Worship and Teaching Resources
Praying for the Earth: Remembering the Environment in our Prayers of Intercession by Rob Kelsey (February, 2021). For further details, click HERE
Prayer Resources: click here to find useful prayer resources related to Eco Church.
https://spckpublishing.co.uk/pub/media/wysiwyg/SYTLYouth_Resource.pdf. This series is founded on Saying Yes To Life Ruth Valerio’s Lent book. The Youth Series has been brought to you by Dot Tyler who is part of the We Are Tearfund community. We believe that a young generation can, together, bring an end to extreme poverty. We Are Tearfund exists to champion young voices to speak up and inspire you to follow Jesus in your ordinary lives as you make a difference for our world. To find out more and join the community, find us on social media or YouTube @WeAreTearfund.
Environmental Resources for home schooling produced by Eco Schools. Perhaps you could persuade your school to join up as an Eco School once things return to normal.
Resources from the Diocese of Exeter, including ecumenical resources: https://mcusercontent.com/543e9623f7379d75d88235209/files/5d8b6330-cdb7-4254-af05-a8d0ef582177/Creationtide_edit.pdf
A preaching resource on environmental themes, based on the Lectionary: http://sustainable-preaching.org with thanks to Revd Elizabeth Bussman, Environment Officer for the Diocese of Europe.
To inspire and help people explore and celebrate Creationtide the Church of England created new liturgies and pulled together examples of services and prayers from across the C of E: https://www.churchofengland.org/about/environment-and-climate-change/creationtide/creationtide-resources
A Time for Creation liturgy book: https://www.churchofengland.org/prayer-and-worship/worship-texts-and-resources/time-creation
For an introduction to the Season of Creation, visit http://seasonofcreation.org/ for ideas and resources and start planning for this year's Season of Creation.
Prayer and Season of Creation Resources from the Anglican Alliance at https://anglicanalliance.org/season-of-creation/
Resources for Creationtide from the Church of England Environmental Programme can be found at http://creationtide.com/.
A Time for Creation: Liturgical resources for Creation and the Environment by Robert Atwell, Christopher Irvine, Sue Moore at https://www.chpublishing.co.uk/books/9781781401859/a-time-for-creation. This includes a Google Preview.
Daily reflections for the season of Creationtide, published by the John Ray Initiative in time for use this year; you can download them from http://www.jri.org.uk/resources/creationtide-reflections/
Season of Creation 4: promoted by the Anglican Church of South Africa Environmental Network, five weeks of studies, fact sheets and services at http://www.greenanglicans.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Season-of-Creation-Four.pdf
CLIMATE SUNDAY: Churches Together In Britain encouraged local churches to hold a local Climate Sunday any time during a one-year period starting on 6th September (the first Sunday in the annual season of Creation Time/Season of Creation) in preparation for COP26. This culminated in a The Nations' Climate Sunday Service in Glasgow Cathedral, available to view at: https://ctbi.org.uk/climate-sunday/
*Environment Reading and Resources List: a list prepared by Dr Martin Hodson (CRES) for Transforming Communities: ‘Contributing as the National Church to the Common Good’
Why all Christians have a vocation to care for the earth by Rev Dr Mike Perry for A Rocha UK, 20 September 2020: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCEtR3qANcY
Excellent book on Creation Care: Douglas J. Moo & Jonathan A. Moo (2018) Creation Care: A Biblical Theology of the Natural World Biblical Theology for Life series: Zondervan (£15.99). Professor Richard Bauckham writes: "This book deserves to become the standard work of its kind. One of its many merits is that it grounds creation care in the whole biblical story from creation to new creation. Another is its well-informed and up-to-date account of the plight of creation today. A third is its thoughtful attention to practical and realistic ways of caring about and caring for creation in our contemporary Western contexts.".
Book reviews by Nicky Bull (Operation Noah) of recent books on the Climate Crisis: https://operationnoah.org/news-events/news-blog/book-reviews/
Living Lent - creating a climate of change. Click here to see how you can make significant lifestyle changes to bless the earth next Lent.
Understanding the science of climate change: an excellent 10-minute YouTube resource on the last time the earth had a major warming episode, the 'Palaeocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum' presented in a way that is easy to understand at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldLBoErAhz4. For a more detailed study, read Dorrik Stow (2010) Vanished Ocean.
Mini-videos by the US climatologist Catherine Hayhoe. These are very clear and well stated videos, each lasting less than ten minutes, which would be useful as part of a discussion group. :
1. This is all just part of a natural cycle, right?
2. What's the big deal with a few degrees?
Ideas for energy generation: Look at St Anne's Highgate community project with solar pv; could you do something similar? Could you generate solar energy from the space above cars in your car park? Look at the solar car parks guide for technical information.
The arithmetic of renewables: TED talk by the late Sir David Mackay at Warwick University
Tenants of the King is a Bible-based, Jesus-centred resource from Operation Noah. This four-part study series is designed to help you and your church consider what the Bible has to say about today’s climate crisis. Through interactive group sessions, video interviews with leading Christian thinkers and insightful Bible commentary, this resource will help you and your church to reflect on the challenges of a changing climate, and how Christians can respond with hope to one of today’s greatest challenges. Study guide booklets and video interviews can be ordered on our website: http://operationnoah.org/resources/tenants-of-the-king-study-guide/
SÄlote: A New video resource from Operation Noah which aims to help Christians around the world recognise the human cost of climate change, and particularly its impact on women and children.
The video was designed for Christians of all ages and developed in partnership with the World Day of Prayer. It introduces the viewer to SÄlote, a seven-year-old Polynesian girl who is already experiencing the devastating effects of a changing climate in her South Pacific island home. As SÄlote witnesses the impacts of climate change on three generations of her family, she reflects aloud on what has caused this change. The story is inspired by real-life accounts of present-day climate change impacts such as rising sea levels, which hit poor and vulnerable populations, living in sensitive parts of the world like low-lying islands, the hardest. The full video can be watched on our website, where you can also download an activity pack and factsheet for your church/home group during the Season of Creation: http://operationnoah.org/resources/salote/
Calculating carbon footprints: For your church, visit Carbon Footprint (registration needed, but free) at http://www.carbonfootprint.com/businesscarboncalculator.html or the National Energy Foundation at http://www.carbon-calculator.org.uk/. Encourage your parishioners to check their own personal carbon footprints using the World Wildlife Fund's calculator at http://footprint.wwf.org.uk/. Offset the carbon costs of your travel at climatestewards.org.
Ethical Investment in a time of Climate Change: see https://www.churchofengland.org/more/policy-and-thinking/our-views/environment-and-climate-change/how-you-can-act/sustainable-investment
Just Food - The Price we pay for Food with Dr Michael Northcott, Dr Ruth Valerio and Brother Sam: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNYdB5-rF4U
What pressures will this new decade bring to God's creation, the environment in which we live and our children and grandchildren will have to live? Read Dieter Helm (2019) Green and Prosperous Land Collins: 'there is a choice: we can impoverish ourselves by continuing down the current path or we can halt destruction and work to rescue the nature we have left. We can - and should -have a greener and more prosperous future'.
Scarred Lands and Wounded Lives - the environmental footprint of war: film-makers Lincoln and Alice Day joined our 2015 conference Reconciling a Wounded Planet at Coventry Cathedral (http://www.reconcilingawoundedplanet.com/) for the showing of this film on the ecological legacy of war. See clips or the whole film at http://www.scarredlandsfilm.com/
Doughnut Economics: Humanity’s 21st century challenge is to meet the needs of all within the means of the planet. In other words, to ensure that no one falls short on life’s essentials (from food and housing to healthcare and political voice), while ensuring that collectively we do not overshoot our pressure on Earth’s life-supporting systems, on which we fundamentally depend – such as a stable climate, fertile soils, and a protective ozone layer. The Doughnut of social and planetary boundaries is a playfully serious approach to framing that challenge, and it acts as a compass for human progress this century. Visit this site to see Kate Raworth's TED talk on what she calls Doughnut Economics.
Practical Action: Rugby-based charity with resources on global engagement for churches at http://practicalaction.org/support/fundraise/group-church-or-club/churchservices/
Caring for the Land and Churchyards
State of Nature Report: a useful one-page summary for the state of nature in England in 2019 at https://nbn.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/State-of-Nature-2019-England-27-09-19.pdf
Managing your churchyard: Look at films from Caring for God's Acre.
*Mob Grazing: For an excellent summary of the benefits of Mob Grazing, see Christine Page's page at http://smilingtreefarm.com/blog/mob-grazing. Also, see https://www.fwi.co.uk/livestock/grassland-management/how-beef-herd-is-delivering-350-cow-net-profit-with-deferred-mob-grazing on a deferred mob grazing system by Rob Havard, one our speakers at the Reconciling a Wounded Planet Conference at Coventry Cathedral in 2015.
*Resources for Rural Churches: http://www.congregational.org.uk/buildings-and-property/rural-church-buildings
Where to see the UK's favourite animals: useful information published by the Premier Inn website!
Garden Recycling Tips from Thompson and Morgan: click here
Click here for excellent environmental resources from the Natural History Museum
From the World Wildlife Fund newsletter: How to grow vegetables indoors.
The Plastic wrapping problem: look at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-47161379. It is more complicated than it seems.
Free refill stations for your plastic bottles: visit http://refill.org.uk/ and stay rehydrated, save money and help prevent plastic pollution. See #GotTHe Bottle.
The Plastic Free Lent materials are useful all year round: http://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2019-03/Plastic_Free_Lent_2019.pdf
For schools there is the Plastic Free Schools framework from Surfers Against Sewage: http://www.sas.org.uk/plastic-free-schools/
There is a leaflet from Eco Churches about cups: http://3ak4be4522es3y5i4l2cwfkx-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Buildings-The-Different-Types-Of-Cups-Available-Recycled-Disposable-Compostable.pdf
If a church has a publicly available tap, which people can use to refill water bottles, they can register their church on the Refill App: http://refill.org.uk/add-refill-station/
Frustrated that you cannot recycle Pringles tubes? Visit https://www.terracycle.com/en-GB/brigades/pringles#how-it-works
Reconciling a Wounded Planet: Do visit this website to read about our 2015 Conference at Coventry Cathedral. Also @RawpCoventry to see recent Tweets and our very active and informative Facebook page
The Reconciling a Wounded Planet For a brief report of what happened at the conference five years ago, look at http://www.reconcilingawoundedplanet.com/ (this is due to be taken down soon), at https://www.jri.org.uk/blog/reconciling-a-wounded-planet-report-by-dr-peter-lornie/ and at https://www.anglicannews.org/news/2015/09/anglicans-mobilise-for-climate-change,-seek-common-reconciliation-theology.aspx
Putting on an event? Look at http://www.greeneventbook.com/ for downloadable checklists to ensure that your event is sustainable.
Are you an ordinand or minister in training? Green Christian are offering a free two year GC membership (with digital magazine).
New: List of Bible Study Resources from the Diocese of Leeds: see Documents on RHS of page.