Posts By: Rebecca Barnes

Church Examines Waste, Raises Fund at Earth Care Breakfast

One of the best parts of my day is to hear creative stories of what churches are doing all across the country to be disciples and to care for God’s good earth! Here’s a clever idea to demonstrate how much waste we can generate, or save from being generated, depending on our choices. This fun… Read more »

First Presbyterian (Oak Ridge, TN) cares for God’s creation

First Presbyterian Church (Oak Ridge, TN) cares about God’s creation and acts to show it in a variety of ways. In their worship life, educational offerings, outreach activities, and in their buildings and grounds, this congregation operates with an earth care ethic as part of their Christian discipleship.   Photo from: floursackmama.org. Young family of… Read more »

World Communion Sunday for all Creation

Rev. Neddy Astudillo invited animals to worship on World Communion Sunday at Parroquia San Jose (a Lutheran and Presbyterian Latino congregation in southern Wisconsin). Wild animals, farm animals, and pets were all blessed as part of God’s creation. This World Communion Sunday worship expanded the notion of what is typically understood as World Communion to… Read more »

Saint Mark’s “Alternate Transportation Sunday” (Earth Care Congregation)

Saint Mark Presbyterian Church in North Bethesda, MD is an Earth Care Congregation. Among the many wonderful things they do to care for God’s creation, one of their successful activities is an Alternate Transportation Sunday. This special focus began in May 2011 and has continued ever since (and they have even developed tips for replicating… Read more »

Environmental Justice: learning from the southwest

  I posted last week about Environmental Justice, particularly in reference to a reflection on a Louisville, KY based “environmental racism tour” connected to the Big Tent PCUSA gathering in August.   Issues of environmental justice are in my hometown, and in yours, and all across the globe. What do you see around you?  … Read more »

Earth Care Congregation: Church of the Pilgrims’ “Food and Faith” season starting off with focus on compost, soil, and communion

During this liturgical season that the Church of the Pilgrims calls “Homecoming,” the Sundays between September and the end of November, we are focusing on the theme of Food and Faith. Within the theme of Food and Faith, we are taking on this arc for a focus: humus, exile, and harvest. To fully experience this… Read more »

Earth Care Congregation: Swarthmore PC Bikes to Church!

One of many initiatives begun by the Environmental Stewardship Task Force of the church began on a small scale last spring by designating a “Bike to Church Sunday.”   In addition to the environmental benefits, we felt that this might help relieve what is routinely a very congested parking situation on Sunday mornings.  The Borough of… Read more »

Environmental Justice: paying attention to people

Environmental Justice is a term used to indicate that certain sectors of the human population suffer from the worst affects of environmental disaster and are kept from the best of environmental benefits. Correlating with a lot of other structural issues of injustice, people of color and people in lower economic brackets are documented to be… Read more »

Earth Care Congregation: Hunter Presbyerian’s Children Take the Lead!

What makes this congregation’s Earth Care Congregation certification particularly compelling is that the application process, projects, and pledge were completed solely by the 2nd through 5th graders at Hunter Presbyterian Church (Lexington, KY). Initiated during the community garden-themed Vacation Bible Study in May 2013, these children completed the research, consulted the clerk of session and… Read more »