Have you ever lamented a loss of fellowship opportunities in your church? Are you willing to do something differently to get some of that fellowship back? What if that something different was also good for God’s creation?
Over the past couple of years, more than one Corridor church has reported taking up a new practice related to caring for God’s good creation, and rediscovering old-fashioned fellowship. Asking your hospitality team to stop using disposable plastic and Styrofoam dishes and utensils for church meals and go back to washing dishes can be a hard sell, but that is what one church’s creation care team did. The dishwashers soon reported that they didn’t realize how much camaraderie they had been missing out on in the years they had been using the disposables. Even youth and children noticed the laughter in the kitchen and voluntarily found ways to be part of the cleanup crew. Another church finds fellowship in cleaning and sorting the Styrofoam containers they collect from the community for recycling into building materials.
Earth Day is coming up on April 22, and the theme for 2024 is “Planet vs. Plastics.” Earth Day is a movement to mobilize people around the world to protect our beautiful planet Earth and work for a bright future for all. According to earthday.org, the total weight of all plastic items ever made has reached 9.1 billion tons, with 79% of that plastic still sitting in landfills. An estimated 14 million tons of plastic per year ends up in the ocean. One million plastic bottles are purchased every minute, and 5 trillion plastic bags are produced every year. Plastic waste is not just unsightly, it can kill and injure wildlife, and it can enter the food chain and water supply as microplastics as it decomposes. The microplastics may carry toxic compounds that affect the health of humans and animals. Somehow this doesn’t seem like what God intended for this beautiful earth when humans were given the gift of stewarding it.
In the spirit of “Do no harm” and caring for God’s good creation, what can your church do to join with millions of people around the world in committing to reduce the use of plastics and reap the benefits of increased fellowship as well? Can you ask your hospitality team to go back to washing dishes? Maybe your VBS team can invite the church to help make handcrafted items for VBS instead of ordering all the plastic doo-dads that often come with some of the popular kits.
If you need help with getting a creation care team started at your church, or just need support or resources for existing efforts, please reach out to Rev. Jane Almon or Mr. Thomas Givens of the Corridor District Creation Care Team. Need some funds to get started with a creation care project? Apply to the NCC Creation Care Team for a small grant. Applications are due May 1.
Looking Ahead to Earth Day – April 22
The Corridor District Creation Care Team encourages everyone to find an Earth Day event and join in the celebration — or plan an event at your church and invite the community. Here are some events hosted by Corridor churches and local governments.