Introduction

Imagine being given a gift by someone who loves you deeply. It is marked delicate & fragile' . You open it gingerly and discover planet earth and the further instructions 'Handle with care.' .............

The fragile and delicate present you have been given is not a plastic globe but the real thing!  With it is a DVD which has glorious images of the mountains, lakes, rivers, glaciers and the dazzling array of fauna and flora from the deepest seas to the highest peaks.  It also comes with a book of instructions from the Maker - The Bible - a manual on caring for the earth and all its creatures.

You browse gently through the images and towards the end you see receding glaciers dated to the 21st c. and animals - scores of them - which are marked up as likely to be extinct by 2050.  You pick up the bible and discover that every reference to the earth, the Creator, natural world, all its creatures, - creation, fall and redemption - have been highlighted, along with plentiful guidance on living lightly and justly with the earth and its people. The book is astonishingly full of highlighted passages and phrases, punctuated throughout by Sabbath rest and renewal.  The handbook has one great consistent theme - God made the world in all its splendour, power and diversity out of love.  The earth and all its creatures and humankind are bound to each other in a web of interrelationship with God. To humans God gave the responsibility to care for His created works. You close the book, gently lay down the planet, fold up the "Handle with care" paper and shut your eyes.  You feel the desolation of the planet, the pain of the natural world, and the danger to every part of the earth for if the planet suffers, we suffer and we have nowhere else to go. You know it has to be different.  You know that you are required to be involved in the change.   

Have we lost sight of ourselves as being a part of nature, part of God's creation? In our eagerness to "progress" and "develop" have we lost sight of the finite and delicate nature of the earth and humanity's place in it?  But Christ is our hope, our light into the darkness of this world.  Following Christ opens new horizons and offers alternative yardsticks to the way we live. So we return to the Instructor's manual to rediscover ways of sustainable living, to restore the balance in God's earth that we might live joyfully and simply in the garden He has lent us.

 

To obtain more information, including some biblical background and theological reflections on Climate Change click on the link below labelled 'The Makers Instructions'; this free download is based on the Introduction to 'Walking More Lightly a Climate-Change Action Kit for Churches' by Anne Martin (former CCOW Trustee).

Praying and Preaching on Climate Change

Father we confess that we have been blind to how our lives impact others, and especially the poorest communities. Father, we confess that we have taken the earth for granted, using fossil fuels without a second thought and failing to recognise our part in the problem of Climate Change. Father, we turn back to you and ask you to help us to live simpler lives and to be much more careful in all the resources we use - because it is your earth.
Lord we trust that you are in charge and you can help us to change and live in a way that allows the earth to sustain life for all. Amen

The churches' calendar offes a rich variety of opportunites to bring our concern for climate change into worship. Covenant services, Rogation Sundays, Lent, Environment Day (around 5th June), Harvest Festival and One World Week are all appropriate occasions. More recently the European Christian Environmental Network -- and as of 2008 Churches Together in Britain and Ireland -- have promoted 'Creation Time' (1 September to 4 October) - as a special season to focus on creation. 

The prayer above (adapted) is part of a Service on the theme of Climate Change which can be downloaded by clicking on the 'Service' link below. Other sources for liturgy on climate change include:

Probably the most comprehensive set of worship resources on climate change currently available are those put together by Churches Together in Britain and Ireland as part of the Creation Time initiative. The available resources include two series of sermon notes, one based around the Lord's prayer and one around the lectionary readings for the period; a complete service and a wonderful 90-page book of prayer materials.

Christian conservation organisation A Rocha has done a great deal to promote Environment Sunday (held near the 5th of June). Their 2008 resource is based on Dave Bookless' Planetwise, and includes service materials, bible studies relating to Planetwise, recorded talks by climate experts, sermon notes, short video clips, powerpoints, and material for children and youth. It costs £10 and can be ordered from the A Rocha website's Environment Resource Packs page. Their 2007 resource, "The Heat is On: Climate Change and Christian Faith" is also very relevant. It contains worship material, sermon notes and powerpoint illustrations, as well as scientific background information and materials for use with children. It is no longer available for order, but can be borrowed from CCOW. The 2005 and earlier packs can be downloaded directly from the website, with a suggested donation of £5.

Christian Ecology Link offers a rich variety of resources for worship and study, including liturgies, prayers, sermon notes and a daily prayer guide. It also has a various useful page with links to worship resources, which refers you to material from many Christian environmental and development organisations.

Eco-Congregation's Module 2 "Celebrating Creation" has a delightful range of prayers and imaginative worship ideas around the theme of creation, including a plan for all-age worship, a list of hymns (from various traditions) with a Creation theme, and reflections on familiar Biblical stories. Module 3 -- "Creation and Christianity" -- looks at some theological underpinnings for environmental concern, while Module 6 -- "Exploring God's Green Word" -- offers material for House Groups and two sets of five multi-part Bible studies. All modules can be downloaded from the Ecocongregation website.

The European Christian Environmental Network has liturgical material, including the new booklet "A Time for God's Creation,"  on its website as part of its invitation to all the churches in Europe to celebrate "creation time" in the Church calendar each year, from 1 September to the second Sunday in October.

Operation Noah, the CTBI climate campaign, has a new resource to enable a day of "prayer, fasting and campaign against climate change." Operation Noah's website also offers an "inspiration" section with theological reflections on climate issues.

 

 

Campaigns

Many Christian organisations  are actively campaigning to raise awareness and promote action on environmental issues and especially Climate Change. Their work may take the form of rallies and petitions or may involve helping churches to grapple with scientific issues or to pray about the environment.

Latest Campaign Actions

CAFOD ("Create a climate for justice" -- contribute your "flower" to a garden of messages on climate change)

Christian Aid ("Tell Brown and Obama to go to Copenhagen")

Operation Noah (Ark Campaign -- see description below)

Tearfund ("Come on, Darling!" campaign on finance to help poor countries adapt to climate change)

 

Upcoming Campaigning Events

16 to 18 October: Stand Up and Take Action

This year's annual Stand-Up will have a joint poverty and climate-change theme. Participants will be asked not only to stand in solidarity with millions around the world, but also to work to persuade MPs of the need for urgent action on poverty and climate issues.

5 December: The Wave

Catch it! Join thousands of people in prayer and action just before Copenhagen. There will be an ecumenical service at 11:00 in Westminster Central Hall.  And then "The Wave," from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm. Organised by the Stop Climate Chaos coalition.

If you live in Oxfordshire, there's a meeting on 3 September to think for people to think about how they could get involved with these events. Want to come? Contact CCOW!   

 

Christian Organisations Working on Environmental and Climate Issues

A Rocha  is an international conservation organisation working to care for God's world. A Rocha incorporates a variety of subsidiary programmes, including Climate Stewards , which can help offset carbon emissions through projects managed by A Rocha partners, and Eco-Congregations (see below).  A member of Stop Climate Chaos, it also makes a strong contribution to churches' work by preparing resources for Environment Sunday each year.

CAFOD launched its "Climate Justice" campaign in March 2009. The campaign calls for a climate-change deal that puts the poorest at its heart by supporting developing countries' rights to sustainable development, funding adaptation, enabling technology to be transferred, and tackling emissions (with a 40% cut in developed countries by 2020). CAFOD is campaigning as part of an international consortium of Catholic agencies; you can read messages from people in many different countries on the main Climate Justice campaign page.

Christian Aid is campaigning for a fair and just deal at Copenhagen through its Countdown to Copenhagen campaign. On the "Countdown" page, you can take the "Countdown" pledge, and find out more about Christian Aid's work pressing for climate justice, the theology behind the campaign, and how Christian Aid is helping communities in developing countries to adapt to the impacts of climate change. 

Christian Ecology Link (CEL) campaigns for a greener church and a greener world.  It is a multi-denominational UK organisation that supports Christians from all traditions who wish to demonstrate their care for the environment. CEL offers a range of publications,  including ‘Green Christian’ magazine and several topic leaflets. One of its best known programmes is the "LOAF" campaign, which asks Christians to eat  local, organic, animal friendly, and fairly-traded food.  CEL has an email newsletter which is good way of keeping abreast of news, events and opportunities for prayer and action.

The John Ray Initiative (JRI) is an educational charity with a vision to bring together scientific and Christian understandings of the environment in a way that can be widely communicated and lead Christians to effective action as responsible stewards. JRI holds conferences that explore issues in depth and has a series of briefing papers about key issues that are free to download from their website.

Operation Noah is a Christian campaign focused exclusively on climate change. Its Ark Campaign has already engaged thousands of people across the country in building arks of all shapes and sizes in order to send a Climate Change message to Gordon Brown. The Arks have a serious message: Operation Noah is calling for 90% cuts in UK emissions by 2030 and a global framework for reducing emissions from the power sector by 2020 by at least one-third compared with the level of emissions from this sector in 2005.

Progressio's roots for environmental work lie in its background in community development and particularly its work with poor rural communities who are deeply at risk from climate change and environmental degradation. As a member of Live Simply and Stop Climate Chaos, Progressio offers resources for both theological reflection and campaigning action on climate.

SPEAK is a prayer and campaigns network for students and young people concerned about global injustice. Its climate campaigning pages offer information and an action postcard. Great for student and youth groups.

Tearfund asks its supporters to speak out, change their lifestyles and pray about climate and other environmental issues. Their most recent Climate Change campaign action, "Come on, Darling!" asks the Treasury to urge Europe to "pay up" the funds that developing countries need to adapt to the impacts of climate change.

Resources on Climate Change

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Some Books to Read

Policy, Science, Lifestyle Change and Theology: Books with a Christian Perspective

A Moral Climate: The Ethics of Global Warming. Michael Northcott, Christian Aid/DLT, 2007. 

Caring for Creation: Biblical and theological perspectives. Edited by Sarah Tillett, forward by John Stott - contributors include: Eugene Peterson, John Houghton, Sam Berry, Chris Wright. A valuable contribution that links theology and practical work.

Cherishing the Earth: How to Care for God's Creation. Margot and Martin Hodson, Lion 2008.  An engaging look at the theology and practice of creation care.

Christianity, Climate Change and Sustainable Living. Nick Spencer and Robert White, SPCK 2007.  A thorough look by two experts at the realities of climate change, Biblical teaching on sustainability, and how Christians might implement those teachings in a time of global warming.

Eggs and Ashes. Ruth Burgess and Chris Polhill, Wild Goose Publications 2004. Focuses on the environment over the weeks of Lent, with beautiful prayers, hymns and ideas.

Global Warming: The challenge to all of us. Sean McDonagh, Columbia Press, 2007. A good description of climate change and its predicted impacts, together with a call for leadership from the Catholic Church in response to the impending crisis.

How Many Lightbulbs Does It Take to Change a Christian? and Don't Stop at the Lights! Leading Your Church through a Changing Climate. Claire Foster and David Shreeve, Church House Publishing, 2007 and 2008.  "Lightbulbs" offers hints for small changes that can make a difference;"Don't Stop" takes the message further and encourages churches to engage wholeheartedly in response to climate change.

Jesus and the Earth. James Jones, SPCK 2003. James Jones scans the New Testament for new insights on the links between Jesus and Creation.

Planetwise: Dare to Care for God's World. Dave Bookless, IVP, 2008.

When Enough Is Enough: A Christian Framework for Environmental Sustainability. Ed R J Berry, IVP, 2007. Experts from a wide range of fields examine the concept of sustainability. Contributors include Sir John Houghton, Donald Hay, Sir Ghillean Prance, Dave Bookless, Margot Hodson, John Wibberley, Sir Brian Heap and Flavio Comin.

Policy, Science and Lifestyle Change

The Economics of Climate Change: The Stern Review. Sir Nicholas Stern, CUP, 2007. "Costs" the impact of taking action -- or not doing so -- on climate change. Highly influential.

Heat: How We Can Stop the Planet Burning. George Monbiot, Penguin, 2007. How could we cut emissions by 90% by 2030? Monbiot offers some potential answers. Passionate and principled.

How to Live a Low-Carbon Life: The Individuals Guide to Stopping Climate Change. Chris Goodall, Earthscan, 2007. Practical, challenging, thorough . . . and fun. A very useful guide to lifestyle change.

Six Degrees: Our Future on a Hotter Planet. Mark Lynas, Fourth Estate, 2007 or HarperPerennial, 2008. We've all heard of potential global warming of 1 to 6 degrees celsius. But what do those temperature increases actually mean for life on earth? Lynas offers a picture, degree by degree. . . .  

 

 

 

 

What Can I / My Church Do

God made the world in all its splendour, power and diversity out of love. The Earth and all its creatures and humankind are bound to each other in a web of interrelationship with God, who gave the responsibility to care for His created works to humans.

In our eagerness to "progress" and "develop" have we lost sight of the finite and delicate nature of the Earth and humanity's place in it? Do we recognise that we are but part of God's great plan. You can reduce your own carbon footprint by:

• Switching to renewable energy
• Eliminating waste
• Rethinking your transport
• Considering your Air travel requirements
• Adapting your lifestyle (eg food choices, water usage ,and waste recycling)

Testing Your Footprint

The following websites offer information on your carbon footprint:

www.imeasure.org.uk is a tool designed by the Environmental Change Institute at Oxford University which enables you to monitor and learn about your domestic energy use and carbon emissions.

www.carboncalculator.org enables you to calculate the impact of your flight, and your car journeys by adding the carbon cost and the price if offsetting.

www.coinet.org.uk is the Climate Outreach and Information Network (COIN), based at Oxford University. In particular, COIN invites you to accept the carbon challenge to live within the personal limit of 2.5 tonnes of CO² at www.coinet.org.uk/projects/challenge/measure

Select the link labelled 'Church Action' to download information on lighting, heating and church transport as well as 'green' energy suppliers which you may use to help reduce your church's carbon footprint.

More Information

This page gives suggested links to help you  access authoritative information on Climate Change

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change - www.ipcc.ch - assesses the scientific, technical and socio-economic information relevent to an understanding of the risks of human-induced climate change.

The DEFRA website www.defra.gov.uk/environment/climate change is authoritative and has useful links to the Climate Challenge Programme.

The UK Met Office www.met-office.gov.uk has its research centre for climate change (Hadley Centre)

The BBC also considers climate change to be a 'hot topic' There is much general information on the BBC site www.bbc.co.uk and you can use the website search engine to find climate change issues or go directly to www.bbc.co.uk/sn/hottopics/climate change