As springtime approaches, the changing weather heralds WWF’s Earth Hour, this year taking place on Saturday 25 March at 8.30pm. Traditionally, eco-congregations have been a deeply involved in Earth Hour, with over 100 different churches taking part in previous years.
Now in its tenth year, Earth Hour continues to shine a light on the need for climate action. The last three years have been the hottest on record, and people and nature around the world are already feeling the impacts of a changing climate.
By signing up, congregations join thousands of people across Scotland and millions around the world to celebrate this brilliant planet and remind us of our collective power to make change. Churches will join together at 8.30pm on Saturday 25 March to share prayers by candlelight and reflect on and rejoice in God’s creation.
From hosting a candlelit choral concert to having a climate change themed service, Earth Hour is an opportunity for congregations to explore environmental concerns and how our faith calls us to address them. And did you know that your church’s Earth Hour activities can count toward your application for an Eco-Congregation Award? There are a variety of ways to engage with Earth Hour, big and small, all of which strengthen an application. It offers a global moment of solidarity from which to explore faith in action, as well as a simple starting point from which to build your Eco-Congregation Award application.
Gordon Hudson, manager of Eco-Congregation Scotland agrees:
‘As a global campaign, Earth Hour neatly intersects with our 3 award criteria of spiritual, practical and global living. As well as being a good thing to do, taking part in Earth Hour counts towards the requirements of the Eco-Congregation Award. I would strongly encourage all eco-congregations to download the toolkit and participate in Earth Hour 2017’.