Reflections on the Church and Ecology

EARTHKEEPING NEWS
A NEWSLETTER OF THE NORTH AMERICAN COALITION FOR CHRISTIANITY AND ECOLOGY

Volume Eleven, Number Five
July/August 2002

THY KINGDOM COME ON EARTH

REFLECTIONS ON THE CHURCH AND ECOLOGY

by Rev. Lucy Jones

We are in the "Ordinary Season" of the Christian year following Pentecost and beginning with Trinity Sunday (May 26 this year). The liturgical color for this season is green, as it is for the Ordinary Time following Epiphany. Except for special Sundays such as Trinity Sunday, All Saints, and Christ the King Sunday, we see green in church for 23 to 28 Sundays, depending on the date of Easter. Green, the predominant color of life on earth, symbolizes growth in Christ. Methodists use the term "Kingdomtide" for this season, emphasizing the teachings of Jesus concerning the kingdom of God.

In spite of all this green symbolism, the church still has a lot of growing to do toward acting out of faithfulness to the creation. People who live close to the land are often ahead of the church's theology in blessing the animals and plants that sustain and delight us. The church can articulate and consecrate this impulse to care about the environment, while also informing and activating folks toward advocacy for the planet.

It is surprising in this age of environmental degradation that more effective ministry has not mobilized environmental activism in organized Christianity. The principles are well-stated, but how much trickles down to the people through the clergy? The social principles of the United Methodist Church include a three-page section on the natural world with such statements as: "Let us recognize the responsibility of the church and its members to place a high priority on changes in economic, political, social, and technological lifestyles to support a more ecologically equitable and sustainable world, leading to a higher quality of life for all of God's creation."

The Principles cover sections on (1) water, air, soil, minerals, plants, (2) energy resources utilization, (3) animal life, (4) space, and (5) science and technology.

When my church held an outdoor service of blessing of the plants and animals, copies of these principles were distributed so that people could know that the church makes statements about ecological matters. These concerns are not separate from our faith, but an intricate part of it. As people are touched by the acknowledgment of the special place that pets hold in our hearts, and by the love of nature that is so common among country folks, we learn of that growing to which Christ calls us — "that we provide voice to the voiceless, and attempt to live the kingdom of God on earth, not defiling the earth, sea and sky, but honoring it as God's."