by Jim
Turner
The
Old Testament teaches us that our fundamental duty is to care for the poor,
andJesus taught us to honor the communal table. But how are we to do this when
the soils of the Earth are losing the capability to feed us adequately? We have
been mistreating them by excessive use of tillage, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides. This
has left many fields vulnerable to erosion, flooding, and drought, and has
gradually weakened the soil life that makes crop production possible.
Ray
Archuleta, of the U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service, travels to teach
farmers about the need to nurture soils and how to do it. He instructs them to:
“cover
the soil with a living plant at all times, don’t
till, use sprays extremely sparingly if at all, get ruminants and their manure
onto the land, rotate crops, and always be a student of your soil’s health.”[1]
While
he works steadily at this, he is at times pessimistic, saying,
“I really believe
humans don’t learn something until they go
through a trial, until it gets so bad something has to happen. This is a moral
issue. This is a spiritual issue . . . “
Sharing
Ray’s view that the soil care regime is
a moral and spiritual issue, Presbyterians for Earth Care is sponsoring an
Overture called “On
the Importance of Regenerative Farming Practices in Caring for Creation,” which has been submitted to the
PCUSA’s 2026
General Assembly. This
Overture calls Presbyterians to learn about and support regenerative farming
practices.
This
comes in a year when farmers all over the world are indeed going through a
trial. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins says that American farmers
obtain almost all our needed phosphate fertilizer and urea from other nations
(urea is a building block of nitrogen fertilizer). “Up to 30 percent of the global
fertilizer trade passes through the Persian Gulf,” so blockage of the Strait of
Hormuz has caused interruptions in supply chains that will take months to
untangle.[2] The resulting increases in
fertilizer costs will be difficult for farmers to absorb and will lead to
higher food prices for consumers. Many farmers in a recent survey said they
will forgo applying fertilizer this spring, hoping prices will return to an affordable
level later in the growing season.[3]
In
this year of trial, farmers may be eager to grow cover crops such as clover,
which capture nitrogen from the air on their roots. And with a rotation of
three or more crop species, they can reduce the occurrence of weeds and insects
that require expensive amounts of chemical pesticides. By spreading compost
inoculated with spores of beneficial fungi, they can increase the organic
matter in the soil, enabling bacteria and other organisms to help green plants
thrive.
Farmers
are facing the challenge of adapting their farming practices; the rest of us
can stand in fellowship with them by adjusting our eating habits to support
regeneratively grown crops. We can also be in solidarity with them and with
creation by maintaining our gardens and yards in an ecologically sustainable
way.
When
we reduce our intake of ultra-processed foods and allocate some money and time
to buy fruits and vegetables from farmers’ markets
and CSAs, we help reduce the demand for corn and soybeans that are
predominantly raised with soil-destructive methods. And we increase the demand
for food raised in soil that provides more nutrition.[4] Also, we can stop spraying
chemicals on our lawns to nurture monoculture grasses and spend some time
nurturing native plants that provide food and habitat for pollinators,
lightning bugs, and birds.[5]
How
can we motivate ourselves? Just as votes can accumulate to elect wise leaders,
so too can our individual efforts result in cities with less-destructive water
runoff. Cumulative impacts can affect patterns of demand for what farmers
raise. Our efforts amplify what regenerative farmers are doing and encourage
more of it.
Furthermore,
these collective efforts will help restore creation. Regenerated soil can
sequester more carbon by increasing the microbiota. Soil acquires a better
texture that absorbs rainfall, reducing destructive runoff and holding water
for timely use by plants. Healthy soils absorb less heat, so there’s less rising heat to push rain
clouds away.
Farmers
who need fewer expensive inputs have a better chance of remaining profitable
and staying on the land. This increases social stability, especially as
Artificial Intelligence threatens an increasing number of jobs.[6]
The
advent of AI-enabled machinery, such as driverless tractors, further threatens
the vitality of rural communities. Only large, well-capitalized farms can
afford to obtain the efficiencies that AI proponents tout. AI-guided equipment
can now zap weeds, and while this reduces the need for soil-harming herbicides,
it is another expensive input. But with mulch from cover crops and crop
rotations, a farmer can suppress weeds with far less expense.
The
Farm Bill and other decisions at the USDA will determine whether the largest
and richest farmers or smaller-scale family farmers are supported. You and I
can watch for opportunities to comment on USDA and congressional actions and
stay informed through organizations such as the National Sustainable
Agriculture Coalition and Farm Action. Communicating about these important
issues is critical.
The
Regenerative Farming Overture is a first step toward educating one another
about these issues and taking action to defend our precious soil.
Jim Turner chairs the Earth Care T eam of
Westport Presbyterian Church in Kansas City MO, which is certified as an Earth
Care Congregation, and participates in the Heartland Presbytery’s Earthkeepers Committee.
[1]
Josh Tickell, Kiss the Ground: How the Food You Eat Can Reverse Climate Change,
Heal Your Body & Ultimately Save Our World, (Enliven Books, 2018),
Chapter 7.
[2]
Raj Patel, “The Strait We’re In”, Civil Eats, March 18, 2026, https://newsletter.rajpatel.org/p/the-strait-were-
[3]
Most farmers can’t afford fertilizer, new Farm Bureau survey shows”, (Apr. 14,
2026), https://www.agdaily.com/news/most-farmers-cant-afford-fertilizer-farm-bureau-survey-shows/
[4]
David Montgomery & Anne Biklé, What Your Food Ate: How to Heal our
Land and Reclaim our Health
(Norton,2022). P. 141.
[5]
Cassidy Klein, “A Catholic case against lawns: Catholic social teaching offers
a framework for rethinking the use of
outdoor space to nurture the shared
flourishing of all creation”, (April 7, 2026),
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202604/a-catholic-case-against-lawns/
[6]
Josh Tyrangiel, “What’s the Worst That Could Happen? AI and the future of work”,
The Atlantic, Mar. 2026, p. 18.
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