Eco-Congregation Blog

I have just finished reading a book a friend lent me about the American singer, Rich Mullins, who died tragically young in a car crash. An incredibly spiritual person, in many ways it seemed he did not belong to this world. A whole chapter of An Arrow Pointing to Heaven is devoted to Rich's love of Creation. "For Rich, the universe was alive and breathing out a blessing to all," writes James Bryan Smith. "From dawn to dusk, God condescends to us by singing a gentle hymn through the created world.

I don't know what you think about the idea of a coalition government but it is certainly doing some things right. It is early days to deliver any kind of a verdict on their environment policies but I was encourage by their commitment to the 10:10 campaign.

Here are four pieces of an essay by Peter Sawtell of Eco-justice Ministries www.eco-justice.org from the book Holy Ground.

"I think morality for the future is going to come by and large from the land, not from religion. And let’s be honest, shaming and commandments have not done a very good job thus far. I think the Earth itself is going to tell us we have to live simple lives, we have to live reverent lives, and we have to live together. If creation is indeed the body of God—the revelation of who God is—is that such a terrible thing? Yet I know some Christians who see red if you say such a thing. Where would that come from?

According to the IUCN Red List, 70% of the plant species that we know about are under threat of extinction. 32% of fish and 21% of mammals face a similar threat. Are we responsible? Should we care?

Sri Lankan theologian, Vinoth Ramachandra says on a CMS DVD that Jesus did not die to save souls, He died to save people. The point he was making is that people have real physical bodies and exist in a physical environment, which is part of God's creation.

I have just returned from speaking at a Pan African conference on Faith and the Environment in Nigeria. Putting aside the conflict of issues implied in flying to a conference on the environment, I was really impressed by the passion and commitment displayed by the leaders of both Christian and Muslim faiths. They have gone well beyond asking if we should be doing anything about climate change because it is very clearly impacting their communities.

My friend Tom Rowley, who runs A Rocha in the USA, wrote this on his blog:

When I was a kid, my mother—queen of catalog shopping—bought a hand-held, squeeze-trigger device with a dial on top. It being the early seventies and I being a TV-addicted adolescent boy, my recognition of the contraption was instant: Star Trek Phaser!

Instant, but wrong.

"I will remove disaster from you" - Would that be by helping you understand the consequences of your actions and life-styles, so that you might change your ways and move towards more sustainable living patterns? Would that qualify as "removing disaster from you"? But what if you don't act on the science or understandings?

I was recently at a meeting of Ed Milliband, the Minister for Environment and Climate Change, and the leaders of the main faith groups in Britain and their environmental representatives. We all signed a joint statement to encourage the government to take a strong postion at Copenhagen and to actually deliver on the targets they have set. One of the good things going on in politics at the moment is the cross party consensus on the need to do something about climate change.

I recently received this email from a church who have taken their worship outside the church:
"The tradition of wearing your best clothes to go to church was completely overturned this month by the congregation of St John's, Hurst Green.

"Let us exalt God's name together..." What causes you to exalt God? Who or what (!) do you imagine yourself exalting God together with - other humans? animals? flowers? mountains? waterfalls?

"Taste and see that God is Good" - taste fresh stream water, heirloom tomatoes, local honey on homemade bread, apple cider mellowed by the first few frosts! What tastes are a part of your worship experiences? (What sights, sounds, smells, touches?)"

Quote from Earthword by Charlie West

At a recent meeting of the European Conference of Environmental Networks Archbishop Hammer of Norway asked this question. The Archbishop began with a biblical insight considering Romans 12, and went on to say that we have chosen to follow the exploitative human role that seems to be presented in Genesis 1, rather than the caring role presented in Genesis 2. Neither did we choose to follow St. Francis! The way we look at the world is crucial, Many Christian identities say that the world is sinful, The implication is that we should get rid of it, and look for salvation elsewhere.

Someone at Greenbelt told me about this fantastic idea for a church in Scotland to be be built out of rubbish. Take a look at this web link if you have ever been frustrated by your church's obsession with its building.
http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/uk/Community--to-build-church.4525784.jp

I heard this from the writer Rhydian Brook on Radio 4 last week :