Blog #38: Concluding Creationtide - What's next?! |
| September 30, 2021 Monika Weber-Fahr |
| So here we are, concluding Creationtide this week, and I ask myself what’s next?! |
| Over these past five weeks, we took good time - in church and beyond - for prayers and reflections that celebrate God’s creation, and also for those that reflect our concerns and hopes. We appealed to our parishioners to exercise their rights as consumers and to shop and consume with environmental sense. Some of us participated in practical action by supporting a Danube clean up event, and along with many other churches in Austria we sought to mobilize participation for last week’s Climate Strike march. |
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| Picture: The “Religions for Future in Austria” coalition of Austria-based churches had appealed to Christians to join the climate movement and demonstrate at the September 24 climate strike in Vienna. Christ Church is not a formal member (perhaps: yet), but we keep in mind their appeals and actions. Foto from the Religions-for-Future-in-Austria site. |
| And yet, I feel I am not “done”. Of course, in my work as Environmental Officer, the coming 48 weeks will bring many other moments to “do” things. We will start with a Contemplative Creation Walk in the Botanical Garden, planned for Saturday, October 8th, at 9:30 am (it’s “registration only”, so if you want to join, please send a note to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). In November, we will work with the Bazaar team to help for ChristChurch’s Bazaar to have a light environmental footprint: Incidentally, do make sure its in your calendar - it's December 12 at the Sofiensaele. Throughout December, we will research and share formats for our community to celebrate Christmas with God’s Creation in mind. And then, in 2022, will bring many new opportunities for action and reflection, including lent and Easter, and our plans to formally join the group of eco-church qualified communities. |
| Personally, I will look for inspiration and strength in prayers and reflections. How otherwise to find motivation and fight moments of despair and waning hope? There are great resources around. The Anglican Church’s Creationtide website has a specific space for collecting and sharing faith-based resources; these include things such as Daily Reflections, Prayers, and Going through the Daily Reflections, I was particularly struck that the text reserved for the last day of the last week (week 5, day 7), points the reader to John 1:1,14 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God….and the Word became flesh and lived among us.” The suggestion there is to draw inspiration from Jesus and his life as directly as possible. Some such scope can be found in Paul’s letter to the Colossians (1:18:20) where he wrote that through Jesus, “God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.” |
| Similarly, also the Episcopal Church’s CreationCare commitment charts the path ahead as anchored in Jesus: We follow Jesus, so we love the world God loves. And they describe the commitment as one to form and restore loving, liberating, life-giving relationships with all of Creation. The faith-centred resources offered there are grouped in Loving Formation, Liberating Advocacy, and Life-Giving Conservation. Lots of inspiration there. |
| In scanning through what is out there, I remain impressed by the richness of thought and the energy in action visible online. I am inspired by the many many people across our church worldwide engaged in the work we have cut out for ourselves as we seek to protect and be in peace with God’s creation. And I go back to St Francis’ prayer: Lord, make me an instrument of your peace: where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen. |
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| Picture: A St Francis Statute in Lombardy. On October 4, the day we also are reminded of St Francis’ life, the Season of Creation concludes this year. Source: Free from Pixabay |
| Inspired? Thoughts or reactions? Or ideas for forthcoming blogs? We look forward to hearing from you - best via email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. |