Celebrating Earth Day Sunday 2023 with Your Congregation
Earth Day is April 22nd, but you can celebrate Earth Day
Sunday with your congregation any time in April or throughout the year. All
Creation praises God’s name, and we can give thanks to God for the wonder and
beauty of the world around us!
Here are some resources that may be helpful in planning an Earth Day or
Creation Care Sunday at your church. We know that many congregations have
creative and original ideas of their own for how to celebrate, and we have
included a few from PEC members and friends below. It is our hope that we can
share ideas to inspire discussion in the Comments Section of this Blog post.
First Presbyterian Church in New York City will be celebrating an Earth Day
family friendly neighborhood cleanup after worship on Sunday, April 23rd.
Here is a list of activities around Earth Day taking place at Druid Hill
Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, GA:
EARTH DAY WORSHIP AND CELEBRATION
Sunday, April 23
Alternative Commute Day: You are encouraged to find a way to church that uses
less carbon than your normal commute. This could be carpooling, public
transportation, biking, walking, taking one car instead of two, or whatever
works best for you. Get creative: even piggy-back rides count!
Community Electronics Recycling Day, 10 - 10:55 AM, 12 - 12:15 PM; Front
Parking Lot:
The Mission Team will be collecting unwanted electronics and delivering them to
the Center for Hard to Recycle Materials (CHARM) who will ensure they are
properly recycled. Any small household item that requires electricity or
charging and charging cords will be accepted. A Mission Team representative
will be in the front parking lot to collect recyclables.
Earth Care Sunday School Class with Dr. Stan Saunders, 10AM; Parlor: Many
modern Christians have grown up hearing that someday the earth will be
destroyed and God will take the righteous to heaven. The New Testament, in
contrast, persistently describes God coming to be with us in a renewed heaven
and earth, an end that is actually more consistent with the larger biblical story.
On Earth Day weekend we will have a special class, taught by retired Columbia
Seminary professor Dr. Stan Saunders, which will explore that story and its
implications for a Christian approach to our environmental crises. The
Christian Ed team hopes you will join us in what is sure to be an engaging
class.
Earth Day Worship Service, 11AM; Front Lawn: In recognition of Earth Day
weekend, DHPC will gather for worship on the lawn as we give thanks for the
gift of God’s amazing creation and commit ourselves to protecting it. Join us
as we gather in song, prayer, scripture, and action. Feel free to dress
casually in blue, the color of clear, clean water, or green, the color of
forests, fields, and more. An opportunity to do some planting will follow
worship, so be prepared to play in the dirt!
EARTH CARE FILM, CONVERSATION, AND LUNCH
Sunday, April 30, 12pm - 2pm; Parlor
The Mission Team invites you to bring a bag lunch and join us in the Parlor to
watch and discuss a series of short films called Current Revolution (66
minutes), this year’s featured film of Faith Climate Action Week. These films
show the possibility of a just transition to a clean energy economy where the
well-being of workers and frontline community members is valued. We hope you
will join us for what is sure to be an informative film, followed by rich
conversation. Bonus: popcorn will be provided.
Village Church in Prairie Village, KS will host a workshop led by environmental
theologian and author The Rev. Dr. Patricia Tull on Saturday, April 22nd. An
Electric Car Expo will take place afterwards in the church parking lot. If you
would like to watch the livestream of the workshop, you can connect through the
church's website HERE.
First Presbyterian Church in Asheville, NC will be participating in an
ecumenical Earth Day Sunday celebration with other churches as a progressive
stroll along their shared street. Activities will include environmental
information and resources, children's activities, and snacks.
PEC Moderator Rev. Bruce Gillette will leading his church in Owego, NY through
several activities in celebration of Earth Day:
We are doing an ecumenical worship service on Earth Day/Saturday morning
outside the Episcopal Church and then we will go together to plant trees.
Saturday evening our church is hosting a community vegetarian potluck dinner to
introduce people to a wide range of delicious, planet-friendly meals. We will ask
for the recipes and share them later on our church website and Facebook to
encourage healthy diets (for planet and personal health) year-round.
Saturday evening, we are showing “The Letter” in our fellowship hall after the
dinner. “The Letter” tells the story of a journey to Rome of frontline leaders
to discuss the encyclical letter Laudato Si’ with Pope Francis: https://www.theletterfilm.org We
are thrilled that other churches, especially the Roman Catholic parish, are
encouraging people to come to the dinner and the movie. The film is now on
YouTube for easy showing and sharing. The PCUSA General Assembly has encouraged
everyone to study it.
Sunday morning, we will sing a hymn emphasizing creation care (see below for
ideas), lift up environmental concerns in the prayers, and make connections
between the Bible and creation care in the sermon (see below).
We have invited electric vehicle owners to show off their cars and trucks in
designated parking spaces next the church following the worship service. We
will also be planting a new tree in honor of our oldest church member (Eudora
had her 100th birthday recently). I hope it will inspire more tree planting on church
property and beyond.
Creation
Care Hymns in Glory to God by David Gambrell
Hymns
by Carolyn Winfrey Gillette (permission is given for free use to PEC friends)
Preaching
on April 23 lectionary text (great resource for lectionary preaching
year-round).
Litany
of Confession - Lord's Prayer & Creation Care
Actions Beyond Worship:
EarthDay Sunday from Presbyterian Hunger Program
TreadLightly (good beyond Lent)
Respondingto Climate Change free conversation guide (Christian Century).
Presbyteriansfor Earth Care (PEC) Webinars on many topics: https://presbyearthcare.org/events/
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