As we get a new article each month, the previous articles will appear here, oldest at the bottom. These are similar articles that have appeared in the monthly Newsletters but in one page, to make it easier to re-read and click on links.
Community & Global Community and Global - Eco Church
Mark 12:30-31 (NIV) ‘“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” e second is this: “Love your neighbour as yourself.” ere is no commandment greater than these.”’
The climate and nature crises are profoundly unjust, with the most devastating impacts affecting the poor and vulnerable who have done the least to cause the crises. We are called to love our neighbour, and so it is our responsibility to them and the places they live, wherever they are, to demonstrate love for people and nature by advocating for a more just world (Micah 6:8). While there is much that we can do as a church body, our impact will be even greater when we work with others to bring about local and global change.
There are a number of ways that we can campaign for local, national and global change eg.
- Joining Sustainability and Initiative movements
- Engaging with Community Projects and Local conservation works
- Help in a Community Clean up.
More ideas can be found at Community and Global - Eco Church.
As a church, we regularly pray for our World but, maybe, we can do a little more? Not all of us have the skills, talents or time to act ourselves but we might be able to support action groups financially or in other ways. We are looking into ways that we can support TrustLinks, who are an independent charity for mental health, wellbeing and the environment in Essex. They offer therapeutic gardening, recovery classes, social activities, employability support, training, environmental workshops and more and they work with around 4,000 people per year, with sites in Southend, Castle Point, Rochford, Braintree and Basildon.
Not only would we be supporting our commitment to climate change, but also mental health. I think this is a ‘win’ for everyone.
Eco Church
Job 12:7-10 (NIV) ‘But ask the animals, and they will teach you; the birds of the air, and they will tell you; ask the plants of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you. Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In his hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of every human being'
As part of our commitment to Eco Church we start with our own lifestyle choices and we are encouraging people to look at their individual carbon footprint.
What is a carbon footprint? The calculation of the carbon emissions you produce, as a church or individual, is known as your carbon ‘footprint’. A carbon footprint not only takes into consideration the energy used to heat and light your home, but includes travel and where we invest our money, whether we have a few pounds or many. It is helpful to understand your carbon footprint in order to make reductions in your carbon emissions.
There are a number of free carbon footprint calculators available for individuals and households such as the WWF Footprint Calculator and Carbon Calculators – Climate Stewards.
This will form an important baseline measure, the first time you complete it. By calculating your carbon footprint each year, you can make comparisons and see progress on your carbon reduction.
Lifestyle Choices Overview-Lifestyle.pdf
We worship a God who loves the Earth he created and calls us to care for it. While it’s important to take action together as a church, we also have an individual responsibility to take action in our daily lives so that we tread lightly on the Earth and use our voices to speak up for nature. Click on the Lifestyle resources - Eco Church link and choose any of the "posters" for more information on what changes you can make i.e. You and your local travel, You and your energy, Sustainable fashion.
The Creation Care scheme is a bit like Eco Church for households. Use the online survey to consider seven areas of your lifestyle and work toward awards. The scheme provides ideas for next steps, and recognises where progress is made About | Creation Care.
As a church, we have produced a Policy that includes the following statement. We hope that you will all commit to this policy within your daily lives.
Commitment and link to Environmental Policy
‘We recognise that we can have an impact on the world through the choices available to us and our use of money and resources. We will strive to support our church family and wider community in bringing about positive change and care for God’s Earth. We will seek to encourage our church community and beyond to live gently on the Earth and be prepared to challenge systemic injustice.’
We understand that it is not always possible to change some of our lifestyle choices i.e. the church banks with NatWest PLC who is NOT an ethical banker, and it is too disruptive to change banks however, we can make changes where we are able to and where our reliance on big companies allows us to i.e. changing to LED lights or using a renewable energy company.
All we are asking is that you look at your lifestyle choices and encourage others to look at theirs too.
Quick Links
www carbon footprint calculator