St. Andrew’s Church of Scotland in Brussels has won a silver Eco-Congregation award. This is the sixteenth award plaque we have sent out in the past four weeks and it is just on its way to the Post Office.
The assessors identified the following for particular commendation:
the widespread communication of the caring for creation message through all sectors of the
congregation using noticeboard, Sunday School, sermons, film screenings and discussions;
the insulation of the church roof and the plans for the manse;
their commitment to global issues, shown in the twinning link to Adentan, support for Fair
Trade, Christian Aid and WWF;
their making use of people within the congregation to link to European environmental agencies;
the investment of church reserves in sustainable funds.
Congratulations to everyone at St Andrew’s for their ongoing commitment to climate change and other environmental issues.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon listens intently to concerns about climate change. Scottish Government.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has been told that climate change is putting entire populations of Pacific Ocean island nations at serious risk.
Delegates from the World Council of Churches said rising sea levels, increasingly severe drought and storms had questioned the very survival of people in the British Commonwealth of Tuvalu.
Ms Sturgeon attended a meeting, facilitated by the Church of Scotland, at the UN’s Climate Conference in the German city of Bonn this morning.
She heard stories of hope and pain from people who fear their countrymen and women are more vulnerable to migration and displacement due to the impact of climate change.
Ms Sturgeon met with Frances Namoumou from the Pacific Conference of Churches in Fiji and Rev Tafue Lusama, General Secretary of the Congregational Church in Tuvalu.
Eco-Congregation has just been launched across several Southern African countries by the organisation SAFCEI (Southern African Faith Communities Environmental Institute).
For further information visit their web site here:
This year’s Local Networks Seminar is being held on Saturday 26th September, 11am – 3.30pm at Dunblane Cathedral Halls. Please note the date, which is later in September this year.
The main topic for the day will be “After Paris – What happens next?”
The Climate Justice Baton Relay (see http://www.ecocongregationscotland.org/get-involved/events/baton-relay/) has been a huge success. The Baton has been (double!) booked every Sunday, and many dates in between, since its launch in April until it departs for Paris at the end of November. Congregations from Orkney to Dumfries have taken the Baton into their churches, schools and community centres, paraded it through the streets, taken it up mountains and on pilgrimages to spread the message that now is the time for Climate Justice.
John Ferguson of the Binn Eco Park has agreed to start the discussion by giving us an overview of the issues and how these relate to what we can do in church and community. John is a Christian, who formerly worked for the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency and is now running a ground breaking environmental business. He is an inspirational speaker with a wide knowledge of and insights into the issues. You can download a short biography for John here.
Trevor Jamison, our environmental chaplain will be offering some biblical and theological insights on the theme. There will also be time allowed for the usual exchange of news and views and networking between the networks.
A full programme for the Seminar is available for download here. Places are limited please therefore book your place by replying to margaret@ecocongregation.org.ukby Monday 7th September.
For those unable to get to the Seminar we will be producing a Report of the day and consulting more widely on the outcomes.
The Riding Lights Theatre Company will be touring a new show about Climate Change from a Christian perspective between September and November this year (see details below).
So far only two churches in Scotland have shown an interest, but if there is sufficient demand they might put on another week touring Scotland – from 16th November.
If you are interested please contact them via their web site www.ridinglights.org.
Julia Edwards is working with the Pacific Conference on Churches on climate change adaptation on Fiji, funded by the Methodist church . She was previously at Heriot Watt University. She shares her impressions and stories of the storm:
Thanks for your email and concerns. Fiji virtually escaped the effects of Pam, but the devastation in Vanuatu is almost unbelievable, and Tuvalu, too, has been very badly hit by flooding.”
“The Pacific Conference of Churches has been trying to contact the various council of churches in Vanuatu, Kiribati and Solomon Islands all day without success, but tonight I’ve just come across the secretary general of the Vanuatu Council of Churches, Pastor Shem Tema, being interviewed by World Vision, as a member of a community outside of Port Vila that was badly affected. The broadcast is on the Guardian website: http://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2015/mar/16/vanuatu-residents-evacuation-centre-cyclone-pam-world-vision-video
So it’s very understandable that it will be a few days before we get news through official church channels. Once we (PCC) know respective church responses on the ground, I’ll get back to you. In the meantime, very much holding them in our thoughts and prayers.
