plays that help the audience to see themselves and their relationships in a new light, and to consider those connections. We delve into the many themes about what makes us so complex, our strengths, our weakness, our passions and hopes.

As part of our commitment to the Earth, each Sunday there will be an additional opportunity for children and adults to help to enrich and renew our world. These optional activities may include working with neighbors on a community garden, removing invasive plants and helping to cultivate natural species, building a native butterfly habitat, restoring marshes and aquatic shellfish, or working on The Science Barge; a floating greenhouse teaching others about sustainability and urban agriculture. We also crochet and knit items for families in need, build demonstration gardens for phytoremediation, run a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) distribution, and various similar activities.

Along the way, we will also have fun hiking, birding, going on group camping outings, celebrating the change of seasons, and other such events. We hope you’ll join us.

“Spirituality is awareness of our infinite interrelatedness” – Felix Adler