Christ Church
United Methodist

The EarthKeeping Task Force has been active since 2005. We have sponsored a number of programs -- many informative Food and Forum evenings, workshops, handouts, field trips, media library, recommendations for recycling, an energy audit, and a compost bin in the Harvest for the Hungry Garden compost area.  

The care of the earth is a spiritual discipline! It is part of the stewardship of God’s precious earth.

This Task Force has presented to the church an Earth Ministry Covenant at the All-Church Conversation on January 29, 2006. The covenant was revised with input at the event. A revised version was presented to the Administrative Council where it was adopted at its meeting on February 13. 

The following is the revised version of the Earth Ministry Covenant

Healing and Protecting God’s Creation

We are in awe and give thanks for God’s creation, our only home. The Earth and all the creatures it sustains are wondrously beautiful, complex, interdependent, and vulnerable. The Earth’s natural resources and wildlife are being depleted and often destroyed by pollution, overuse, and other abuse. The balance of the Earth’s ecosystems, so vital to sustaining life, is not resilient and is in danger. We recognize that there is an unequal distribution of resources and wealth in the world which causes unnecessary suffering and is fundamentally related to how we use the Earth’s bounty.

We affirm that the Earth should be treated wisely, with care and reverence. When in doubt about the action we should take, we should err on the side of protecting the Earth and the life it nurtures – not only for the people who are alive now, but for the many generations to come.

We are called upon as people of faith to join together, each of us committing to the ministry of Earth stewardship and justice. We are able and willing to respond in the following ways:

Worship

In worship, we will celebrate God’s grace and glory in creation and will declare that God calls us to cherish, protect, and restore the Earth.

Learning and Teaching

We will seek opportunities for ourselves, our friends, and our children to learn more about the wonders of the Earth, the threats posed by human beings to the survival of all life on Earth, and the possibilities of participating in Earth stewardship and justice.

Lifestyle

Our individual and congregational lifestyles will respect and cherish our Earth. We will form habits of consuming, conserving, and sharing that serve to protect and restore the environment. In particular, we will reuse and recycle as many materials as we can and seek ways of limiting our consumption of fossil fuels.

Community, National and Global Involvement

In our community, the nation, and the world, our congregation will witness to and participate in supporting public efforts and policies which support all people and protect and restore the degraded Earth.

Each year we will review our previous year’s work on Earth ministry and consider more ways to increase our understanding and support of all of God’s creation.

Source: Based on the spirit of the covenant document of the National Council of Churches’ Environmental Justice Covenant Congregation Program.