The pastor and members of First Presbyterian Church of Elizabethtown, KY were among the more than one thousand people who rallied at the state’s capital to declare love for the mountains and people of Appalachia. In a time where mountaintop removal coal mining is decimating communities, impacting the quality of soil, air, and water as well as human health, Presbyterians and other faith communities join in the cry for better care-taking of the people and the land of this region. This congregation is answering the scriptural call to care for God’s world, a calling affirmed by PCUSA policies of caring for God’s creation and justice for impoverished communities and supported by PCUSA Environmental Ministries through the Earth Care Congregation program.
FPC Elizabethtown is a second year PCUSA certified Earth Care Congregation and continues to deepen and expand their witness. This dedicated congregation has changed lighting and added light sensors, created a wilderness area on church property, planted a church garden with youth and children, written for the church newsletter, shared ideas on a bulletin board, hosted guest speakers, engaged international mission partners in providing clean water in other areas of the world, and continues to engage all levels of the church with ongoing worship and education foci that highlights caring for God’s good creation. The earth care ministry of this church is making a difference in their immediate community and around the world.