The people of the United Methodist Church: Environmental Justice for a Sustainable Future.

This social statement is not too unlike the ELCA’s own statement. It points out that we, as humans, are given dominion over the Earth by God in Genesis. It mentions that there are 1.2 billion people that live in poverty around the world. The statement lays out how we have gotten to this point. Over use and rapid population growth are among those reasons.
There is then a call for God’s forgiveness and confession of the transgressions against His creation. In this they claim that they have forgotten the good news that they are called to proclaim including the promise that Jesus Christ came to redeem all creation.
They say;
“We believe that at the center of the vision of shalom is the integration of environmental, economic, and social justice.
We are called to eliminate overconsumption as a lifestyle, thus using lower levels of finite natural resources.
We are called to seek a new lifestyle rooted in justice and peace.
We are called to establish new priorities in a world where 40,000 children die of hunger each day.
Therefore, we are called to a global sense of community and solidarity leading to a new world system of international relationships and economic/environmental order. In this way, the misery of 1.2 billion poor now living in absolute poverty can be alleviated and the living ecosystem be saved.”
“Principles for a Sustainable Future 

The Social Principles of The United Methodist Church remind us that "all creation is the Lord's, and we are responsible for the ways in which we use and abuse it" (¶ 160). Development must be centered in the concept of sustainability as defined by the World Commission of Environment and Development: "to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." The Christian understanding of sustainability encompasses this concept. Fundamental to our call as faithful witnesses is the meeting of human needs within the capacity of ecosystems. This ensures the security of creation and a just relationship between all people. Sustainable development, therefore, looks toward a healthy future in three vital areas: the social community, the economy, and the environment.”
Much like the ELCA this statement calls for the people to get involved on an individual level, the churches to get involved at their level and for the big church to get involved. They stress that this is much more than a human issue but an issue about and around God’s creation. Over all it is a good statement, but like ours probably does not go far enough. The old adage of walk the talk, or put your money where your mouth is. In our denomination as well it is easy to do the politics but following through is another matter all together.
All quotes and paraphrases come from:
ADOPTED 1992, AMENDED AND READOPTED 2004
See Social Principles, ¶ 160.
From The Book of Resolutions of The United Methodist Church — 2004. Copyright © 2004 by The United Methodist Publishing House. Used by permission.

http://archives.umc.org/interior.asp?ptid=4&mid=959