A Voice for the Earth Kara Grady

Recently I was blessed to receive from a good friend the writings and books of Elizabeth Dodson Gray. A Christian theologian, graduate of Yale Divinity School, and eco-feminist, she wrote extensively on patriarchy in society and the church, and was an early champion of eco-theology and becoming attuned to living our lives as co-inhabitors of the earth rather than dominators. She questioned many of the social values that came with living in world defined by white men, which she termed, “Adam’s World” after the scene in Genesis where Adam names and therefore defines the world God gifted him. Included among her writings are reflections on death and life, the construction of God as a man and the denial of women’s full liberation as images of God, critiques of wealth, as well as four books she wrote throughout her lifetime. The readings I have chosen to share are what I thought best captured her story and stances on the issues she dedicated her life to. I hope they encourage you, just as I have been, to think deeply and act potently.



Bio on Empowering Women: http://www.empoweringwomentv.org/ambassadors/guests/elizabeth-dodson-gray/

Books: Green Paradise Lost (1979)

Patriarchy as a Conceptual Trap (1982)

Sunday School Manifesto: In The Image of Her? (1994)

Sacred Dimensions of Women's Experience (Editor, 1988)

Children of Joy: Raising Your Own Home-Grown Christian (Co-authored with David Dodson-Gray, 1975)

Hello and welcome to A Voice for the Earth, hosted by Kara Grady! Here you will find interviews, book readings, and bits of my own journey as we grapple with redefining what Christianity means in light of the climate catastrophes we are facing. This podcast was born, at first, out a need to defend to my Christian peers what I saw as the necessity of a livable future but has evolved into how this can be achieved through the creativity of people committed to a spirituality in which all creation is inherently sacred. I’ve seen for myself how these friends and allies continue to redefine the boundaries of what is possible, and I hope that through hearing their stories and through re-examining scripture, you the listener can realize your own potential in caring for the Lord’s creation.

Climate change. Immigration. Human trafficking. Nuclear war. What can we learn when we see these not as separate issues, but ones that are inherently related? 

Join me as I interview Sister Marie Cigrand on her order's environmental justice work and how intersectionality has come to define the most prominent issues of our day. 

Sister Marie Cigrand is a vowed member of the Sisters of St. Francis in Dubuque, Iowa. Raised on an Iowan farm by parents with strong environmental values, she has spent the last 42 years as a religious sister. She chairs three groups (Socially Responsible Investing Working Group, Green Team, Environmental Concerns Subcommittee) and is a member of the Laudato Si Committee. 

Resources mentioned:

Sisters of St. Francis: https://www.osfdbq.org/ 

Stan Cox, The Path to a Livable Future: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/57934665 

Earth Mama: https://www.youtube.com/@EarthMama 

Join me as I talk with Sisters Lynn Mousel & Johanna Rickel (President) of the Humility of Mary on the history of their order, their updated action plan based on the goals of Laudato Si, and a special retreat center located in rural Iowa. 

Congregation of the Humility of Mary Website: https://www.chmiowa.org/

Our Lady of the Prairie Retreat: https://www.chmiowa.org/retreat

Laudato Si Action Plan: https://laudatosiactionplatform.org/

https://www.chmiowa.org/service/care-of-earth 

I had so much fun interviewing my good friends at the Romero House in Iowa! Here we talked about the unhumanization of living in a capitalist society and how we as people of faith and action can learn to see each other's humanity once more, our personal adventures in the Catholic Worker, and the legacy of St. Oscar Romero (not necessarily in that order). We laugh, we sigh, we make fun of each other's outfits, and stick around for the sound check blooper!



People and Organizations Mentioned:

The Catholic Worker, Peter Maurin, & Dorothy Day: https://www.catholicworker.org/ 

Oscar Romero: https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-oscar-arnulfo-romero 

The Romero House: https://amescatholicworkerhouse.org/

Mustard Seed Farm: https://www.mustardseedfarm.org/

How is it possible to have hope when our ecological and humanitarian disasters have become overwhelming? Here's how I do it. 

Find all IPCC reports here: https://www.ipcc.ch/reports/ 

Interfaith Power and Light: https://www.interfaithpowerandlight.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/IPL-AR-16-FINAL.pdf 

For my bible nerds out there:

John 1:1-5

John 6:1-15