Celebrating 10 Years of the Land Ethic Statement
Mar 21, 2025
“As Sisters of St. Joseph, we believe we are a part of creation and not apart from it.”
By Samantha Miller
More than 3,000 solar panels. A wastewater management system that can convert up to 30,000 gallons of waste into clean water sent to our aquifers. Lawns converted to meadows, providing habitat for bees, butterflies, and other creatures.
And above all, a commitment to respect, honor, and protect the sacredness of our land for generations to come.
These are just a few of the many positives the Sisters of St. Joseph celebrated with CSJ Associates, Agrégées, Partners in Mission, and friends on Friday, March 14, while recognizing the 10th anniversary of their Land Ethic Statement.
The event, which was hosted by the Earth Matter Committee, began in the Joan de Lourdes Room at 11 a.m. before moving down to the auditorium for lunch at noon.
Click Here to Read About the History of the Land Ethic Statement
Celebrating the Sacred Land
S. Joan Gallagher, a member of the Earth Matters Committee, began the event with a welcome.
“On this beautiful March day, we are welcomed by a creator, a great spirit, who gifts us daily from all directions,” she said. “We give a special thanks to you, the first peoples of Sewanhaka — what we call Long Island — who welcomed our ancestors and showed them how to live lightly on the land. We are honored with your presence.”
S. Karen Kaelin discussed the history of the land on which the Sisters of St. Joseph reside, honoring the indigenous people who have been living and working with this land from time immemorial.
“We commit to knowing their longstanding history that has brought us to reside on this land, and we commit to seek to understand our place within that history,” S. Karen said. “We recognize the unique and disproportionate hardships Native Americans, including our Long Island neighbors, have faced and continue to face as a result of colonialism.”
She acknowledged that we are on ancestral and unceded land — the traditional territories of the present Indian Nation Tribes: the Matinecock, Montaukett, Setauket, Shinnecock, and Unkechaug.
“We are grateful for their presence with us today and as we move into the future,” she said.
What the Land Ethic Statement Means to the CSJ Community
Members of the CSJ community, including Sisters and students at the CSJ-sponsored schools, shared in a video what the Land Ethic Statement means to them, as well as how it inspires them for the future.
“Together, we will shape the future where we will all live as one,” S. Mary Ann Cashin, director of Educational Ministries and a member of the Earth Matters Committee, said at the event.
Attendees were then encouraged to think about what from the video resonated with them, how they live out the Land Ethic Statement, and what inspires them for the future.
Danielle Hopson Begun from the Shinnecock Indian Nation, a Shinnecock Kelp Farmer who helps cultivate and harvest kelp off the shores of St. Joseph Villa in Hampton Bays, shared that the Sisters of St. Joseph give her hope for the future.
“This congregation has been able to move from words to action,” she said. “That action for us, as Shinnecock Kelp Farmers, has moved us from paralyzation, and feeling that fear that the problem is so big. It helps us to keep our hope. I’m very proud to be in communion with the Sisters of St. Joseph. Our relationship deepens and grows with every project that we do together.”
Heather Coste, director of Ecological Sustainability, and their team said it makes their hearts so full to not feel so alone in their efforts.
“Sometimes, it feels like you’re moving uphill and pulling a load of people that you’re trying to get to move with you,” they said. “But here, we have a lot of people pulling, and a lot of people working in concert. And that means an awful lot to us.”
Looking Toward the Future
The Sisters of St. Joseph and its joining community renewed its commitment to the Land Ethic, led by Heather Bolkas, director of the Garden Ministry, and S. Mary Lou Buser, who began the Garden Ministry — both members of the Earth Matters Committee.
While the Sisters recognize that much has been accomplished as a result of the Land Ethic Statement, there is still much that remains to be done.
“We believe that, in this time of Earth’s peril, religious communities are called to use the land which is in their sacred trust by prophetically witnessing that it is not a commodity for their use, but it exists in its own integrity as a revelation of God and a sustainer of life,” said S. Clara Santoro, one of the original members of the Land Ethic Statement Committee.
Looking toward the future, S. Clara’s hope is that the CSJ community internalizes the Land Ethic Statement as individuals.
“I hope the CSJ community really is able to reflect in our actions what we say we believe,” she said during the video that was shared at the event. “And that there will be people who will join us, and that little by little, we’ll have concentric circles that go out from Brentwood and that include more and more people who are concerned about the Earth, concerned about the future, concerned about the generations to come and want to preserve it for them. We won’t just talk about unity and love; we’ll live it.”
The ceremony ended with the playing of the song “One” by Jan Phillips.