Care of Creation
The earth is the Lord’s, and all that is in it.
(Psalm 24)
As people of God, Christians are called to lovingly care for the world with which we’ve been entrusted. There is now urgency as never before to heed God’s call to earth-keeping, to justice, and to community.
Social justice cannot be achieved in the absence of
environmental justice. As the Presbyterian Church (USA)’s “Restoring
Creation Policy” points out, “The love of neighbor, particularly ‘the
least’ of Christ’s brothers and sisters, requires action to stop the
poisoning, the erosion, the wastefulness that are causing suffering
and death.”
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The earth is not ours. It doesn’t belong to us . . . we are guests,
temporary guests . . . and part of why we are here is to manage the
place, to be stewards of God’s creation. In fact that’s our highest
calling, our holiest vocation, to manage God’s creation.
John Buchanan, Pastor of Fourth Church 1985-2012
God has made a covenant with all creation. As Christians, we are asked to approach the world God has created with a combination of joy, wonder, tenderness, and care and to be stewards of this great gift. The following Bible passages are just a few of those which speak of God’s gifts and God’s call to us:
And God said, “Let the waters bring forth swarms of
living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the dome
of the sky.” So God created the great sea monsters and every living
creature that moves, of every kind, with which the waters swarm, and
every winged bird of every kind. And God saw that it was good. God
blessed them, saying “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in
the seas, and le the birds multiply on the earth.”
Genesis 1:20-22 (NRSV)
God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.” God said, “See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruits, you shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so.” Psalm 1:28-30 (NRSV)
All tithes from the land, whether the seed from the
ground or the fruit from the tree, are the Lord’s; and they are holy
to the Lord.
Leviticus 27:30 (NRSV)
The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
Psalm 19:1 (NRSV)
Oh Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. Psalm 104:24 (NRSV)
The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers; the heavens languish together with the earth. The earth lies polluted under its inhabitants; for they have transgressed laws, violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant. Isaiah 24:4-5 (NRSV)
Presbyterian concern for the created order begins with the confessional belief that the human being’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy God forever. Part of this includes glorifying God by responsible stewardship of God’s creation. To that end, the Presbyterian Church (USA) and its predecessor denominations have issued many Statements of Faith the earliest in 1951 that refer to caring for God’s creation.
The following are some excerpts:
Presbyterian Church (USA) 1990 Statement on Restoring Creation for Ecology and Justice
Read more at http://www.pcusa.org/environment/restore.htm.
God as Deliverer acts to protect, restore and redeem
the earth and its creatures. These have become co-victims with all
humanity, victims of the sinful pride and greed that seek unwarranted
mastery over the natural and social orders . . .
(Presbyterian Church (USA) 1984 Statement)
Therefore the 193rd General Assembly urges
continued strengthening and enforcement of the United States clean
water standards to insure clean drinking water and adequate
sanitation in the coming decades for all our residents.
(Presbyterian Church (USA) 1981 Statement)
While the ecological crisis threatens catastrophe,
it also offers unprecedented opportunity for social reconstruction,
protection of nature, and more rewarding lifestyles.
(United Presbyterian Church (USA) 1971 Statement on Christian Responsibility for Environmental Renewal)
Man is free to seek his life within the purpose of
God: to develop and protect the resources of nature for the common
welfare . . .
(United Presbyterian Church (USA) 1966 Statement)
Great natural resources have been entrusted to our
nation by Almighty God. We call upon the Christian conscience to
recognize that our stewardship of the earth and water involves both a
land-use program which recognizes the interdependence of soil, water
and man and the development of a responsible public policy which will
resist the exploitation of land, water and other natural resources . .
. for selfish purposes and maintain intelligent conservation for the
sustenance of all living creatures through future generations.
(Presbyterian Church (USA) 1954 Statement)
There are a number of environmental issues that are critical from water pollution to deforestation to climate change. However, it is the last of these that has received the most press and is generating the most concern. The following are a few excerpts from the Environmental Protection Agency’s information on climate change.
Warming Trends
“There is no doubt this atmospheric
buildup of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases is largely the
result of human activities. Confirmation of 20th-century global
warming is further substantiated by melting glaciers, decreased snow
cover in the northern hemisphere and even warming below ground.”
Emissions
“In the United States, approximately 6.6 tons
(almost 15,000 pounds carbon equivalent) of greenhouse gases are
emitted per person every year. And emissions per person have
increased about 3.4% between 1990 and 1997. Most of these emissions,
about 82%, are from burning fossil fuels to generate electricity and
power our cars. The U.S. presently emits more greenhouse gases per
person than any other country.”
Impact
“Rising global temperatures are expected to raise
sea level, and change precipitation and other local climate
conditions. Changing regional climate could alter forests, crop
yields, and water supplies.”
The 217th General Assembly??(2006) accepted the Commissioners’ Resolution that “the Christian mandate to care for creation...impels and inspires us to reduce our energy usage,” agreeing that “the urgency, injustice, and seriousness of this issue calls us as Christians to act NOW and to act boldly to lead the way in reducing our energy usage.”
Under this resolution, the General Assembly of the PC (USA), “strongly urges all Presbyterians to immediately make a bold witness by aspiring to live carbon neutral lives. (Carbon neutrality requires our energy consumption that releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere be reduced and carbon offsets purchased to compensate for those carbon emissions that could not be eliminated.)” For the full resolution, please click here.
For the past three General Assemblies, carbon offsets have been purchased to help offset the carbon emissions from the Assembly. In 2006, the Presbyterian Hunger Program, Presbyterians Restoring Creation (PRC), the Environmental Justice office, and the Peacemaking Program partnered together to offset 84.3 tons of carbon by investing in a wind and a methane project via NativeEnergy.
Other 2006 resolutions included urging state and federal agencies to stop mountain top removal mining, and supporting the Citizens for a Strong New Orleans in their effort to close the operation of the Chef Menteur landfill.
We are actively pursuing ways to bring awareness of the call to protect God’s creation to the community of Fourth Presbyterian Church. Thus far, we have taken the following steps:
The 210th General Assembly “Urge(s) Presbyterian Church (USA) congregations and institutions to pursue energy efficiency and conservation in their buildings and property.” (Presbyterian Church (USA), 1998)
Additionally, Fourth Presbyterian Church, in cooperation with Growing Power, has created the Chicago Lights Urban Farm, a community garden that empowers youth and community residents in the Cabrini-Green neighborhood to have increased economic opportunities through access to organic produce, nutritional education, work force training, and microenterprise development. For more information on the Urban Farm, please contact Natasha Holbert (312.274.3831).
So it’s time to pay attention. It’s time for people
of faith, people who believe in the Bible and the Judeo-Christian
tradition of God’s holy earth, to wake up and acknowledge what has
happened, to understand and accept it as the moral issue of our day, to
change the way we think, to demand that our politicians act
responsibly, and to make personal adjustments and decisions appropriate
to our faith.
John Buchanan, “Holy Earth,” September 17, 2006
To reduce energy use, save money and to help lower air pollution, consider:
Consider conserving water by:
To reduce waste and conserve resources, consider:
Faith Organizations
Presbyterian Church (USA) Environmental Justice Office
http://www.pcusa.org/environment/
Presbyterians for Earth Care
http://presbyearthcare.org/
National Council of Churches Eco-Justice Program
http://www.nccecojustice.org/
Faith in Place
www.faithinplace.org
Political Advocacy Organizations
Environmental Law & Policy Center
www.elpc.org
This group has a great directory of environmental groups in the Midwest region available at http://www.elpc.org/tools/directory.php.
National Resources Defense Council
www.nrdc.org
Illinois League of Conservation Voters
www.lcvillinois.org
Government Agencies
City of Chicago, Department of the Environment
www.cityofchicago.org/environment
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
http://www.epa.state.il.us/
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
www.epa.gov
Other
U.S. Green Building Council
http://www.usgbc.org/
Center for Neighborhood Technology
www.cnt.org
Chicagoland Environmental Network
http://www.chicagoenvironment.org/
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