Our environment (God’s Creation) has been damaged by human activity, particularly by over-use and misuse of fossil resources. The damage we have done is still reversible, but may become irreversible during our lifetime. Environmental damage has led to climate change, which effects the poorest parts of the world most, leading to increased poverty and displacement. The damage also leads to more violence as people fight over increasingly scarce resources. What can we as Christians do to help heal creation?

Every congregation is asked to consider doing a pledge drive for the stewardship of creation.  The intent is to encourage every individual to acknowledge how they might be contributing to damaging creation, and commit to changes in behavior that would lead to healing of creation through decreased energy use and carbon offsets.

We request that you do the pledge drive as a lead up to an Earth Day celebration on the Sunday preceding or following Earth Day.  Earth Day is on April 22. The pledge form below (or something like it) could be used for pledges for stewardship of creation. We request that you gather the pledges and then tally the total reduction of carbon footprint that results from all of the individual commitments.  Then, we ask that you forward your tally to the Diocese at BCE@ecww.org, so that we can tally the effect of all of the commitments within the Diocese.

We also request that the Parish or Mission evaluate church buildings and make a similar pledge.

These prayers have been collected for use primarily at church services on the Feast of St. Francis, usually the first Sunday in October, when many churches include a Blessing of the Animals. They are, of course, also appropriate for any service in which the theme is creation, the environment, justice, and/or compassion. In each section, several prayers are offered from which to choose.

This resource includes:

A Sample Service for St. Francis Day Animal Blessings
Short Prayers for opening and closing the service
Prayers of the People
Sermons/Ideas/Inspiration for Sermons
Hymns and Songs appropriate for a Feast of St. Francis Celebration
A Blessing of the Animals
Links to Websites

This resource provides a listing of several easy-to-do activities that can make celebrating the Sunday closest to April 22, Earth Day, a fun informative day that can shape good environmental stewardship in your congregation and help to further create a culture of stewardship in the hearts of your people.

Time saving tips on greening your church kitchen

Tips on handling leftovers and kitchen waste to promote a greener church kitchen

Food choice tips for greening your church kitchen

Tips on using dishes and napkins to promote a greener church kitchen

Tips on cleaning materials for greening your kitchen

Ideas for making your congregation more environmentally friendly

The Genesis Covenant is an invitation to every community of faith to take action to reverse global warming.