Musicians performed original compositions at an Earth awareness concert last Tuesday night as part of Salt Lake Interfaith Week. The concert promoted energy conservation by focusing on the relationship between religious stewardship and the environment.
"The songs are unique, original compositions that are intended to celebrate the earth," said Steve Ritchey, who served as master of ceremonies at the concert.
Among the performing artists were Jonathen Green, Rebecca Eaton, Bill Green, April Meservy, Phillip Bimstein, Hal Cannon, Kate MacLeod, and Stonecircle.
Many of the songs focused on recognizing there is a problem with the human race abusing the environment, and that something needs to change in order to fulfill humanity's responsibility to protect the earth.
Several songs also described using the earth as inspiration, including Meservy's piano piece entitled "Marks of My Path."
"I'm a powerful believer that God speaks through the earth, and I know God wants us to treasure it," Meservy said about her music.
"It connects faith with the environment," Ritchey said. "We all have a responsibility to take care of the planet we call our own."
The concert, which was part of Salt Lake Interfaith Week, was sponsored by Utah Interfaith Power and Light, an organization that promotes renewable energy, energy efficiency, and energy conservation through cooperation among a variety of religious affiliations.
According to Elaine Emmi, a representative of the Salt Lake Interfaith Roundtable, Interfaith Week grew out of the 2002 Winter Olympics.
"All religions came together and cooperated with one another," Emmi said. The organization simply continued that cooperation after the Olympics to continue the promotion of energy conservation.
"We help people reconnect with the environmental component of religion," Emmi said. "It's like the Golden Rule applied to the earth."
More information about Utah Interfaith Power and Light can be found on their website at www.utahipl.org.
Copyright Brigham Young University 10 Feb 2009
