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Tag Archives: ELCA materials/resources
Voices from the ELCA – Caring for Creation Today
March 1, 2019 Phoebe Morad
God's work. Our hands. from ecoAmerica on Vimeo.
ELCA churches across the country are working to serve our neighbors and to ensure that how we live does not harm others, including those yet to be born, vulnerable populations, and even life other than human. We have an ELCA Social Statement written over 25 years ago on the topic, but how do we live that out? The compilation of voices above give some examples, but it is clear we need to do more. Lutherans Restoring Creation can help you determine what next steps your congregation can make. Click here for a Step by Step guide to begin work now from your pulpit, pews, and personal life.
Adult Forum and Bible Studyclimate changecommunityeducationELCAELCA materials/resourcesenergypersonal discipleshipSeminary Studying ResourcesstewardshipvideoswaterYouth
Congregational Covenant with Creation, Devotional Materials, Energy Savings, Events, Personal Discipleship, Regional Advocacy, Resolutions
Consider Caring for Creation Coaching
January 13, 2019 Phoebe Morad
What is ELCA Coaching? Click here for a Ministry Description
What happens when Trained Coaches focus on helping those in Caring for Creation Ministries? All the action plans, resolutions, pledges, etc. that have emerged over years of active concern and deliberation are transformed into active progress by accompanying individuals leading these efforts to ensure goals are realized.
Response after Inaugural Creation Care Coach Training (NV- 2/6/19):
"… My most profound feeling is gratitude. THANK YOU to all of you for not only the training, but the preparation that went into it, your expertise, the vision that you invited me into, the people to whom you connected me, and the coming time of transformation. I could never have imagined what these three days would mean for me…and I am just beginning to realize it. Thank you for your partnership, your inspiration, your wisdom, and the HOPE that you have opened up for me! I carry you all with me today and in the days to come, and I look forward to connecting with you through our continued training."
– Noni Strand, Kansas City – Central States LRC Mission Table Chair
Mark Carlson (CA), Noni Strand (KS), Dan Smith (CA), Solveig Nilsen-Goodin (CA), Keith Mundy (IL), Jane Affonso (CA), Janice Hawley (KS)
Introduced in 2019, Caring for Creation Coaching is another area of specialty coaching being offered by the ELCA in collaboration with Lutherans Restoring Creation and ecoAmerica. Using a format similar to what has been successful with Stewardship and Discipleship Level II Coaching, this specialty will focus on developing coaching skills and competencies around five pillars (Personal Discipleship, Education, Building & Grounds, Public Witness & Advocacy) of caring for creation in the congregation and local community. Through a series of seven session, participants will be equipped as coaches to accompany individuals and small groups in achieving their dreams through actions that create change related to caring for creation and climate solutions.
In each session special attention is given to sharpening coaching skills and engaging coaching competencies as outlined by the International Coach Federation (ICF). These will help coaches journey alongside leaders involved in God's work, both loving and serving the world. (Note: ICF is the leading global organization dedicated to advancing the coaching profession by setting high standards, providing independent certification and building a worldwide network of trained coaching professionals.).
Level One Coach Training involves a great deal of interactive training and laughter.
coachingcommunitycongregationseducationELCA materials/resourceseventissue-based advocacyKeith MundyLifestyle ResourcesLRC eventsnetworkingpublic witness
Advocacy, Resolutions
Synod Resolutions: Synod Actions
June 15, 2018 Phoebe Morad
Resolution to become an LRC Synod
Central States Synod
Approved June 2015
Resolution to become a Green Synod
Northern Illinois Synod Assembly
Approved April 2008
Resolution on Establishing an Environmental Stewardship Committee
Metropolitan New York Synod, 2009
Advocacyeco-reformationeco-theologyELCA materials/resourcesissue-based advocacynational/global advocacyresolutionsSeminaries
Central States Synod Assembly Resolution Calls for "Green Action" (2017)
At the 2017 Synod Assembly in Kansas City, voting members adopted a resolution that encourages "its leaders and congregations to make use of the resources of Lutheran Restoring Creation for faith-based congregational initiatives and addressing care of creation and the threat of climate damage." Included in this call to action are efforts to conserve energy and/or the use of renewable energy, congregational educational programs and action plans that may include such things as installing solar panels to generate renewable electricity, utilizing the Lutheran study guide on the Encyclical Letter of Pope Francis (Laudato Si, On Care for our Common Home), and supporting policies that seek to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Click here to view the Lutheran study guide.
Further, the adopted resolution states "the Central States Synod recommends that all members of its congregations be active environmental stewards and 'green disciples' by engaging in prayer for guidance, study to gain a better understanding of environmental issues, and action to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions."
To help you and your congregation carry out this resolution, the LRC Mission Table will provide regular Green Action items in the Synod e-newsletter. For more information on Lutherans Restoring Creation, if you'd like to host a Creation Care workshop, or if you need help in your setting, please contact Noni Strand, the LRC Mission Table chair at nonistrand@gmail.com.
Advocacyeco-reformationeco-theologyELCA materials/resourcesissue-based advocacyregional advocacyresolutionsSeminaries
Synod Resolutions: Divestment from Fossil Fuels
Transition to Cleaner Energy Memorial
Upper Susquehanna (PA) Synod June 2015
Study Impacts of Divestment Resolution
Northeastern Pennsylvania Synod's Creation Care Task Force pledges to investigate what divestment would mean for the synod and the world. June 2015
Fossil Fuel Divestment Resolution
Metro New York Synod
Approved May 29, 2015
Saint Paul, MN Area Synod
Approved April 24-25, 2015
Oregon Synod
Approved May 18, 2013.
Story Talking Points
New England Synod
Approved June 7-9, 2013
New England Synod's Bishop Hazelwood Connects with Catholics over Climate (and other) Changes
On the heels of the Pope's Encyclical encouraging caring for our common home, two religious leaders in New England came together this month in agreement that the 500th anniversary of the Reformation is a time to see how churches can work together to solve some of our most pressing justice issues: including the state of our planet and those least capable of adapting to increasing natural disasters and public health concerns.
Read Boston Globe article here
Copy of Bilateral Letter from Cardinal O'Malley and Bishop Hazelwood's linked here.
Advocacydivestmenteco-reformationeco-theologyELCA materials/resourcesissue-based advocacyregional advocacyresolutionsSeminaries
Oregon Synod Divestment Resolution (2013)
St. Luke Fossil Fuel Divestment Resolution passes at Oregon Synod meeting
On Saturday, May 18th, 2013, the St. Luke Fossil Fuel Divestment Resolution PASSED a vote at the ELCA Oregon Synod. Now it will be forwarded for consideration at this summer's Churchwide Assembly in Pittsburgh.
In a meeting also attended by Secretary of the ELCA David Swartling, the synod Reference and Counsel Committee suggested an alternative "RESOLVED" clause that they believed had a better chance of being adopted on the national level. This alternative, mirroring one submitted at the NW Washington Synod meeting, requested an "opt-out of fossil fuel stocks" option for church employees in the Portico pension program.
St. Luke's Pastor David Knapp, Council President Barbara Roady and Environmental Chair Michael Hall declined, stating that, given the magnitude and urgency of the issue, they wanted St. Luke's request to fully encompass all ELCA-connected investment programs.
With two minor text adjustments, the resolution was allowed to go to the floor "with reservations" about its financial/legal ramifications and the feasibility of its requested actions.
Floor debate about the resolution was dramatic and the final outcome was far from obvious. In the end, the vote tally showed 102 in favor, 94 opposed and 14 abstaining.
AdvocacyArchiveddivestmenteco-reformationeco-theologyELCA materials/resourcesissue-based advocacyregional advocacyresolutionsSeminaries
Metro NY Resolution 2015 Release: Fossil Fuel Divestment
NYC-AREA LUTHERANS RESOLVE TO DIVEST FROM FOSSIL FUELS
CULMINATION OF EFFORTS BEGUN SHORTLY AFTER LAST YEAR'S PEOPLE'S CLIMATE MARCH
June 1, 2015 (New York, NY) – On Friday, March 29, the annual Assembly of the Metropolitan New York Synod, one of the most populous geographical divisions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), resolved to divest from fossil fuels within five years. The Synod Assembly also voted to ask the national body of the church to do the same at the Churchwide Assembly in 2016.
Reverend John Z. Flack, pastor of Our Savior's Atonement in Washington Heights, Manhattan, introduced the two resolutions from the floor of the Assembly. One resolution calls on the Metro NY Synod to "cease any new investments in companies whose primary business is the exploration, extraction, production, or refining of coal, oil, or natural gas," and to "ensure that, within five years, directly held or commingled assets" in such companies "are removed from its portfolio." The resolution also urges member congregations to follow these steps.
The second resolution calls upon the 2016 Churchwide Assembly "to urge that, by May 1, 2017, all ELCA congregations and independent, cooperative, and related Lutheran organizations and investment corporations" take these same steps to remove fossil-fuel investments from their portfolios.
Both resolutions passed with very little opposition.
The resolutions were the culmination of work begun shortly after the People's Climate March, a gathering of 400,000 people in New York City last September, calling attention to what many now refer to as the "crisis" of climate change. As Gerard A. Falco, Chair of the Synod's Environmental Stewardship Committee, explained, "Lutherans, from our Synod and from across the country, were deeply involved in organizing the People's Climate March and making it the success it was. The march galvanized public opinion, and our committee decided to build on that momentum to get these divestment resolutions passed."
About $289,000 of the Synod's current investment portfolio will be immediately re-allocated in response to the Assembly's action. Altogether, the Synod's investments total about $12 million.
With the passage of these resolutions, the Metro NY Synod joins the New England and Oregon Synods – and many other congregations and religious bodies, both in the US and abroad – in divesting from coal, oil, and natural gas companies because of their damaging effects on the climate. This religious divestment movement parallels the strong student-led campaign to divest colleges and universities, and the growing campaign to divest state and municipal pension funds.
Robert Rimbo, Bishop of the Metro NY Synod, said "With this action, our Synod joins the chorus of those who acknowledge that 'if it's wrong to wreck the climate, it's wrong to profit from that wreckage.' This is a fiscally responsible step, but it's also the right thing to do. As Christians, we are called to care for all Creation. As Luther himself wrote, 'God is essentially present in all places, even the tiniest tree leaf,' so 'to do harm to Creation is also to assault God. And when humans assault God, there is only one outcome, and it is not a good one for humans.' With these resolutions, we've taken a further step in living out our Lutheran vocation."
The Metropolitan NY Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church covers the five boroughs of New York City and Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester counties. The Synod has approximately 64,000 baptized members in 190 congregations served by about 300 pastors and 100 rostered lay leaders. For more information, visit http://www.mnys.org/.
Sarah Gioe
Metro NY Synod, ELCA
sgoie@mnys.org
Gerard A. Falco
Chair, Environmental Stewardship Committee
gafsail@aol.com
Northeastern Pennsylvania to Study Divestment (2015)
The following resolution was passed at the June 2015 Assembly of the Northeastern Pennsylvania:
WHEREAS, Jesus calls us as his disciples to both love God and love our neighbor, and climate change is a direct threat to both God's creation and God's people, the church should be a leader in all efforts to preserve and protect creation;
WHEREAS, the current movement to divest from fossil fuels and reinvest in sustainable forms of energy are an important part of the overall campaign to combat climate change and protect people and the planet;
RESOLVED, Resolved, that the Synod's Creation Care Task Force be authorized to conduct a study to discuss and evaluate divestment from fossil fuels in preparation for a vote about possible divestment at the 2016 Synod Assembly.
For more information about issues specific to Pennsylvania go to the Lutheran Advocacy office in PA.
Memorial for Transition to Clean, Renewable Energy; Upper Susquenanna Synod Assembly (2015)
WHEREAS, God created heaven and earth and everything therein and proclaimed it good (Gen 1:1ff); and God has entrusted humankind with the care of the earth (Gen 2:15); and
WHEREAS, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has adopted social policy statements, "Caring for Creation" (1993) and "Sufficient, Sustainable Livelihood" (1999) that call for economic and environmental justice, to protect the health and integrity of creation both for its own sake and for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations, and for economic justice, to consider how our actions affect the ability of all people to provide for their material needs and the needs of their families and communities; and
WHEREAS, in 1993 with the Caring for Creation social statement, we realized the urgency was already "widespread and serious, according to the preponderance of evidence from scientists worldwide [of] dangerous global warming, caused by the buildup of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide" from the burning of fossil fuels, and that "action to counter degradation, especially within this decade, is essential to the future of our children and our children's children. Time is very short;" and
WHEREAS, climate research is clear that there has been a rapid rise in the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, with current levels (400 ppm) the highest in the past probably 2,000,000 years. This increase has occurred most rapidly in the past 200 years during the worldwide Industrial Revolution;[1]
WHEREAS, climate research is clear that burning fossil fuels is the major source of rising levels of carbon dioxide, negatively impacting our climate.[2] Consequently, the use of fossil fuels must be dramatically reduced; and
WHEREAS, the most recent report by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change claims continued greenhouse gas emissions will cause "long-lasting changes in all components of the climate system, increasing the likelihood of severe, pervasive and irreversible impacts for people and ecosystems;"[3] and
WHEREAS, in "Caring for Creation," the ELCA declares that we will seek to incorporate the principles of sufficiency and sustainability in our life. Consequently: "We will, in our budgeting and investment of church funds, demonstrate our care for creation;" and
WHEREAS in 1990 and 2007 the ELCA Church Council approved an Environmental Social Criteria Investment Screen that recommends limiting investments made in corporations which are the most egregious in terms of damage to human health or the natural environment and investing in corporations which are taking positive steps toward a sustainable environment;[4] and
WHEREAS despite decades of shareholder engagement with fossil fuel companies, the industry continues to spend nearly $2 billion dollars a day searching for additional fossil fuel reserves and over half a million dollars a day lobbying governments for subsidies and support for further extraction;[5] and
WHEREAS fossil fuel divestment can have a major influence on how society responds to climate change;[6] and
WHEREAS the ELCA has historically divested during periods of great social need, including the movement to end apartheid in South Africa; and
WHEREAS by divesting from fossil fuels, the ELCA joins with faith partners such as the United Church of Christ[7] and the World Council of Churches[8] as well as large institutional investors such as Norway's $850 billion Government Pension Fund Global[9] and a growing list of colleges and universities, cities, religious institutions and foundations in the fastest growing divestment effort in history[10]; and
WHEREAS, un-burnable carbon stored in fossil fuel reserves presents a material financial risk to investment funds that provide capital to these companies;[11]
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Upper Susquehanna Synod of the ELCA memorialize the 2016 Churchwide Assembly to call on the ELCA and its related institutions and entities, such as the ELCA Endowment Fund Pooled Trust – Fund A (hereinafter "Fund A"), the Mission Investment Fund, Portico Funds, colleges, seminaries, Social Ministry organizations, camps, synods, congregations and individual members to take leadership and make a public commitment to transition away from investments in fossil fuels to investments in clean, renewable energy sources as expeditiously as it is financially feasible to do so; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that by December 31, 2016, the ELCA follow its published procedure titled Social Criteria Investment Screen Policies and Procedures Development[12] to develop a social criteria investment screen designed to result in divestment of all fossil fuels investments held in Fund A,[13] which includes prayerful consideration of the following recommended components:
a)Publication of a list of the values of all fossil fuel investments currently held in Fund A;[14] and
b)Cessation of any new investments in fossil fuel companies with respect to Fund A; and
c)Ensuring that all securities of fossil fuel companies that are either direct holdings or holdings in commingled funds are removed from the portfolio of Fund A within five years; and
d)Publication of quarterly updates, available to the public, detailing progress towards divestment of Fund A as set forth herein; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Upper Susquehanna Synod memorialize the 2016 Churchwide Assembly of the ELCA, as part of the development of the new social criteria investment screen identified above, to direct the ELCA's corporate social responsibility review team to consider and recommend to the executive director of the ELCA's Congregational and Synodical Mission unit, for further review pursuant to the ELCA's published procedure titled Social Criteria Investment Screen Policies and Procedures Development, the addition of a fossil-free investment fund that excludes the 200 largest fossil fuel companies as an option for ELCA retirement plan participants; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this synod memorializes the 2016 Churchwide Assembly to urge members of the ELCA and its related institutions to exemplify personal and institutional responsibility by practicing energy conservation, purchasing more energy efficient appliances and vehicles, investing in renewable energy systems, and advocating at all levels of government for public policies that support clean, renewable energy sources.
The Rev. Dr. Leah Schade, Pastor, United in Christ Lutheran Church, Lewisburg, PA
The Buffalo Valley Conference of the Upper Susquehanna Synod
[1] Climate Change: The Evidence and Our Options, Lonnie Thompson, Ohio State University. Concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) over the last 800,000 years. Fig. 6, pg. 163. See http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/TBA–LTonly.pdf. 2007 IPCC Working Group. "Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration has continued to increase and is now almost 100 ppm above its pre-industrial level." See http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg1/en/ch7s7-es.html. EPA: Causes of Climate Change. "Since the Industrial Era began, humans have had an increasing effect on climate, particularly by adding billions of tons of heat-trapping greenhouse gases to the atmosphere." See http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/science/causes.html.
[2] NRC (2011). Climate Stabilization Targets: Emissions, Concentrations, and Impacts over Decades to Millennia. National Research Council. The National Academies Press, Washington, DC, USA. "Emissions of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels have ushered in a new epoch where human activities will largely determine the evolution of Earth's climate." NASA: Global Climate Change; Vital Signs of the Planet. "Humans have increased atmospheric CO2 concentration by a third since the Industrial Revolution began. This is the most important long-lived "forcing" of climate change." "Over the last century the burning of fossil fuels like coal and oil has increased the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2)." See http://climate.nasa.gov/causes.
USGCRP (2009). Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States. Thomas R. Karl, Jerry M. Melillo, and Thomas C. Peterson (eds.). United States Global Change Research Program. Cambridge University Press, New York, NY, USA. "It is clear that impacts in the United States are already occurring and are projected to increase in the future, particularly if the concentration of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere continues to rise." See http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=UCg7inA-HksC&oi=fnd&pg=PA13&dq=USGCRP+%282009%29.+Global+Climate+Change+Impacts+in+the+United+States&ots=uXe7HdVN2I&sig=3OcIArtThzaK sX5JwzBrWNEj59A#v=onep age&q&f=false. NOAA, USGS: Climate change impacts to U.S. coasts threaten public health, safety and economy Coastal Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerabilities: A Technical Input to the 2013 National Climate Assessment. "…the effects of climate change will continue to threaten the health and vitality of U.S. coastal communities' social, economic and natural systems." See http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2013/20130125_coastalclimateimpacts.html
[3] Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Fifth Assessment Report (AR5), http://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar5.
[4] ELCA Environment Screen: http://download.elca.org/ELCA%20Resource
%20Repository/Environment_Screen.pdf.
[5] Oxfam: http://www.oxfam.org/sites/www.oxfam.org/files/file_attachments/bp191–fossil-fuels–finance-climate– change–171014-en.pdf.
[6] Climate Change: Implications for Investors and Financial Institutions: Key Findings from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report. http://www.unepfi.org/fileadmin/documents/IPCC_AR5__Implications_for_Investors__Briefing__WEB_EN.pdf
[7] United Church of Christ: http://www.ucc.org/gs2013–fossil-fuel–divestment-vote.
[8] World Council of Churches: http://www.oikoumene.org/en/resources/documents/central-committee/geneva– 2014/report–of–the–finance- policy- committee/@@download/file/GEN_FIN06_APPROVED_Report_Finance_Policy_Committee.pdf.
[9] Article regarding Norway's Government Pension Fund Global: http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/feb/05/worlds–biggest– sovereign-wealth–fund–dumps-dozens-of– coal–companies
[10] This website lists the institutions that are committing to divest from fossil fuels: http://gofossilfree.org/commitments/
[11] University of Oxford: http://www.smithschool.ox.ac.uk/research-programmes/stranded-assets/SAP-divestment- report-final.pdf.
[12] Policy is accessible at: http://www.elca.org/Resources/Corporate-Responsibility.
[13] ELCA Endowment Fund: http://download.elca.org/ELCA%20Resource
%20Repository/ELCA_Endowment_Fund_A_Brochure.pdf
[14] By using the current list of 200 coal, oil and gas companies found here: http://gofossilfree.org/companies/. Source: Unburnable Carbon, The Carbon Tracker Institute; http://www.carbontracker.org/wp– content/uploads/2014/09/Unburnable-Carbon-Full-rev2–1.pdf.
Synod Resolutions: Caring for Creation – general
Resolution on Caring for Creation
North/West Lower MI Synod Assembly
Approved May 14-16, 2004
Resolution on Environmental Stewardship
Southeastern Minnesota Synod, 2009
Advocacyeco-reformationeco-theologyELCA materials/resourcesissue-based advocacynational/global advocacyresolutionsSeminariessoutheastern Minnesota
Southeastern Minnesota Environmental Stewardship Resolution (2009)
Resolution 2009 – 03: Environmental Stewardship
1 WHEREAS, the ELCA adopted the "Caring for Creation: Vision, Hope and Justice" Social 2Statement at the Churchwide Assembly in 1993 to address the church's understanding of God's 3 call to us to care for the earth; and,
4 WHEREAS, the ELCA has created materials to guide congregations, schools, and other groups 5 in conducting environmental audits; and,
6 WHEREAS, the knowledge and understanding of the impact of our individual 7andcongregational uses of natural resources is documented (for example, The 8MillenniumEcosystem Assessment) ; and,
9 WHEREAS, Scripture shows God's love for creation and mandates humans to serve and keep 10 the earth; and,
11 WHEREAS, a Green Team can be a catalyst for transformation in a congregation; and,
12 WHEREAS, there is a relationship between global injustice and the degradation of nature. 13Our Companion Synods in the Evangelical Lutheran Churches in Colombia and the Central 14Dioces in Tanzania struggle from the imbalance of the use and exploitation of the world's 15natural resources,
16 THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Southeastern Minnesota Synod live out more 17fully the "Caring for Creation: Vision, Hope and Justice" Social Statement actions; and,
18 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that each congregation of the Southeastern Minnesota 19Synod of the ELCA conduct the ELCA's Environmental Audit; and,
20 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that congregations of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod of 21 the ELCA study caring for creation issues in Sunday School and Bible Studies, to learn more 22 about our call to be God's stewards of the earth; and
23 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Southeastern Minnesota Synod of the ELCA 24establish a committee or task force to address environmental issues in the synod and 25congregations; and,
26 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a goal be set for the year 2011 for 75% of all products 27 used by the Southeastern Minnesota Synod of the ELCA office and its congregations be 28environmentally conscious. This goal would include attention to the use of fairly traded 29products.
Submitted by the congregational council of Bethel Lutheran Church, Rochester,Minn., authored and approved by the"BIGG Idea" team (Bethel Individuals Going Green) A similar resolution was passed by the Blue Earth River Conference Assembly.
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Metro New York Resolution: Establishing an Environmental Stewardship Committee (2009)
June 8, 2018 Phoebe Morad
Submitted by the Tappan Zee Conference, St. Luke's (New Rochelle), St. John's (Mamaroneck), Our Redeemer (Chappaqua), Chapel of Christ (Yonkers), St. Paul's (Rye Brook), Trinity (New Rochelle), Grace (Yorktown Heights), Grace (Scarsdale), United Lutheran (Mt. Vernon), Ascension (Glendale), Trinity (Brewster)
Whereas, scripture teaches us that "The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to cultivate it and guard it" (Genesis 2:15) and that "The earth and its fullness are the Lord's" (1 Corinthians 10:26); and
Whereas, the issues of climate change and threats to biodiversity and natural habitats are not simply scientific, economic, and social issues, but also fundamentally ethical and moral concerns; and
Whereas, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's social statement "Caring for Creation: Vision, Hope, and Justice"
· decries "the despoiling of the environment as nothing less than the degradation of God's gracious gift of creation,"
· calls for "action to counter (environmental) degradation" and "pray(s)… for the creativity and dedication to live more gently with the earth,"
· asks us to "commit ourselves to personal life styles that contribute to the health of the environment," and,
· calls on our church community to be "a center for exploring scriptural and theological foundations for caring for creation" and "to incorporate the principles of sufficiency and sustainability in our life," therefore be it
RESOLVED, that the Metropolitan New York Synod will:
· educate our churches and members on issues of environmental integrity and creation care,
· encourage celebrations commemorating Earth Day, Rogation Days, Arbor Day and other environmentally conscious events as may be appropriate for Christian churches,
· promote and encourage specific actions each church community and its members can take to act with greater environmental responsibility, and
· promote and encourage actions synod-wide to "green" our operations, including energy audits, adopting cleaner and renewable energy sources, increasing our commitment to recycling and using recycled materials, reducing the amount of waste we produce, and working to protect the precious shared environmental resources of land, air, and water, and be it further
RESOLVED, that the Metropolitan New York Synod, in support of the above ongoing efforts, will establish a standing committee on Environmental Stewardship. The Environmental Stewardship Committee may be formed immediately, but will be unfunded for the 2009 year. It will be financed out of the general budget beginning with the 2010 budget cycle.
Northern Illinois Synod Resolution to Become a "Green Synod" (2008)
WHEREAS, God's first commandments to humanity are that we care for and take care of God's good creation (Gen. 1:28 & 2:15); and
WHEREAS, Jesus came to bring salvation to the entire cosmos (John 3:16-17); and
WHEREAS, the Church, as the body of Christ in the world, is charged with calling the world to repentance and ushering in the kingdom of God; and
WHEREAS, "the whole creation is groaning" due to the abuse and misuse of God's good creation by humanity;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Northern Illinois Synod become a "green synod" by taking the following steps:
Instituting all possible changes to improve energy efficiency in the synod office and other properties owned and/or operated by the synod, including but not limited to:
Performing a "green" audit (as per Green Synod Model proposed by Dr. David Rhoads, LSTC) that will make short and long term recommendations to lessen the carbon footprint on the earth,
Changing incandescent light bulbs to energy efficient compact fluorescent bulbs,
Exploring and utilizing alternate, more environmentally friendly means of producing electricity and heat, and
Replacing as necessary windows, doors, insulation, and other structural aspects of the property that may result in loss of energy.
Being persistent about the reduction and recycling of disposable resources in the synod office(s) such as paper, ink cartridges, plastic, Styrofoam, etc.; and
Taking all possible steps to make all synod sponsored events more environmentally friendly by things such as:
Reducing paper use by utilizing projection where practical and encouraging participants to use electronic media such as laptops, PDAs, etc., and
Insisting that meals be served in a manner that reduces waste by things such as:
i. Serving buffet style when possible so people only take what they will eat,
ii. Insisting on the use of paper or washable cups and plates instead of plastic or Styrofoam,
iii. Requiring that all recyclable waste be divided out and recycled properly.
Encouraging, expecting and enabling participants to carpool to events; and
Replacing synod owned vehicles with those that are the most environmentally friendly available (currently hybrid vehicles); and
Providing necessary support and resources so that the Northern Illinois Synod Green Team can continue its work to help the synod, its congregations and agencies to become green; and
Identifying a symbol that expresses and promotes our care for creation that will be used whenever green steps are taken; and
Instituting other strategies that may emerge as science and technology continue to explore means of helping preserve and regenerate the environment.
Submitted by: Synod Green Team
Contact Person: Pastor Don Knowles or Pastor Jeff Schlesinger
Date Received: April 10, 2008
Action of the Resolution Committee
Date of Action: April 25, 2008
Action Taken: Recommend Adoption
Eastern WA/ID Synod Accepts Eco-Reformation Work
Congratulations to the assembly and team which brought forth a Memorial and Resolution to support the focus on ecological integrity throughout the ELCA's 500th Observance of the Reformation!
The good news as detailed by proud Pastor Alex Schmidt:
Greetings, this evening, Folks of Faith Lutheran [Leavenworth, WA]!
You can be proud of our Synod delegates, John Butruille and Lisa Therrell who have done a splendid job in hanging in there on some long days beginning Friday! Ninety-two churches with over 200 delegates are present here in Pasco. It is now Sat. night and we've just finished our 12 hour day.
Lisa, on behalf of the Faith Lutheran Earth Stewardship Group of which she is a part, did a most excellent job in her assembly workshop (which she'll present as an adult forum on May 24th, along with John's assembly reflections). Lisa also in gave two very articulate 3 minute speeches presenting the Memorial (directed to the National Church) and Resolution 1 (directed to our Synod) for the Assembly's consideration and vote. Both documents were prepared by the Earth Stewardship Group and both passed nearly unanimously!
The testimonies that set the stage:
Reverend Barbara Rossing's video address on why this is a critical ministry for the ELCA to wrap their arms around.
Keynote address from Prof. Ben Stewart included the logic laid out in Chris Hayes' "The New Abolitionism":
· scientists have identified a limit to how much carbon can go into the air if we hope to avoid cataclysmic damage to human civilization (565 GT by midcentury)
· there's 5X that much carbon in known, extractable reserves right now (2,795 GT)
· countries and corporations are counting all of that carbon as wealth, but they can only cash it in if they burn it.
· thus, we are charged with convincing or compelling these countries and corporations to count those "assets" as being worth zero, nothing.
· (there's one clear historical precedent for such a huge amount of "assets" suddenly being ruled no longer "property" — the abolition of slavery in the United States.)
Short address to the assembly:
My name is Lisa Therrell. I am from Faith Lutheran Church in Leavenworth, Washington. I am retired from a 34 year career with the United State Forest Service, where discussions on climate change science became commonplace towards the end of my career. Our family also has a farm in Asotin County that has been in our family prior to Statehood, where we witness changes to the landscape.
In the Genesis story we read, "And God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good."
We know this about the Inland Northwest: a land defined by mountains and canyons, prairie and scabland, forests, rivers, lakes, and fertile fields. We are defined by this landscape, fed by this landscape, renewed by this landscape.
I am here to remind you the Earth is God's Good Creation worthy of our care. Before you are two companion resolutions. Memorial 1 is directed to the 2016 Churchwide Assembly to make addressing climate change and ecological justice major themes of the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation. Resolution 1 is to this Synod, to advocate for reduced dependence on fossil fuels and to step up our care for creation.
God appointed us to tend the garden. Our failure to care for the garden is a sin against God, a failure to love the Creator with our whole heart. The challenge is clear. We must steadily reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. And we can do it. Our congregation put 96 solar panels on our local Middle School, a sign of the transition we can make to renewable energy.
But what does this have to do with the Reformation? The Reformation was a return to our biblical roots and a call for the renewal of the church and its mission. Theologians have coined the term "Ecclesia semper reformanda" meaning "the church is always to be reformed". So we can observe the 500th anniversary of the Reformation as a "looking back", but also a "looking ahead" for where the active presence of God's people is needed in an ailing world.
There are many ways churches can work on ways to reduce their own carbon footprint and to inspire members to do the same. We can be a faith voice in our communities, region, and nation for care of creation. We can lead the way globally as peacemakers and healers of the land, standing in solidarity with those in peril and leaving a positive legacy for unborn future generations.
We are a church of reformers. I ask for your vote in favor of leading an Ecoreformation to save the atmosphere that surrounds our fragile planet while there is still time.
AdvocacyBarbara Rossingeco-reformationeco-theologyELCA materials/resourcesissue-based advocacyregional advocacyresolutionsSeminaries
Eco-Reformation in the Context of Climate Change
Eastern Washington-Idaho Synod Assembly 2015
Memorial on Eco-Reformation in the Context of Climate Change
WHEREAS, 2017 will mark observances of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, which addressed fundamental threats to human well-being and all of God's creation in theological, social, and political ways; and
WHEREAS, the 1993 ELCA Social Statement Caring for Creation: Vision, Hope, and Justice affirms that, "we are called to care for the earth as God cares for the earth;" and
WHEREAS, in 1993 with Caring for Creation we realized the urgency was already "widespread and serious, according to the preponderance of evidence from scientists worldwide [of] dangerous global warming, caused by the buildup of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide" from the burning of fossil fuels, and that "action to counter degradation, especially within this decade, is essential to the future of our children and our children's children. Time is very short;" and
WHEREAS, in the 1999 ELCA Social Statement Economic Life: Sufficient, Sustainable Livelihood for All, this church declares that "Too often the earth has been treated as a waste receptacle and a limitless storehouse of raw materials to be used up for the sake of economic growth, rather than as a finite, fragile ecological system upon which human and all other life depends;" and
WHEREAS, the Statement of Vision and Expectations for Ordained Ministers in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) stipulates that "the people of God are called to the care and redemption of all that God has made. This includes the need to speak on behalf of this earth, its environment and natural resources and its inhabitants. This church expects that its ordained ministers will be exemplary stewards of the earth's resources, and that they will lead this church in the stewardship of God's creation;" and
WHEREAS, Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton wrote in a pastoral letter on September 19, 2014: "Daily we see and hear the evidence of a rapidly changing climate. Glaciers are disappearing, the polar ice cap is melting, and sea levels are rising. Incidents of pollution-created dead zones in seas and the ocean and toxic algae growth in water supplies are occurring with greater frequency. Most disturbingly, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is rising at an unprecedented rate. At the same time we also witness in too many instances how the earth's natural beauty, a sign of God's wonderful creativity, has been defiled by pollutants and waste… The present moment is a critical one, filled with both challenge and opportunity to act as faithful individuals and churches in solidarity with God's good creation"; and
WHEREAS, the Lutheran World Federation has already, with its three-fold theme "Salvation: Not for sale. Human beings: Not for sale. Creation: Not for sale.", signaled its intention to include creation at the center of global 2017 anniversary commemorations; be it therefore
RESOLVED, that this Eastern Washington-Idaho Synod, recognizing the need for ongoing reformation of the ELCA, memorialize the 2016 Churchwide Assembly of the ELCA to make climate change and ecological justice major themes in ELCA planning and activities leading up to and following the observance of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.
Faith Lutheran Earth Stewardship Group:
Margaret Neighbors, Facilitator, Lisa Therrell, Presenter of Resolution
MaryCarol Nelson, Mary Schramm, Rev. John Schramm, Rev. Dr. Barbara Rossing, David Morgan, and Don Hurst, members.
Faith Lutheran Council:
MaryCarol Nelson, President
Judy Moody, Mary Schramm, John Butruille, Terry Leverenz, Dottie Smallbeck, Lindsay Camp, and Pr. Alex Schmidt, members.
Cluster Pastors:
Pr. David Haven, Celebration Lutheran, Wenatchee
Pr. Kent Narum, Fullness of God, Holden Village
Congregational Forum Resources:
Caring for Creation: Vision, Hope, and Justice http://www.elca.org/Faith/Faith-and-Society/Social-Statements/Caring-for-Creation A most excellent Lutheran and Biblical perspective on the crucial, political, social, and economic issues surrounding environmental care of creation.
Economic Life: Sufficient, Sustainable Livelihood for All http://www.elca.org/Faith/Faith-and-Society/Social-Statements/Economic-Life Another insightful and biblically based document which examines the impact of economics on human well-being as well as sustainability of our environment.
www.lutheransrestoringcreation.org LRC is a grassroots movement advocating for and promoting care of creation through the ELCA. Their website provides extensive and creative ideas and resources.
Lutheran World Federation:
https://www.lutheranworld.org/reformation-2017 This global service and justice oriented organization's informative website provides an excellent and insightful critique of global tendencies tying human and environmental well-being to economic gain.
New England Synod's Eco-Reformation
Resolution on Eco-Reformation
RESOLVED that the New England Synod search for ways to enact the 2013 Churchwide Assembly action to "support and encourage synods, congregations, members, the churchwide organization, and agencies and institutions of this church to adopt and advocate for policies that reduce energy use, and with it our dependence on fossil fuels, as an expression of this church's commitment to address climate change and to care for God's creation" and "to re-examine lifestyles and environmental footprints as they relate to the climate crisis and to improve their stewardship of energy resources and promote care for God's creation;" and be it further
RESOLVED, that the New England Synod commits itself to participate with the ELCA in becoming even more faithfully a denomination that embraces creation care throughout its life and mission.
Memorial on Eco-Reformation
WHEREAS, the Lutheran World Federation has already, with its three-fold theme "Salvation: Not for sale. Human beings: Not for sale. Creation: Not for sale.", signaled its intention to include creation at the center of global 2017 anniversary commemorations; be it therefore RESOLVED, that the New England Synod, recognizing the need for ongoing reformation of the ELCA, memorialize the 2016 Churchwide Assembly of the ELCA to request that climate change and ecological justice be major themes in ELCA planning and activities leading up to and following the observance of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.
NorthEastern Iowa's Eco-Reformation (2015)
Submitted/Approved at the June 2015 Northeastern Iowa's Synod Assembly:
Eco-Reformation in the Context of the Northeastern Iowa Synod
WHEREAS, in the previous Memorial Eco-Reformation in the Context of Climate Change, substantive statements were presented indicating the urgency and importance of addressing this matter at our next Churchwide Assembly; and
WHEREAS, these propositions also apply and are critical for our own Northeastern Iowa Synod; be it therefore
RESOLVED, that this Northeastern Iowa Synod will find ways to enact the 2013 Churchwide Assembly action to "support and encourage synods, congregations, members, the churchwide organization, and agencies and institutions of this church to adopt and advocate for policies that reduce energy use, and with it our dependence on fossil fuels, as an expression of this church's commitment to address climate change and to care for God's creation" and "to re-examine lifestyles and environmental footprints as they relate to the climate crisis and to improve their stewardship of energy resources and promote care for God's creation;" and be it further
RESOLVED, that this Northeastern Iowa Synod commit itself to participate with the ELCA in becoming even more faithfully a denomination that embraces and practices creation care throughout its life and mission.
SUBMITTED BY: Care of Creation Network
WHEREAS, the Lutheran World Federation has already, with its three-fold theme "Salvation: Not for sale. Human beings: Not for sale. Creation: Not for sale." signaled its intention to include creation at the center of global 2017 anniversary commemorations; be it therefore
RESOLVED, that this Northeastern Iowa Synod, recognizing the need for ongoing reformation of the ELCA, memorialize the 2016 Churchwide Assembly of the ELCA to make climate change and ecological justice major themes in ELCA planning and activities leading up to and following the observance of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.
Upper Susquehanna PA Synod Eco-Reformation 2015
RESOLVED, that this Upper Susquehanna Synod, recognizing the need for ongoing reformation of the ELCA, memorialize the 2016 Churchwide Assembly of the ELCA to make climate change and ecological justice major themes in ELCA planning and activities leading up to and following the observance of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.
The Rev. Dr. Leah Schade, Pastor, United in Christ Lutheran, Lewisburg, PA
Lutherans Restoring Creation http://www.lutheransrestoringcreation.org LRC is a grassroots movement advocating for and promoting care of creation through the ELCA. Their website provides extensive and creative ideas and resources.
Lutheran World Federation: https://www.lutheranworld.org/reformation-2017 This global service and justice oriented organization's informative website provides an excellent and insightful critique of global tendencies tying human and environmental well-being to economic gain.
Eco-Reformation in the Context of Upper Susquehanna Synod
WHEREAS these propositions also apply and are critical for our own Upper Susquehann Synod; be it therefore
RESOLVED, that this Upper Susquehanna Synod will find ways to enact the 2013 Churchwide Assembly action to "support and encourage synods, congregations, members, the churchwide organization, and agencies and institutions of this church to adopt and advocate for policies that reduce energy use, and with it our dependence on fossil fuels, as an expression of this church's commitment to address climate change and to care for God's creation" and "to re-examine lifestyles and environmental footprints as they relate to the climate crisis and to improve their stewardship of energy resources and promote care for God's creation;" and be it further
RESOLVED, that this Upper Susquehanna Synod commit itself to participate with the ELCA in becoming even more faithfully a denomination that embraces and practices creation care throughout its life and mission.
Congregational Forum Resources: See previous memorial.


Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Constitution Derek Mackay officially opened the new Brodick Ferry Terminal today (Thursday 12th April 2018) following a £30 million infrastructure upgrade project, which has transformed the harbour area.
Work to transform the harbour began on site in January 2016 and has delivered a new 110 metre, two-berth pier, designed to accommodate the new dual-fuel vessel, MV Glen Sannox when it enters service, with a dedicated berth for PS Waverley that can accommodate other commercial vessels, including cruise ships. The modern two-storey terminal building houses the ticket office, toilets, harbour staff offices and a 120-seat departure lounge. Outside, there is an increased marshalling area featuring six lanes, offering a combined 895 metres for cars, HGVs and service vehicles; six bus stances with two modern shelters; and parking for up to 65 cars.
A firm commitment to sustainability throughout design and construction has led to a 'very good' BREEAM rating, an exceptional carbon performance and the top score from the Considerate Constructors Scheme. The new terminal building has photovoltaic roof tiles to generate electricity for the building, a biomass heating system fuelled by locally sourced wood chips, a natural air ventilation system, on-site segregated bicycle routes and storage, and electric vehicle charging points in the parking area. In addition, the majority of dredged and excavated material was re-used in the project as fill for the marshalling area, and excess material was donated to the Brodick Improvement Committee to use in the recovery of Brodick Beach.
"I'm delighted to officially open the new terminal and pier at Brodick Harbour, a project that has transformed the facility and will bring real benefits to ferry users.
"The upgrade will strengthen the harbour's resilience, allowing a broader range of vessels to berth, and the new terminal building will improve the overall experience for passengers.
"The new Brodick Ferry Terminal is a fantastic addition to the island's transport and tourism infrastructure, offering islanders and visitors a more resilient ferry service and a more comfortable and safer travel experience.
Photos from the launch are being issued to national picture desks by photographer Wullie Marr. To request photos, contact Angela Hughes at Clark Communications.
The new Brodick Ferry Terminal opened to passengers on Tuesday 21st March 2018.
In addition to its pier and harbour facilities, CMAL owns 32 ferries, which are leased to CalMac Ferries Ltd for use on ferry services on the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Service.


text:
\section{Introduction}

The only stable configuration of a stellar triple system seems
to consist of a close binary and a substantially more distant third
component.
These systems are important for testing theories of star formation and
stellar evolution in the presence of nearby companions.

The source HD~152246 (HIP~82685) is a member of the Sco OB1 association at a distance
of about 1.585~kpc \citep{Sung2013}. Although the star has been included
in many photometric and spectroscopic surveys of O stars, the knowledge of
its properties is quite limited.

The binary nature of \hd was discovered by \citet{Thack73} who published
six radial velocities (RVs) from 1963 -- 1967 showing a range of about 120 \ks,
but this finding has not received much attention.
\citet{Con77} published one new RV and noted that the star is a RV variable.
\citet{Penny96} suspected the presence of a weak secondary in the CCF peaks,
but it was only \citet{SL2001} who discovered the presence of sharp and
wide lines in the IUE spectra and published two RVs for both components.
They interpreted the two systems of lines as belonging to the primary and
secondary in a binary system.
\citet{Mason98} observed the star with speckle interferometry, but
could not detect any companion for the angular separation range
$0\farcs035 < \rho < 1\farcs5$ with $\Delta m < 3$.

The \hd system has been a~part of our monitoring programme for stellar multiplicity
\citep{Chini12} and attracted our attention because of its varying spectral
line profiles. In our preliminary report based on an analysis of the
\ion{He}{I}~5876\,\AA\ line \citep{Nass14} we showed that \hd must be
a~hierarchical triple system. What is actually observed is a combination
of a broad-line O-type star (component A) and another O-type star with
narrow lines, which itself is the primary component Ba of a close pair.
The RVs of the narrow-line star follow the orbital motion with an
invisible secondary Bb with a period of about 6 d and also a motion
around the common centre of gravity with the component A. The RVs of the
broad-lined component A follow only the orbital motion in the wide
orbit (we had tentatively derived a period of 53 days for it; we revise
the period here).

The combined spectral type of \hd was first determined by \citet{Morgan55}
as O9:\,III:. Later, more accurate but fairly similar properties were found:
\citet{Schild69} and \citet{Garr77} classified the star as O9\,III
while \citet{Wal73} and \citet{Thack73} assigned spectral types
of O9\,III-IV(n) and O8.5\,III, respectively. Several published
measurements of the visual brightness of \hd are mutually quite
consistent \citep{Thack73, KN77, Dachs82, Schild83, Hog00}. \citet{Mer98}
give the following weighted mean value $V = 7$\m308$\pm0$\m015.
The only deviating value was reported by \citet{HW84}: $V=8$\m09, which
we suspect it could be a misidentification of the star. We also used
all Hipparcos $H_{\rm p}$ observations with flags 0 and 1
\citep{ESA97} and transformed them to Johnson $V$ following \citet{Hec98}
to obtain $V=7$\m330$\pm$0\m008. The full range of individual values
is 0\m05, so a future test for micro-variability would perhaps be useful.
In any case it seems that no binary eclipses are observed.

Several -- seemingly contradictory -- determinations of the projected
rotational velocity of \hd were published (see Table~\ref{vsin}).
It seems clear now that \citet{CE77} probably derived \vsin from the
unresolved blend of lines of both stars, other investigators mainly
measured the width of the narrow component Ba until \citet{SL2001}
resolved and measured the lines of both spectra.

In this paper we present the analysis of 49 high resolution spectra,
obtain rather accurate orbital elements and estimate the
basic physical properties of the system.

\begin{figure}
\centering
\resizebox{\hsize}{!}{\includegraphics{feros05.eps}}
\resizebox{\hsize}{!}{\includegraphics{feros07.eps}}
\caption{Two \ion{He}{I}~5876\,\AA\ line profiles from different orbital
 phases. The observed profiles have been fitted by a narrow Gaussian and
 a wide rotationally broadened profile. The resulting fits are denoted
 by grey curves.}
\label{profiles}
\end{figure}

\begin{table}
\caption{Previously published determinations of the projected rotational
velocity of \hde.}
\label{vsin}
\begin{tabular}{clcc}
\hline\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
\vsin (\ks) & Source   \\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
280  & \citet{CE77}     \\
$90 \pm 20$ & \citet{Grigsby92} \\
103  & \citet{Penny96}  \\
72  & \cite{How97}   \\
59 \& 156 & \citet{SL2001} \\
\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
\end{tabular}
\end{table}

\begin{table}
\caption{Published and new RVs of components A and Ba. The new velocities are based on the fit of the \ion{He}{I}~5876~\AA\, line by a combination of a Gaussian and a rotationally broadened profile (see text for details).}
\label{rvtab}
\begin{tabular}{rrrlllc}
\hline\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
 RJD\ \ \ &RV$_{\rm A}$&RV$_{\rm Ba}$&Source\\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
38251.2378&--&    36.0 & \citet{Thack73}\\
39200.6408&--&    60.0 & \citet{Thack73}\\
39200.6498&--&    52.0 & \citet{Thack73}\\
39688.3284&--&$  -18.0$& \citet{Thack73}\\
39720.2631&--&$  -58.0$& \citet{Thack73}\\
39723.2539&--&    50.0 & \citet{Thack73}\\
42888.78  &--&$  -29.8$& \citet{Con77}\\
44995.778 &$-109.4$&   46.6&\citet{SL2001}\\
45000.609 &$-103.0$&   26.5&\citet{SL2001}\\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
51327.8888&$    -7.0$&$ -50.8$&this paper, FEROS\\
52040.8836&$   -49.0$&$ -20.5$&this paper, FEROS\\
52338.8394&$   -23.0$&    8.6 &this paper, FEROS\\
52383.7834&$   -25.0$&$ -44.3$&this paper, FEROS\\
52783.6903&$   -15.0$&    2.4 &this paper, FEROS\\
52784.6323&$   -19.0$&$ -28.5$&this paper, FEROS\\
53130.7748&     44.0 &$ -58.5$&this paper, FEROS\\
53131.6933&     37.0 &$ -39.6$&this paper, FEROS\\
53132.7522&     42.5 &$ -64.3$&this paper, FEROS\\
53133.7812&     37.0 &$ -94.0$&this paper, FEROS\\
53134.7494&     34.0 &$-101.1$&this paper, FEROS\\
53135.7069&     33.0 &$ -81.9$&this paper, FEROS\\
53547.6424&$   -73.0$&    8.3 &this paper, FEROS\\
53798.9178&$   -30.0$&    9.2 &this paper, FEROS\\
53862.8912&$   -41.0$&$  -1.4$&this paper, FEROS\\
53865.8991&$   -40.5$&$ -14.2$&this paper, FEROS\\
54212.8182&$   -26.0$&   12.4 &this paper, FEROS\\
54627.7027&$    -5.0$&$ -12.8$&this paper, FEROS\\
54976.7046&$   -42.0$&$  -7.2$&this paper, FEROS\\
55641.8195&$   -18.5$&   22.5 &this paper, FEROS\\
55642.8300&$   -19.0$&$  -9.4$&this paper, FEROS\\
55696.8448&$   -23.0$&$  -0.7$&this paper, FEROS\\
55697.7549&$   -22.0$&$ -35.6$&this paper, FEROS\\
55698.8283&$   -21.0$&$ -48.3$&this paper, FEROS\\
56068.7356&$   -17.5$&    3.9 &this paper, FEROS\\
56098.8047&$   -14.0$&    4.8 &this paper, FEROS\\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
54913.8587&$   -48.0$&   20.3 &this paper, BESO\\
54920.8675&$   -68.0$&   46.3 &this paper, BESO\\
55050.5851&     18.5 &$ -82.1$&this paper, BESO\\
56485.5223&      1.5 &$ -78.8$&this paper, BESO\\
56490.6158&$    -1.0$&$ -72.8$&this paper, BESO\\
56495.6219&$    -4.0$&$ -31.9$&this paper, BESO\\
56498.7118&$   -10.0$&$ -45.9$&this paper, BESO\\
56502.5216&$   -10.0$&$ -65.2$&this paper, BESO\\
56508.4660&$    -3.5$&$ -62.4$&this paper, BESO\\
56512.5388&$    -3.5$&    9.9 &this paper, BESO\\
56516.5365&$   -12.0$&$ -48.3$&this paper, BESO\\
56518.6466&$   -10.5$&   11.4 &this paper, BESO\\
56521.5196&$   -13.0$&$ -71.1$&this paper, BESO\\
56532.5305&$   -24.0$&$ -59.7$&this paper, BESO\\
56540.5434&$   -18.5$&$ -43.1$&this paper, BESO\\
56541.5275&$   -13.0$&$  -4.0$&this paper, BESO\\
56542.5155&$   -13.0$&   15.4 &this paper, BESO\\
56545.4841&$   -12.0$&$ -62.6$&this paper, BESO\\
56546.5149&$   -13.0$&$ -39.5$&this paper, BESO\\
56547.5287&$   -21.0$&$  -0.8$&this paper, BESO\\
56548.5231&$   -20.5$&   17.1 &this paper, BESO\\
56576.4898&$   -20.0$&$ -43.7$&this paper, BESO\\
56585.4939&$   -20.0$&$  -5.5$&this paper, BESO\\
\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
\end{tabular}
\end{table}

\begin{figure*}
\centering
\resizebox{\hsize}{!}{\includegraphics{feb24.eps}}
\caption{Visibilities (left panel), closure phase (middle panel) and
 $\chi^2$ map of the Feb 28 PIONIER observation of HD~152246.
 The best-fit binary model is overlaid.}
\label{fig: pionier}
\end{figure*}

\section{Observations and data reduction}
\subsection {Spectroscopy}
We have secured 49 high resolution ($R \sim 50.000$) echelle spectra
covering the wavelength range from 3620 to 8530~\AA\, and the time
interval from May 1999 to October 2013. Twenty-six spectra were taken at
the ESO with the spectrograph FEROS (RJDs 51327.9 - 56098.8); the first
two spectra from March and April 2002 stem from the ESO\,1.52\,m telescope,
the remaining data come from the MPG/ESO 2.2\,m telescope. Twenty-three
spectra were obtained with BESO (RJDs 54913.9 - 56585.5)
\footnote{Throughout this study we shall use the following abbreviation
for the {\sl reduced Julian date} RJD=HJD-2400000.0 \,\,.}
at the Universit\"atssternwarte Bochum on a side-hill of Cerro Armazones
in Chile. BESO \citep{Fuhrmann11} is a clone of the ESO spectrograph
FEROS on La Silla and has been attached to the 1.5\,m Hexapod-Telescope.
The identical spectrographs allowed a perfect combination of the two
data sets. All spectra were reduced with a pipeline based on a MIDAS
package adapted from FEROS. The signal-to-noise ratio of
the reduced FEROS spectra ranges from 247 to 487; that of the BESO
spectra from 65 to 177. For either instrument, the signal-to-noise
ratio was measured in the neighbourhood of the \ion{He}~{I} line at
5876~\AA.

At a later stage of the analysis, we also used 9 published RVs of
component B and provided a few comments on 2 published RVs of
component~A (Table~\ref{rvtab}).

\begin{table*}
\centering
\caption{Interferometric best-fit measurements and 1$\sigma$\ error-bars.}
\label{tab: pionier}
\begin{tabular}{l l l l l }
\hline\hline  & & \multicolumn{2}{c}{Observing date} \\
Parameter & Unit & 2014-Feb-24 & 2014-Apr-04 & 2014-May-08 \\
\hline
\vspace*{-3mm}\\
RJD                         &         & \hspace*{4mm} 56712.840         & \hspace*{4mm} 56751.778          & \hspace*{4mm} 56785.902        \\
$(f_B/f_{A})_{1.65\mu}$     &         & \hspace*{2.5mm}$ 0.77 \pm 0.01$ & \hspace*{2.5mm}$ 0.76 \pm 0.04$  & \hspace*{2.5mm}$ 0.79 \pm 0.1$ \\
$\delta$E                   & (mas)   &                $-2.64 \pm 0.17$ &                $-2.23 \pm 0.13$  &                $-1.72 \pm 0.19$\\
$\delta$N                   & (mas)   &                $-2.05 \pm 0.15$ &                $-2.23 \pm 0.07$  &                $-2.25 \pm 0.26$\\
$r$                         & (mas)   & \hspace*{2.5mm}$ 3.34 \pm 0.16$ & \hspace*{2.5mm}$ 3.15 \pm 0.10$  & \hspace*{2.5mm}$ 2.83 \pm 0.24$\\
$\theta$                    & (\degr) & \hspace*{0.7mm}$232.2 \pm 1.6 $ & \hspace*{0.7mm}$224.9 \pm 0.2 $  & \hspace*{0.7mm}$217.4 \pm 4.5 $\\
$\chi^2_\mathrm{red}$       &         & \hspace*{8mm}       0.6         & \hspace*{8mm}      0.9           & \hspace*{8mm}      0.8         \\
\vspace*{-3mm}\\
\hline
\end{tabular}
\end{table*}

\subsection{Long-baseline interferometry}
Interferometric measurements of HD~152246 were obtained on February 24,
April 4 and May 8, 2014 using the PIONIER four-beam combiner \citep{LeBo}
at the four Auxiliary Telescopes of the ESO Very Large Telescope
Interferometer \citep[VLTI,][]{HAA08, HAB10}. The data were reduced with
the \texttt{pndrs} package \citep{LeBo}. Reduction steps and achieved
calibration accuracy on the O-type stars were described earlier
\citep{SLBM13} and will not be repeated here. The data analysis closely
follows the procedure used in the Southern Massive Star at High angular
resolution survey (Sana et al., submitted), which uniformly
analyses PIONIER observations of a sample of over 100 O-type stars.

HD~152246 was clearly resolved at three epochs with a separation of
about 3.2-3.3~milli-arcsec (mas). A clear rotation of the binary axis
could be detected over the 73-day baseline of our PIONIER observations.
Table~\ref{tab: pionier} provides the journal of the interferometric
observations together with the parameters of the best fit binary model.
Figure~\ref{fig: pionier} shows and example of the measured data and the best fit binary
model.

\begin{figure}
\centering
\resizebox{\hsize}{!}{\includegraphics{rvb.eps}}
\resizebox{\hsize}{!}{\includegraphics{rva.eps}}
\caption{Phase plots for both binary orbits. {\sl Top panel:}
RVs of component Ba, prewhitened for the variations in the 470~d orbit
and plotted vs. phase for the 6 d period and periastron epoch
from Table~\ref{fotel}. Open circles denote RVs from the literature.
{\sl Bottom panel:} RV curves of components A and B in the wide orbit.
Open circles denote component A, filled circles component B (smaller ones
for RVs from the literature). We note that in both plots, RVs $-\gamma$ are
plotted.}
\label{orbits}
\end{figure}

\section{Line profiles, radial velocities and orbital periods}
To have a guidance to a more sophisticated analysis, we first measured
RVs of both components of the strong and usually well-exposed
\ion{He}{I}~5876\,\AA\ line, fitting the narrow component by a Gaussian
and the broader one by a rotationally broadened profile. The examples of
such fits are shown in Figure~\ref{profiles} and all RVs, together with
nine RVs from the literature, are in Table~\ref{rvtab}.

We note that \citet{Nass14} originally reported a tentative
value of 53 days for the longer period and 6 days for the shorter period.
Meanwhile we could recover a number of old spectra from the epoch 1999 - 2003
which led to a substantial revision of the originally suggested long period.

The analysis of the RV variations soon showed that the
RV of the component~A varies with a single period, which turned out to be
about 470~d. The RVs of component Ba are modulated also by this period
(showing anti-phase variations with respect to those of component~A), but
they also varied with a shorter period of about 6~d.  After deriving
a more accurate value of the short period, treating data subsets as having
individual systemic velocities (to allow for the changes with the 470~d
orbit), we included all RVs and derived an orbital solution for the triple system.
For this task the programme \fotel \citep[][and references therein]{Had04a} is
well suited. We also verified that the 6-d period is clearly seen
in the RVs for the narrow component published by \citet{Thack73}, \citet{Con77},
and \citet{SL2001}. The situation is a bit more complicated with the two
RVs for component~A as we shall discuss below.

In a second step, we therefore derived a solution for the triple-star
system with \fotele, using all Gaussian RVs for both components measured
in our new spectra and also all 9 RVs of component B from the literature,
first with equal weights and then weighting the three data subsets by the
weights inversely proportional to the square of root-mean-square
residuals (rms) from the preliminary solution. This solution is presented
in Table~\ref{fotel}. The radial-velocity curve for the 6 d orbit is
shown in Figure~\ref{orbits} and corresponds to Table~\ref{fotel}. The
curve for the 470 d orbit is presented in Figure~\ref{fig: 3Dorbit}; the
parameters based also on the interferometric results as listed in
Table~\ref{tab: 3Dorbit} were used for its construction.

\citet{SL2001} published two RVs for the component~A (see Table~\ref{rvtab}):

\smallskip
 $-$109.4 \kms at RJD~44995.7780, phase 0.7811, and

 $-$103.0 \kms at RJD~45000.6090, phase 0.7913

\smallskip\noindent
It is clear from Figure~3 (bottom panel) that these RVs
are for some $-50$~\kms too negative than our new RVs. The difference
could be made smaller if the true value of the long period would be
474.3~d. However, this change in the period would increase the rms of
the orbital solution of component B to 5.6~\ks, and even then, a
deviation of about 30~\kms would persist. One can conjecture that the
reason for too negative RVs measured by \cite{SL2001} lies in that our
results (see below) show that \vsin of component~A is about 200~\ks,
while they only derived 156~\ks. As the relation between the narrow and
broad profiles measured by \citet{SL2001} was similar to that in Figure~1
(bottom panel) here, the smaller \vsin means that the RVs of broad
profiles as measured by them might be erroneously shifted by about one
half of the \vsin difference, i.e. more than by 20 ~\ks. Such a shift
could explain the observed RV difference. The ultimate solution to this
problem as well as the discrimination between a number of possible
values of $K_{\rm A}$ might come only with future dedicated
observations, densely covering the phases of the periastron passage (the
first chance being in March 2015). In any case, it is clear that the two
RVs by \citet{SL2001} provide additional support for the 470~d period.

\begin{table}
\caption{\fotel orbital solution for the triple system \hde.}
\label{fotel}
\begin{tabular}{lllc}
\hline\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
Parameter&Unit&Value\\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
Orbit Ba - Bb \\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
$P_{\rm Ba-Bb}$       &(d)      &6.004865(71) \\
$T_{\rm periastr.}$   &(RJD)    &54285.15(25) \\
$T_{\rm upper\,conj.}$&(RJD)    &54285.90     \\
e                     &         &0.094(26)    \\
$\omega$              &($^\circ$)&37(15)      \\
$K_{\rm Ba}$          &(\ks)    &37.5(2.3)    \\
$f(m)$                &(\ms)    &0.0324       \\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
Orbit A - (Ba+Bb) \\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
$P_{\rm A-(Ba+Bb)}$   &(d)      &470.69(48) \\
$T_{\rm periastr.}$   &(RJD)    &54983.3(1.4)\\
$T_{\rm min.RV}$      &(RJD)    &55433.0    \\
$e$                   &         &0.859(20)  \\
$\omega_{\rm A}$  &($^\circ$)   &306.8(2.8) \\
$K_{\rm Ba+Bb}/K_{\rm A}$&      &1.127(44)  \\
$K_{\rm Ba+Bb}$       &(\ks)    &87(10)     \\
$K_{\rm A}$           &(\ks)    &98(11)     \\
$a \sin i$            &(AU)     &4.10       \\
rms$_{\rm Ba\,old}$&(\ks)       &17.92      \\
rms$_{\rm Ba\,new}$&(\ks)       &4.29       \\
rms$_{\rm A\,new}$ &(\ks)       &5.66       \\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
$\gamma$           &(\ks)       &$-21.60(46)$ \\
\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
\end{tabular}\\
\footnotesize{Note: $a$ is the semi-major axis of the 470-d orbit.}
\end{table}

\begin{table*}
\caption[]{{\tt KOREL} solutions for the triple star, $P=6\fd004865$
for the short orbit fixed.}
\label{korel}
\begin{flushleft}
\begin{tabular}{llllllllll}
\hline\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
Element                       &He\,I~5876&He\,II~5411&C\,III/C\,IV region&O\,III~5592&He\,I~6678&He\,I~7065&Mean \\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
short orbit \\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
$T_{\rm peri.}$ (RJD$-54285$) &0.338    & 0.296    & 0.350    & 0.366    &0.356    &0.356    &0.344 $\pm$0.025 \\
$e$                           &0.1124   &0.1122    &0.1120    &0.1123    &0.1122   &0.1123   &0.1122$\pm$0.0001\\
$\omega_{\rm Ba}$ ($^\circ$)  &49.0     &51.0      &50.4      &51.0      &51.0     &49.7     &50.4  $\pm$0.8   \\
$K_{\rm Ba}$   (km\,s$^{-1}$) &35.09    &35.60     &34.50     &34.11     &33.68    &34.61    &34.60 $\pm$0.68  \\
$f(m)$ (\ms)                  &0.02538  &0.02754   &0.02507   &0.02423   &0.02328  &0.02531  &0.0251$\pm$0.0014          \\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
long orbit \\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
$P_{\rm long}$ (d)            &469.91   &469.90    &469.98    &469.88    &470.00   &470.00   &469.95$\pm$0.05  \\
$T_{\rm peri.}$ (RJD$-54981$) &0.89     & 0.84     & 0.85     & 0.86     &0.86     &0.86     &0.86  $\pm$0.11  \\
$e$                           &0.866    &0.862     &0.868     &0.865     &0.867    &0.864    &0.865 $\pm$0.002 \\
$\omega_{\rm Ba+Bb}$ ($^\circ$)&123.2   &123.4     &123.2     &123.5     &123.4    &123.3    &123.3 $\pm$0.12  \\
$K_{\rm Ba+Bb}$ (km\,s$^{-1}$)&82.00    &82.90     &84.30     &83.48     &84.46    &84.30    &83.6  $\pm$1.0   \\
$K_{\rm Ba+Bb}$/$K_{\rm A}$   &0.8906   &0.8985    &0.9019    &0.8915    &0.8981   &0.8978   &0.8964$\pm$0.0044\\
$K_{\rm A}$ (km\,s$^{-1}$)    &92.07    &92.26     &93.46     &93.64     &94.04    &93.90    &93.2  $\pm$0.8   \\
$a \sin i$ (AU)               &3.761    &3.837     &3.815     &3.836     &3.844    &3.878    &3.828$\pm$0.039     \\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline
\end{tabular}
\end{flushleft}
\end{table*}

\section{RV orbital solutions with \korele}

The \fotel orbital elements were eventually used as initial values
for the solution with the spectral-disentangling programme
\korel \citep{Had04b}. Apart from the \ion{He}{I}~5876~\AA\ line,
we used five other suitable lines and spectral segments
(\ion{He}{I}~6678, \ion{He}{I}~7065, \ion{He}{II}~5411, \ion{O}{III}~5592,
and a longer segment 5670 -- 5835~\AA, which contains
\ion{C}{III}~5695, \ion{C}{IV}~5801, and \ion{C}{IV}~5812~\AA\ plus several
stronger diffuse interstellar bands) to obtain six independent \korel solutions.

In practice, we searched the parameter space and ran a number of trial
solutions for each spectral region to find out a solution with the lowest
sum of residuals. These final solutions and the resulting elements are
summarised in Table~\ref{korel} together with
their mean values. We note that \korel does not provide error
estimates so the comparison of several independent solutions gives us
some idea about the possible errors of the elements.

We carried out several attempts to detect also some weak lines of
component Bb in \korel solution but with no result. This means that we
are unable to obtain the mass ratio between components Ba and Bb and
conclude that the component Bb is much less massive than component Ba.
This is similar to HD~165246 binary, for which \citet{May2013} found a
low mass ratio of 0.17\,.

\section{Three-dimensional orbit of HD~152246~A,B}

Having resolved  the A,B pair and detected its orbital motion on the
plane of the sky opens the possibility of computing the three-dimensional
orbit of HD~152246. To this aim, we simultaneously fit the RV and
astrometric measurements using the method described in \citet{SLBM13};
we only used FEROS and BESO data. We corrected the RVs of component Ba
listed in Table~\ref{rvtab} from the orbital motion around the centre of
mass of the Ba,Bb pair using the orbital solution given in
Table~\ref{fotel}. We adopted error bars on the A and B RV components
given by the residual of the fit in Table~\ref{rvtab}, i.e.\ 5.66 and
4.29~\kms\ for component A and B, respectively. We also neglected the
astrometric displacement of B attributable to its close companion in the VLTI
data. This is a valid assumption given such displacement is likely of
the order of 0.1~mas.

We used the averaged \korel orbital solution as a starting point for our
fit. We fixed the distance at 1585~kpc and we worked in the systemic
velocity frame (i.e., $\gamma=0$~\kms). The obtained best-fit solution
is given in Table~\ref{tab: 3Dorbit} and shown in Figure~\ref{fig: 3Dorbit}.
As explained in \citet{SLBM13}, we estimated the uncertainties on the
best-fit parameters by Monte Carlo simulations. We randomly drew 1000
artificial RV and astrometric data sets. We preserved the observational
time sampling. The data points were taken from Gaussian distributions
centred on the best fit solution, using the observational error bars as
the Gaussian standard deviations to draw. We then ran the fitting
procedure on each of the synthetic data set and we estimated the
uncertainties on the best-fit parameters from the distribution of
retrieved parameters. The  error intervals quoted in Table~\ref{tab: 3Dorbit}
correspond to the 68\%\ confidence intervals. The intervals are taken as
symmetric if the upper and lower error bars do not differ by more than
10\%, asymmetric confidence intervals are otherwise provided.

Comparing the results of the three-dimensional orbit with the \fotel and
\korel orbital solutions (Tables~\ref{fotel} and \ref{korel}) reveal
excellent agreement. The preference for a high eccentricity value is
confirmed while we obtained slightly smaller RV semi-amplitudes.
Importantly, the orbital inclination $i$ is now constrained to
$i=112.46^{+6.98}_{-9.11}$. This allows us to derive absolute masses
for the A and B components to $20.35~\pm~1.50$ and $22.78~\pm~1.82$~\ms,
i.e.\ with a relative accuracy of 8\%.

\begin{figure}
\centering
\resizebox{\hsize}{!}{\includegraphics{orbit3d.eps}}
\caption{Astrometric orbital solution of the wide A,B pair (Table~\ref{tab: 3Dorbit}) and PIONIER interferometric measurements. The dashed line shows the line of nodes.}
\label{fig: 3Dorbit}
\end{figure}
\begin{table}
\caption{Best-fit simultaneous RV and interferometric orbital solution of the  HD~152246~A,B system.  }
\label{tab: 3Dorbit}
\begin{centering}
\begin{tabular}{lccc}
\hline\hline
Parameter        & Unit  &       A          &           B         \\
\hline
\vspace*{-3mm}\\
$P_\mathrm{out}$ &[d]    & \multicolumn{2}{c}{$470.54  \pm 0.53$} \\
$a$              &[mas]& \multicolumn{2}{c}{$2.620 \pm 0.064$} \\
$a$              &[AU]   & \multicolumn{2}{c}{$4.15 \pm 0.10$} \\
$a_j$ ($j=$A,B)  &[mas]&$1.387 \pm 0.047$ & $1.234 \pm 0.038$   \\
$a_j$ ($j=$A,B)  &[AU]   &$2.198 \pm 0.075$ & $1.955 \pm 0.060$   \\
$e$              &       & \multicolumn{2}{c}{$0.843   \pm 0.024$}\\
$\omega_{\rm A}$ &[\degr]& \multicolumn{2}{c}{$303.71  \pm 2.95$} \\
$T$              &[RJD]  & \multicolumn{2}{c}{$54983.51\pm 1.53$} \\
$\gamma$         &[\ks]  & \multicolumn{2}{c}{$-21.48  \pm 0.98$} \\

$M_{\rm A}/M_{\rm B}$    &       & \multicolumn{2}{c}{$0.893 \pm 0.038$}  \\
$i  $            &[\degr]& \multicolumn{2}{c}{$112.46^{+6.98}_{-9.11}$} \\
$\Omega$         &[\degr]& \multicolumn{2}{c}{$28.05^{+7.68}_{-6.08}$}\\
\\
$K$              &[\ks]  & $87.27 \pm10.4$  & $77.95 \pm  9.5$    \\
$M$              &[\ms]  & $20.35 \pm 1.50$ &$ 22.78 \pm  1.82$   \\
\\
$\chi^2_\mathrm{red}$ &  & \multicolumn{2}{c}{\hspace*{3mm} 0.83} \\
\vspace*{-3mm}\\
\hline
\end{tabular}\\
\end{centering}
\footnotesize{Notes: $a_{\rm A}$ and $a_{\rm B}$ denote the separations
of components A and B from the common centre of gravity
($a=a_{\rm A}+a_{\rm B}$). $\omega_{\rm A}$ refers to the direction from
the centre of mass to A at periastron.}
\end{table}

\section{Spectral disentangling and preliminary physical properties of
components A and Ba}
Keeping the mean elements of Table~\ref{korel} fixed, we used \korel
to disentangle the line profiles of components A and Ba in all six spectral
regions. Synthetic spectra were then fitted to the disentangled profiles in
order to estimate the effective temperatures $T_{\rm eff}$, gravitational
acceleration $g$, projected rotational velocity \vsin, fractional luminosity
$L_{\rm R}$, $RV$ and metallicity $Z$ of the resolved components of the system.
We attempted two independent approaches.

\subsection{{\tt TLUSTY} model atmospheres and the OSTAR grid of synthetic spectra}
One of us (JN) has developed a programme, which interpolates in a~pre-calculated
grid of synthetic stellar spectra in the effective temperature,
gravitational acceleration, and metallicity. The programme starts with an initial
estimate of all the parameters to be optimised. The interpolated spectrum of
each component is shifted in RV, broadened to the projected rotational velocity
with the programme ROTINS (written by Dr. I. Huben\'y) and multiplied by the
fractional luminosity of the modelled component. The synthetic spectrum is
compared to the disentangled one (normalised to the common continuum of the
system) and the initial parameters are optimised by minimisation of $\chi^2$
(defined by Eq.~\ref{chisquare} below) until best match is achieved:
\begin{eqnarray}
\chi^2 = \sum_{i=1}^{\rm N}w_{\rm i}\left[I_{\rm i}^{\rm disen} -
 I_{\rm i}^{\rm synt}\left(T_{\rm eff}, g, v_{\rm R}\sin i, L_{\rm R}, RV, Z\right)\right]^2
\label{chisquare}
\end{eqnarray}
Here $N$ is the number of disentangled components of the system,
$I_{i}^{\rm disen}$ the disentangled spectrum, $I_{\rm i}^{\rm synt}$
the synthetic spectrum and $w_{\rm i}$ the weight of the $i$-th
component. Fractional luminosities must satisfy the condition that
$\sum^{\rm N}_{i=1}L_{\rm R, i} = 1$ and metallicities must satisfy the
condition $Z_{i}$ = $Z_{1}$, for $i=1..N$. The $\chi^2$ is minimised
using the downhill simplex method \citep{NM65}.

All the weights of the disentangled spectra were set to one and the
interpolation was carried out in the OSTAR grid \citep{LH03} based on
{\tt TLUSTY} model atmopspheres \citep{tlusty}. Several
short segments covering the neighbourhood of the spectral lines
mentioned in Table~\ref{korel} were optimised simultaneously and for
both components at once, the \ion{C}{III}~5696~\AA\ and the
\ion{C}{IV}~5801 and 5811~\AA\ lines being treated as two separate data
segments (not as one long segment as in \korele). The results of
minimisation of Eq.~\ref{chisquare} are summarised in Table~\ref{fit}.
To estimate uncertainties of all derived parameters, we repeated the
optimisation of $\chi^{2}$ hundred times, each time starting the
optimisation from a random point. The solutions having the final
$\chi^2$ less than 1.06 times higher than the $\chi^2$ of the best
solution were used to estimate the errors. The largest source of the
error, uncertainty in the spectra (re)normalisation of the disentangled
profiles, was not taken into account\footnote{Since the disentangling in
\korel is carried out in Fourier space, it happens in almost every
practical application that the resulting disentangled spectra after
inverse Fourier transformation have slightly warped continua and need
some re-normalisation.}. This means that the errors quoted in
Table~\ref{fit} should be taken as lower limits.

On modelling side, we note that {\tt TLUSTY} models are static plane-parallel
models with full non-LTE metal line blanketing. They are suitable for
O stars that have weak stellar winds.

\begin{table}
\centering
\caption{Results of the best fit of the OSTAR grid of synthetic spectra
to the observed ones. The optimised parameters are: the effective temperature
$T_{\rm eff}$, gravitational acceleration $g$, projected rotational
velocity $v_{\rm R}\sin i$, fractional luminosity $L_{\rm R}$, $RV$, and
metallicity $Z$.}
\begin{tabular}{lr@{$\pm$}l|r@{$\pm$}l}
\hline\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
Quantity& \multicolumn{2}{c}{Component A} & \multicolumn{2}{c}{Component Ba}\\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
$T_{\rm eff}$\,(K)&32506&23  &32544&48\\
$\log (g_{\rm [cgs]})$&3.738&0.014  &3.706&0.009\\
$v\sin i$\,(\ks)&200.4&2.9  &61.41&0.47\\
$L_{\rm R}$&0.5712&0.0021    &0.4288&0.0021\\
$RV$\,(\ks)&$-20.2$&2.6  &$-19.72$&0.36\\
$Z$\,(Z$_{\odot}$)&\multicolumn{2}{c}{1.00} &\multicolumn{2}{c}{1.00}\\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline
\end{tabular}
\label{fit}
\end{table}

While the general fit of the disentangled by synthetic spectra resulting
from the final solution of Table~\ref{fit} was quite satisfactory,
deviations up to several per cent of the continuum level were found
in the cores of several investigated spectral lines.

There is a pronounced disagreement between the disentangled and
synthetic spectra for the \ion{C}{iii}~5696~\AA\, line.
The observed line is in emission in component~Ba.
According to the synthetic spectra, this line should be in emission only
at low \lgg. When we tried to fit this line, and simultaneously also
\ion{He}{II} and \ion{He}{I} lines, we ended with a strong disagreement
with reality. However, we note that the presence of the 5696~\AA\ emission
is common among main-sequence stars.
The case of 15~Mon (O7\,V) is known \citep{Wilson55}; see the ELODIE spectrum
\citep{Elodie}. By chance, we found that the line is in emission also in several
O8\,V stars: HD~161853 (FEROS spectrum) or in HD~49149 and HD~46966 (ELODIE
spectra).

We also note that \ion{He}{I}~6678~\AA\ line, and the two \ion{C}{IV} lines
for both, A and Ba component are stronger than suggested by the synthetic
model but this difference is only on the level of 1~\% of the continuum level
only. Once again, at least for \ion{He}{I} line, such a behaviour is not
unusual and has been observed for two other O stars, SZ Cam \citep{Lor98}, and V1331~Aql \citep{Lor2005}.

\begin{figure}
\centering
\resizebox{\hsize}{!}{\includegraphics{5670is.eps}}
\caption{The disentangled spectrum of diffuse interstellar bands
in the 5680 -- 5820~\AA.}
\label{is}
\end{figure}

It would be worth of investigation whether the observed deviations are
indicative of a temperature stratification in the extended atmospheres
and/or winds around the objects in question. For those colleagues, who
study the diffuse interstellar bands, we also plot in Figure~\ref{is}
the disentangled spectrum of diffuse interstellar bands in the region
from 5680 to 5820~\AA, normalised to the joint continuum of the system.

\subsection{FASTWIND model spectra}

We also attempted to adjust the disentangled spectra with the {\tt FASTWIND} model atmosphere \citep{PUV05,fastwind} using an automatic fitting method \citep{MdKP05, TSdK11}. In contrast to {\tt TLUSTY} this programme uses spherical model atmospheres, non-LTE with line blanketing and models also stellar wind lines. On the other hand, {\tt FASTWIND} only computes H and He profiles, i.e. there is no information for the \ion{C}{iii}~5696~\AA\, line. The atmospheres are not truly hydrodynamic, however, as the programme does not solve for the wind structure but adopts a wind law. Accurate mass loss estimates from the optical require recombination lines, like H$\alpha$ or \ion{He}{II}~4686\,\AA\ which have not yet been analysed in the current investigation. The results of the fit are summarised in Table~\ref{fastwind}. A detailed fit of some spectral line was not perfect in this case either.

\begin{table}
\centering
\caption{Results of the best fit of the {\tt FASTWIND} grid of synthetic
spectra to the observed ones. Parameter $\beta$ is the usual coefficient of
the wind velocity law.}
\begin{tabular}{lc|cl}
\hline\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
Quantity& Component A & Component Ba\\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline\noalign{\smallskip}
$L_{\rm R}$ (adopted)&0.5712  &0.4288\\
$T_{\rm eff}$\,(K)&33500 &34650\\
$\log (g_{\rm [cgs]})$&3.7  &3.7\\
$v\sin i$\,(\ks)&218 &68\\
$v_{\rm turb.}$\,(\ks)&17 &18\\
$v_\infty$\,(\ks)&$2161$&$1902$\\
$\log\dot M$ &$-6.5$&$-6.5$\\
$\beta$ &1.2&0.95\\
$R$ (\rs) &9.3 & 7.9\\
\noalign{\smallskip}\hline
\end{tabular}
\label{fastwind}
\end{table}

More generally, it is obvious that a really reliable line profile modelling
awaits further improvements, both on the theoretical and observational side.
For instance, \citet{massey} compared {\tt FASTWIND} and independent
{\tt CMFGEN} model spectra with observed spectra of 10 O stars and noted
that the surface gravities of {\tt FASTWIND} are systematically lower
by 0.12~dex compared to {\tt CMFGEN} and that both programmes have
some problems to fit the \ion{He}{I} lines for higher
luminosity stars. Concerning the observed spectra, we believe that
the spectral disentangling will provide better line profiles of
both visible stellar components after we obtain good spectra during
the periastron passage in the outer orbit.

\subsection{Preliminary physical properties of components A and Ba}
Considering the above exercises, we warn against taking the results
of Tables~\ref{fit} and \ref{fastwind} too seriously at the present stage of
investigation and postpone a more accurate determination of the
physical properties of the system for a future study. For the moment,
we consider reasonable to adopt
\tef = $33000\pm500$ and \vsin = $210\pm10$~\kms for component A, and
\tef = $33600\pm600$ and \vsin = $65\pm3$~\kms for component Ba.

\section{Physical properties of the system}
According to \citet{Sota2014} the integrated spectral type of HD~152246
is O9\,IV, and according to \citet{Mer98} $V=7$\m308, \bv = 0\m169. For
that spectral type, the expected (\bv)$_0=-0$\m30, therefore the excess
$E$(\bv) = 0\m47. HD~152246 is close to NGC~6231 (angular separation
of about 45\arcmin). \citet{Sung2013} gives for this cluster $R=3$\m20
and a distance modulus of 11.0 ($d=1585$~pc).
The systemic velocity of NGC~6231 is $-27.28 \pm 2.98$ as
obtained from 10 high-mass stars \citep{Sana08}; the scatter of individual
RVs complies with the systemic velocity of HD~152246 as given in
Table~\ref{tab: 3Dorbit} corroborating its membership in Sco OB 1 association.

Moreover, \citet{Sana05} derived basic physical properties of the massive spectroscopic and eclipsing binary CPD$-41^\circ7742$, a member of NGC\,6231 for which
they were able to derive the distance modulus of $10.92\pm0.16$, in
agreement with the above value. Applying the colour excess and a
distance modulus of 11.0 to HD~152246, we obtain $V_0=5$\m80 and $M_V=-5$\m20.

The fitting of the disentangled spectra yields the monochromatic flux ratio
between the narrow-lined component Ba and broad-lined component A as
$0.429/0.571=0.751$. This is close to the ratio 0.77 found in the $H$
band by PIONIER (Table~\ref{tab: pionier}). However, we already noted
that in this case the disentangling might not be reliable. Therefore,
we prefer the value 0.77; the corresponding magnitude difference is 0\m284.
Then the magnitude $M_{\rm V}$ of the A component is $-4$\m58, of the
B component $-4$\m30. \citet{Mart2005} has $M_V = -4$\m05 for O9\,V
and $-$5\m25 for O9\,III; the agreement with the expected magnitude
of component A (O9\,IV) is a very good one. Component Ba is then O9\,V.

The typical expected mass for HD~152246~A, based on its spectral type,
is $\sim20$~\ms\ \citep{Mart2005}, in agreement with the
derived dynamical mass. Since the expected mass for an O9\,V star is
~17.5~\ms, the secondary Bb should contribute by about 6 \ms; the mass
ratio of 0.3 between Bb and Ba is quite acceptable given the SB1 nature
of HD~152246B (the luminosity of the secondary can be neglected in the
discussion made above).

\begin{figure}
\centering
\resizebox{\hsize}{!}{\includegraphics{hrd.eps}}
\caption{Position of HD~152246~A and Ba in the HRD. Evolutionary tracks
and isochrones of \citet{BdMC11} with initial rotation rate of 100~\kms\ are overlaid.}
\label{fig: hrd}
\end{figure}

\section{Discussion}

\subsection{Evolutionary status}
We used the BONNSAI\footnote{The BONNSAI web-service is available at
www.astro.uni-bonn.de/stars/bonnsai.} Bayesian tool (Schneider et al.,
submitted) to compare the observational constraints and the single massive
star evolutionary models of \citet{BdMC11}. We used a Saltpeter IMF and
flat priors for the age and initial rotational velocity.

For the A component, we provided the observed $T_\mathrm{eff}$,
$\log L_\mathrm{bol}/L_\odot$, $\log g$, $v \sin i$ and mass, together
with their uncertainty. BONNSAI is able to find a set of models that
perfectly reproduce the observed values. These correspond to initial
masses of $21.4^{+1.4}_{-0.9}$ \ms\ and age of $4.7 \pm 0.3$~Myr.

For the Ba component, we provided the same parameters with the exception
of the stellar mass, that is not directly constrained by our
observations owing to the uncertain mass of the Bb component. No model
was able to reproduce all parameters. The main issue was that our
derived $\log g$ is too low. We removed the observational constraint on
the gravity and re-ran BONNSAI. The set of models able to reproduce our
observations indicate $\log g=4.03 \pm 0.15$, a present day mass of
$18.4^{+2.0}_{-1.1}$ and an age of $4.8^{+0.4}_{-1.5}$~Myr. The
agreement of the evolutionary mass of component Ba with the expected one
based on its spectral properties is excellent. Similarly the
evolutionary ages of both A and Ba component are identical, suggesting a
coeval formation of the system. The location of both components in the
Hertzsprung-Russell diagram (HRD) is displayed in Figure~\ref{fig: hrd}.
The derived age of HD~152246 agrees with that of other high-mass
stars in NGC~6231 although the latter ones are model-dependent \citep{Sung2013}. If the
rotating models of \citet{EGE12} are adopted the age is $4.0 - 7.0$\,Myr.

\subsection{Rotational velocities and dynamical status}

Intriguingly, the very similar A and Ba components in HD~152246 presents
very different projected rotational velocities of 200 and 60~\ks.
Assuming the rotation and orbital spins of the wide binary are aligned,
we would derive very similar values of 220 and 65~\kms.

However, given the masses of the Ba, Bb system are relatively well
constrained to about 18.4 and 4.4~\ms, we can use the \fotel orbital
solution of Table~\ref{fotel} to estimate the orbital inclination of the
Ba, Bb pair. We obtain $i_\mathrm{Ba,Bb} \approx 32$\degr. Assuming this
time that rotation axis of the Ba component is aligned with the orbital
spin of the short period system, we then obtain $v_\mathrm{rot, Ba}
\approx 120$~\ks, i.e.\ still significantly lower that the one of the A
component.

BONNSAI best models indicate a probable radius of
$6.75^{+1.72}_{-1.20}$~\rs\ for the Ba component. Tidal synchronisation
of Ba in the Ba,Bb 6 d orbit would result in rotational velocity of
$57^{+14}_{-10}$~\ks. Such velocity is in agreement with the measured
projected rotational velocity and would suggest an inclination close to
90\degr\ for the spin axis of HD~152246~Ba. If this scenario is correct,
then it would mean that the spin and orbital axis are not aligned in the
Ba, Bb system. One might also speculate whether the star formation process
had not allotted similar amounts of angular momentum to both components A and B.
If so, this resulted in fast spin for A and the creation of a binary star in B.\\

\section{Conclusions}
Several conclusions can be drawn here:
\begin{enumerate}
\item[i.]  the evolutionary ages of the O stars in HD~152246 suggest a
co-eval formation of the triple system;
\item[ii.] with orbital inclination $i_\mathrm{A,B}\approx112$\degr\
and $i_\mathrm{Ba,Bb} \approx 30$ (or 150)\degr\ the two orbits are not
co-aligned;
\item[iii.] the components A and Ba likely have different rotational
velocities;
\item[iv.] the component Ba is possibly synchronised, but if this is
correct the spin and orbital axis are not aligned;
\item[v.] HD~152246~A,B pair has an eccentricity significantly higher
than expected from the period-eccentricity diagram of other O-type
systems \citep{SdMdK12}.
\end{enumerate}

It is possible that several of these properties result from the
hierarchical nature and extreme eccentricity of the system. In this
scenario, each close encounter of the Ba,Bb pair with the A component
would perturb the Ba, Bb inclination and spin alignments. Even if the A
and Ba components were born identical, the regular interactions between
the three bodies may result in different rotation velocities.
Alternatively, HD~152246 may be born as hierarchical quadruple systems
formed by two close-binaries. The Aa, Ab initial binary may have been
driven into coalescence because of stellar evolution (if the initial
period was extremely short) or  dynamical interaction with the Ba, Bb
pair. This may have lead to a catastrophic event that may have pumped up
the eccentricity of the wide system and left a rapidly rotating A
component. Such event should however have happened early in the
evolutionary life of HD~152246 as no rejuvenation effect is seen in the
HRD. Future abundance determination of the HD~152246 components may help
provide further constraints on these scenarios.

\begin{acknowledgements}
This publication is supported as a project of the Nordrhein-Westf\"{a}lische
Akademie der Wissenschaften und der K\"unste in the framework of the academy
 programme by the Federal Republic of Germany and the state Nordrhein-Westfalen.
The research of PH, PM, and JN was supported by the grant P209/10/0715 of the
 Czech Science Foundation and from the research programme MSM0021620860.
We are grateful for the help of A. Barr Dom\'{i}nguez, K. Fuhrmann, L. Kaderhandt
 and M. Ramolla during the observations and the reduction.
We thank Universidad Cat\'{o}lica del Norte in Antofagasta, Chile, for
continuous support.
The use of the NASA/ADS bibligraphical service and SIMBAD electronic database
 are gratefully acknowledged.

PIONIER is funded by the Universit\'e Joseph Fourier (UJF), the
Institut de Plan\'etologie et d'Astrophysique de Grenoble (IPAG), the
Agence Nationale pour la Recherche (ANR-06-BLAN-0421 and ANR-10-BALN-0505),
and the Institut National des Science de l'Univers (INSU PNPand PNPS).The
integrated optics beam combiner result from a collaboration between IPAG
and CEA=LETI based on CNRS R\&T funding.
\end{acknowledgements}

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