CARING FOR GOD'S CREATION, an interfaith religion special will be broadcast Sunday, Dec. 7 on the CBS Television Network. Check your local station for exact time.

"Environmental issues are brand new to religious groups," says the Rev. Fletcher Harper, Executive Director of GreenFaith, an interfaith environmental coalition based in New Jersey, "and we exist to help them understand what those issues are." The coalition encourages Protestant, Roman Catholic, Jewish, Islamic and other New Jersey congregations to 'think green.'"

CARING FOR GOD'S CREATION visits St. Mary's, a Franciscan-run parish in Pompton Lakes, N.J. where, surprisingly, high school students are seen dumping and sorting through the vast institution's raw garbage and trash under the watchful eye of St. Francis of Assisi. The Pastor, Rev. Kevin Downey, O.F.M., explains the Franciscan connection to greening in a greedy world, and Stacey Kennealy of GreenFaith guides the students through careful sorting and recycling.

At Congregation B'nai Abraham in Livingston, N.J., Rabbi Clifford Kulwin explains why the Congregation decided to go green with over 400 solar panels providing part of its electrical needs. We also hear more from Tracey Bent, Facilities Manager as he and two members, Deborah Prinz and Janet Penn, climb ladders and descend stairs to explore the mysteries of solar power.

In a science classroom at Al-Hikmah Islamic School in Prospect Park, N.J., students whose families hail from four continents hear from Rev. Harper and Ms. Kennealy of GreenFaith, school science teacher Reem Fahkry, and the principal, Sister Amanny Khattab about the problems of pollution and global warming and why Islamic tradition requires "greener" living.

CARING FOR GOD'S CREATION then visits an Episcopal Church, St. John on the Mountain, Bernardsville, N.J., where Rabbi Lawrence Troster of GreenFaith encourages church elders to join the green movement. And, last but by no means least, we tour some of the many toxic sites in and around the city of Newark, N.J., with GreenFaith, as religious and scholarly experts explain how the poor are especially victimized by the pollution caused by an economy of waste. The tour begins at First Hopewell Baptist Church in Newark, whose Pastor, Rev. Antonio Porter, and Associate Minister Rev. Esther Haire joined GreenFaith to gain a mightier voice in cleaning up their city's air and water. 

            John P. Blessington is the executive producer; Ted Holmes is the producer. The special is produced with the cooperation of The National Council of Churches, The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, The Islamic Society of North America, and The Union for Reform Judaism and the New York Board of Rabbis.

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Press Contact             Jeremy Murphy              212/975-4577     jeremy.murphy@cbs.com