Third Thursday at CEIE |Dialogue

Spirituality and the Environment - Part 1
Christian and Jewish Perspective

Beacon Institute for Rivers and Estuaries, as part of its environmental lecture series, is presenting two panel discussions with respected spiritual leaders to examine the role of spirituality in protecting the environment at the Institute's Center for Environmental Innovation and Education at Denning's Point in Beacon, NY. The talks, which will encourage lively and engaging discussion amongst Christian, Jewish, Buddhist and Islamic theologians, are designed to transcend differences amongst belief systems to find common points of intersection and hope.

The first discussion will take place on Thursday, July 21, 2011 at 7 pm with Sister Brigid Driscoll RSHM, former President of Marymount College, now actively involved at the U.N., and Rabbi Lawrence Troster, Rabbinic Scholar-in-Residence for GreenFaith. They will explore the similarities and differences between Christian and Jewish sacred texts and traditions as they relate to environmental challenges within the context of today's world, as well as examine the role of humans as stewards of the earth. Beacon Institute's John Cronin, and internationally renowned environmentalist and a former Thomas Merton Fellow, will moderate the discussion.

Brigid Driscoll, Ph.D. is a consultant to Beacon Institute, having been appointed to the position by Governor George Pataki in 2000. She chaired the advisory committee that developed the initial strategic plan for the Institute and subsequently served on the site selection task force that identified Beacon, NY, as home to its main office and campus. Sr. Driscoll is currently the U.N. Representative for the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary (RSHM).

Sr. Driscoll holds a master's degree in mathematics from Catholic University of America and a doctoral degree from The City University of New York. She has been awarded five honorary doctorates. In 1999, Sr. Driscoll retired from the post of President of Marymount College at Tarrytown after serving in that position for 20 years; prior to that she was a member of the College’s mathematics faculty.

Rabbi Lawrence Troster is the Rabbinic Scholar-in-Residence for GreenFaith, the interfaith environmental coalition in New Jersey. Rabbi Troster is one of this country’s leading Jewish eco-theologians and religious environmental leaders. He is the creator and former director of GreenFaith’s Fellowship program, the only interfaith environment training program for religious leaders in the world. He has published numerous articles and has lectured widely on eco-theology, bio-ethics and Judaism and modern cosmology. 

Rabbi Troster earned his B.A. from the University of Toronto and his M.A. and rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) of America in New York City. He recently received an honorary Doctor of Divinity by JTS for more than 25 years of rabbinic service and is pursuing a D. Min. in Ecological Ministries at Drew Theological School. Rabbi Troster was recently honored by the Temple of Understanding, one of the oldest worldwide interfaith organizations, as an Interfaith Visionary.