From PennEnvironment
U.S. Representative Chrissy Houlahan and residents joined leaders from the Allegheny Evangelical Lutheran Church and the nonprofit environmental group PennEnvironment for an informative tour of the church’s newly installed rooftop solar array.
“We’re thrilled to see more houses of worship using the power of the sun to electrify their congregations,” said Flora Cardoni, Deputy Director for PennEnvironment. “Plentiful sunlight shines down every day; more Pennsylvanian houses of worship, businesses, and residents just need to tap in.”
Allegheny Evangelical Lutheran Church worked with Paradise Energy to install the solar array in July 2025, and it was turned on in September. Since then, the church has seen significant savings in the months when the sun was strong, cutting its electric bill to a quarter of what it was. The church expects to see greater savings in the upcoming year, which can be put towards more mission work.
The church also expects to get 40% of the cost of the array back in the coming months, thanks to federal clean energy tax credits. Unfortunately, those credits for nonprofits are expiring in December.
“As energy costs continue to rise, clean energy projects like solar can provide relief. But for many Pennsylvanians, the cost to install these projects in their homes, businesses, and places of worship is an obstacle,” said Rep. Houlahan. “I support reinstating federal clean energy tax credits and rebates, so that more communities can benefit from renewable energy as Allegheny Evangelical Lutheran Church has.”
In addition to saving money on their monthly utility bills, the array is also helping the Congregation live their values by lowering carbon and air pollution, protecting the planet at the same time.
“Our solar project reflects our calling to faithful stewardship — caring for God’s creation while investing in a more sustainable future for our community,” said pastor Zach, lead pastor of Allegheny Evangelical Lutheran Church. “Through this work, we live out our core values and into God’s mission, by turning hope into action for generations to come.”
Solar energy is abundant, efficient, and increasingly affordable, and houses of worship often are great candidates for rooftop solar panels. While people may frequent these buildings less during the week, their panels will still generate power that churches can sell back to utility companies. And come prayer services and other activities offered by religious institutions, churches, and other congregations can benefit from the clean power and lower utility bills.
Right now, Pennsylvania is ranked 26th in the nation for solar power. Church leaders hope that their array can inspire other houses of worship across Pennsylvania to follow their lead and get their power from above, too, so Pennsylvania can turn into a solar leader.
PennEnvironment is holding events like this throughout the state to help spread the word about the benefits of going solar so that more houses of worship, nonprofits, businesses, and individuals can invest in a clean energy future, too.
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