{"id":11705,"date":"2024-05-10T14:29:25","date_gmt":"2024-05-10T18:29:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/?p=11705"},"modified":"2024-05-15T09:36:58","modified_gmt":"2024-05-15T13:36:58","slug":"eco-pentecost-churches-united-in-restoring-creation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/2024\/05\/eco-pentecost-churches-united-in-restoring-creation\/","title":{"rendered":"An Eco-Pentecost: Churches United in Restoring Creation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

An Eco-Pentecost celebrates churches united in their efforts to help restore and protect God\u2019s Creation.<\/p>\n

Churches caring for Creation are part of an Eco-Pentecost. Photo by freepik.com.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Here are ideas for reading and preaching <\/em>Acts 2:1-21<\/em><\/a> and <\/em>Romans 8:22-27<\/em><\/a> for Pentecost Sunday.\u00a0 These texts are assigned as part of the Revised Common Lectionary. This is part of the <\/em>EcoPreacher 1-2-3<\/em><\/a> series to equip preachers and congregations for engaging the Bible through an ecological lens.<\/em><\/p>\n

Eco-Exegesis<\/strong><\/h2>\n Eco-exegesis is a method of interpreting the biblical text through a green lens using the principles of ecological theology.\u00a0 Learn more <\/em>here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Acts 2:19a<\/em><\/h3>\n***** ** \u201cI will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth below.\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n ** Peter\u2019s speech to the crowd on the day of Pentecost quotes the Hebrew prophet Joel, interpreting the apocalyptic prophecy in light of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the disciples.<\/p>\n ** Joel 2:28-32 has apocalyptic imagery of a darkened sun and the moon appearing as blood.\u00a0 The \u201cportents\u201d also include \u201cblood and fire and columns of smoke\u201d (v. 30).<\/p>\n ** *****These strange phenomena are traditionally associated with what was known as the coming of the \u201cday of the Lord\u201d (2:30-31).\u00a0 It was a time of tribulation and the revealing of those who would \u201ccall upon the name of the Lord\u201d \u2013 the faithful believers.<\/p>\n For Peter, an important part of the prophecy was the pouring out of God\u2019s divine Spirit on the people.<\/h3>\n******* ** *******This Spirit would enable them to dream powerful dreams and see important visions.\u00a0 The fact that a holy fire appeared over the disciples and enabled them to speak to foreigners in their native languages was a sign to Peter that the Day of the Lord had come.<\/p>\n Orange sky from wildfire in Arizona. Photo by BrandonStephenson on flickr.com, public domain.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nPortents of the climate crisis<\/h3>\n From 1990-2020, hotter, dryer weather in some parts of North America caused the frequency of massive wildfires<\/a> to grow steadily. With the 2023 Canadian fires, we saw eerie pictures of the sky shrouded in orange haze as columns of smoke compromised air quality across the U.S. and reached as far as Norway<\/a>. But these were not portents of \u201cthe day of the Lord.\u201d\u00a0 They were portents of the climate crisis.<\/p>\n Fortunately, many religious leaders are urging the faithful to unite in speaking the language of Creation-care.<\/p>\n For example, at the 2023 World Climate Conference in Dubai, the first-ever Faith Pavilion<\/a> gathered a diverse, multifaith coalition of global partners from more than 50 faith organizations. Their goal was to catalyze change and inspire cooperation for shaping the moral values and ethical conduct around climate and environmental policy.<\/p>\n Your sermon could tell this story of the COP28 Faith Pavilion as an example of an Eco-Pentecost moment focused on advocating for justice and protecting Earth\u2019s most vulnerable ecosystems and communities.<\/p>\n Romans 8:22-23<\/em><\/h3>\n********* ** We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n ** Continuing our theme of an Eco-Pentecost, we turn to Paul\u2019s Letter to the Romans. In the eighth chapter, he talks about the suffering of Creation together with humanity. Paul assures the church in Rome that amidst the persecution of their cruel, extractive empire, something new is being birthed.<\/p>\n ** *********Yet the travail is so intense, it\u2019s difficult to see past the pain to what is possible. So, he encourages believers to see themselves as bearing the \u201cfirst fruits of the Spirit,\u201d even while they suffer as they await the fulfillment of God\u2019s redemption.<\/p>\n First fruits of an Eco-Pentecost<\/h3>\n How can the church bear the \u201cfirst fruits\u201d of an Eco-Pentecost amidst so much groaning from environmental and climate disasters?\u00a0 Surprisingly, we can find \u201cfirst fruits\u201d right in the belly of the beast of coal production \u2013 the state of Kentucky.\u00a0 The Roman Catholic Diocese of Lexington, Kentucky, has \u201cpledged to reach net-zero emissions across its 59 parishes as well as schools and other institutions in the next six years,\u201d according to an article<\/a> by Brian Roewe for National Catholic Review.<\/em><\/p>\n Bishop John Stowe, Lexington Diocese<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nLexington, Ky. Catholic Diocese pledges net zero carbon emissions<\/h3>\n************* ** *************On April 22, Earth Day 2024, Bishop John Stowe announced the ambitious goal of eliminating carbon emissions across the diocese.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re grateful to say we\u2019re going to do this and reduce our carbon consumption, our carbon footprint, and bring ourselves to net zero in a pretty short amount of time, because we only have a pretty short amount of time to make an impact in a lasting way on this world,\u201d Stowe said.<\/p>\n**** The fact that this comes from a religious leader in a state with one of the largest coal deposits in the U.S. could be seen as evidence that an Eco-Pentecost is arising.\u00a0 We could say that Bishop Stowe, along with other faith leaders fighting for the climate<\/a>, are among the \u201cfirst fruits\u201d of this Spirit-led movement to restore our planet and protect vulnerable communities.<\/p>\n Preachers can draw on the words of Rabbi David Rosen, international president of Religions for Peace, to inspire their own congregations. He said, as quoted in The Guardian<\/a>, \u201cAs leaders and representatives of world religions, our role gives us a platform and a position to encourage, influence and motivate people, and thereby a responsibility to help guide our communities in how to restore, protect, and live in harmony with the natural world.\u201d<\/p>\n This is a powerful dream and important vision for people of faith and for our planet.<\/p>\n 1 Eco-Idea<\/strong><\/h2>\n************* ** The Eco-Idea is one succinct statement that tells us who God is and\/or what God does in relation to Creation and how we should respond as people of faith.<\/em><\/p>\n ** *************God is uniting and rebirthing the church in an Eco-Pentecost movement for the healing of Creation.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong>2 Eco-Questions<\/strong><\/h2>\n************* ** *************Eco-Questions are what we can ask to help a congregation draw out the implications of the Eco-Exegesis and Eco-Idea.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n \nWhat is a local or national environmental issue that is a concern to the houses of worship in your area? In what ways can your congregation network with other faith leaders to advocate for just and equitable climate and environmental policies?<\/li>\nWhat pledges has your church, judicatory, or denomination made to eliminate carbon emissions from its energy use? How can your congregation be part of the \u201cfirst fruits\u201d of the Eco-Pentecost?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n3 Eco-Actions<\/strong><\/h2>\n*************** ** ***************Eco-Actions are ways that a congregation might respond to the Eco-Idea and Eco-Questions.\u00a0 One of these possibilities may have salience for your ministry context.<\/em><\/p>\n \nIf your congregation does not yet have a Creation care team, it\u2019s time to start one! Many denominations have guides for how to create an Earth care ministry, including the Christian Church \u2013 Disciples of Christ<\/a>, Episcopal Church<\/a>, the Lutheran Church (ELCA)<\/a>, the United Methodist Church<\/a>, and the Presbyterian Church (USA)<\/a>. It\u2019s time to initiate your own Eco-Pentecost!<\/li>\nTalk with local naturalists, master gardeners, fishermen, hunters, farmers, beekeepers, or others whose work involves the natural elements. Ask what changes they have observed in animal, plant, insect, fish, or other biotic communities in the last few decades. Invite them to speak at a forum at your church.\u00a0 Ask how your church can advocate for them in their vocations and professions.<\/li>\nJoin the One Home, One Future<\/a> campaign to receive free access to support, community, resources, action guides, training, events, and more to help you and your congregation in preparing for disaster, strengthening your community, and protecting your loved ones. Tambi\u00e9n disponible: recursos en espa\u00f1ol<\/a> para apoyar a las comunidades de f\u00e9 en cuidando de la creaci\u00f3n.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\nLooking for ongoing support, resources, and colleagues as you preach about environmental issues?<\/h4>\n**** The new EcoPreacher Cohort begins in September 2024!\u00a0 This is a monthly online gathering of preachers for learning and companionship to preach effectively in a climate-changed world.\u00a0 This is a Lilly Foundation-funded joint project of The BTS Center, Creation Justice Ministries, and Lexington Theological Seminary.\u00a0 To learn more click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Read also:<\/h4>\n Pentecost & the Divine Purpose of Diversity: Genesis 11, Acts 2<\/a><\/p>\n Pentecost is Political \u2013 Thanks be to God!<\/a><\/p>\n La Lengua de Dios: Pentecost and the Language of God<\/a><\/p>\n \n EcoPreacher 1-2-3 is a partnership between the Rev. Dr. Leah Schade and the\u00a0Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development,<\/a>\u00a0publishers of<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>Eco Bible<\/a>, a Jewish ecological commentary on the Hebrew Scriptures.\u00a0 EcoPreacher 1-2-3 provides Creation-centered sermon preparation that is short, accessible, and based on a solid biblical foundation. To see other EcoPreacher ideas and to sign up to receive future EcoPreacher 1-2-3 installments, click\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n \n***************** ** *****************<\/p>\n The Rev. Dr. Leah D. Schade<\/strong>\u00a0is the Associate Professor of Preaching and Worship at\u00a0<\/em>Lexington Theological Seminary<\/i><\/a>\u00a0in Kentucky and ordained in the ELCA. Dr. Schade does not speak for LTS or the ELCA; her opinions are her own.\u00a0 She is the author of\u00a0<\/em>Preaching in the Purple Zone: Ministry in the Red-Blue Divide<\/a>\u00a0(Rowman & Littlefield, 2019)<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>Creation-Crisis Preaching: Ecology, Theology, and the Pulpit<\/a>\u00a0(Chalice Press, 2015). She is the co-editor of\u00a0<\/em>Rooted and Rising: Voices of Courage in a Time of Climate Crisis<\/a>\u00a0(Rowman & Littlefield, 2019). Her newest book is\u00a0<\/em>Introduction to Preaching: Scripture, Theology, and Sermon Preparation<\/a>, co-authored with Jerry L. Sumney and Emily Askew (Rowman & Littlefield, 2023).<\/em><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" An Eco-Pentecost celebrates churches united in their efforts to help restore and protect God\u2019s Creation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2929,"featured_media":11726,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1784,82,14],"tags":[1378,2450,2447,2453,83,2444],"class_list":["post-11705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ecopreacher-1-2-3","category-pentecost","category-preaching","tag-acts-21-21","tag-bishop-john-stowe","tag-faith-pavilion","tag-lexington-catholic-diocese","tag-pentecost","tag-romans-822-27"],"yoast_head":"\nAn Eco-Pentecost: Churches United in Restoring Creation<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"An Eco-Pentecost celebrates churches united in their efforts to help restore and protect God\u2019s Creation.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/2024\/05\/eco-pentecost-churches-united-in-restoring-creation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"An Eco-Pentecost: Churches United in Restoring Creation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"An Eco-Pentecost celebrates churches united in their efforts to help restore and protect God\u2019s Creation.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/2024\/05\/eco-pentecost-churches-united-in-restoring-creation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"EcoPreacher\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LeahDSchade\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-05-10T18:29:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-05-15T13:36:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/764\/2024\/05\/Eco-Pentecost.2-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"768\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"512\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Leah D. 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She has pastored congregations in suburban, urban, and rural contexts. She has authored or co-edited seven books: Preaching and Social Issues: Tools and Tactics for Empowering Your Prophetic Voice (Alban Books, Rowman & Littlefield, 2024); Introduction to Preaching: Scripture, Theology, and Sermon Preparation (Rowman & Littlefield, 2023); Apocalypse When?: A Guide to Interpreting and Preaching Apocalyptic Texts (Wipf & Stock, 2020); Preaching in the Purple Zone: Ministry in the Red-Blue Divide (Alban Books\/Rowman & Littlefield, 2019); Rooted and Rising: Voices of Courage in a Time of Climate Crisis (Rowman & Littlefield, 2019); For the Beauty of the Earth: A Lenten Devotional (Chalice Press, 2019); Creation-Crisis Preaching: Ecology, Theology, and the Pulpit (Chalice Press, 2015). She is also the EcoPreacher blogger for Patheos. Rev. Dr. Leah D. Schade, author of Preaching and Social Issues Leah has served as an anti-fracking and climate activist, community organizer, and advocate for environmental justice issues. She is currently the grant director for the $1.25 million project \u201cCompelling Preaching for a Climate-Changed World\u201d at LTS in partnership with The BTS Center and Creation Justice Ministries. She also partners with ecoAmerica\u2019s Blessed Tomorrow, and the Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development, with whom she writes EcoPreacher 1-2-3 for busy pastors wanting to address environmental issues in their sermons. She also served as President of the Academy of Homiletics in 2024. She has been a featured speaker for the Festival of Homiletics, leads workshops and retreats, and keynotes events throughout the country. 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She is also co-founder of the Clergy Emergency League, a network of 3,300 pastors throughout the U.S. who provide support, accountability, resources, and networking for clergy to prophetically minister in their congregations and the public square in this time of political upheaval, social unrest, and partisan division.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/lextheo.edu\/about-the-seminary\/faculty-staff\/leah-d-schade\/\",\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LeahDSchade\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/author\/lschade\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"An Eco-Pentecost: Churches United in Restoring Creation","description":"An Eco-Pentecost celebrates churches united in their efforts to help restore and protect God\u2019s Creation.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/2024\/05\/eco-pentecost-churches-united-in-restoring-creation\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"An Eco-Pentecost: Churches United in Restoring Creation","og_description":"An Eco-Pentecost celebrates churches united in their efforts to help restore and protect God\u2019s Creation.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/2024\/05\/eco-pentecost-churches-united-in-restoring-creation\/","og_site_name":"EcoPreacher","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LeahDSchade\/","article_published_time":"2024-05-10T18:29:25+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-05-15T13:36:58+00:00","og_image":[{"width":768,"height":512,"url":"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/764\/2024\/05\/Eco-Pentecost.2-scaled.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Leah D. 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Schade","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/cb072b6df1f7d0968779a7d9d33d2056?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/cb072b6df1f7d0968779a7d9d33d2056?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","caption":"Leah D. Schade"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Leah D. Schade is the Associate Professor of Preaching and Worship at Lexington Theological Seminary in Kentucky and is ordained in the ELCA. Dr. Schade does not speak for LTS or the ELCA; her opinions are her own. The Rev. Dr. Leah D. Schade is the Associate Professor of Preaching and Worship at Lexington Theological Seminary in Kentucky. An ordained Lutheran minister (ELCA) for twenty-five years, Leah earned both her MDiv and PhD degrees from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia (now United Lutheran Seminary). She has pastored congregations in suburban, urban, and rural contexts. She has authored or co-edited seven books: Preaching and Social Issues: Tools and Tactics for Empowering Your Prophetic Voice (Alban Books, Rowman & Littlefield, 2024); Introduction to Preaching: Scripture, Theology, and Sermon Preparation (Rowman & Littlefield, 2023); Apocalypse When?: A Guide to Interpreting and Preaching Apocalyptic Texts (Wipf & Stock, 2020); Preaching in the Purple Zone: Ministry in the Red-Blue Divide (Alban Books\/Rowman & Littlefield, 2019); Rooted and Rising: Voices of Courage in a Time of Climate Crisis (Rowman & Littlefield, 2019); For the Beauty of the Earth: A Lenten Devotional (Chalice Press, 2019); Creation-Crisis Preaching: Ecology, Theology, and the Pulpit (Chalice Press, 2015). She is also the EcoPreacher blogger for Patheos. Rev. Dr. Leah D. Schade, author of Preaching and Social Issues Leah has served as an anti-fracking and climate activist, community organizer, and advocate for environmental justice issues. She is currently the grant director for the $1.25 million project \u201cCompelling Preaching for a Climate-Changed World\u201d at LTS in partnership with The BTS Center and Creation Justice Ministries. She also partners with ecoAmerica\u2019s Blessed Tomorrow, and the Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development, with whom she writes EcoPreacher 1-2-3 for busy pastors wanting to address environmental issues in their sermons. She also served as President of the Academy of Homiletics in 2024. She has been a featured speaker for the Festival of Homiletics, leads workshops and retreats, and keynotes events throughout the country. She was the director of a Wabash grant exploring the use of deliberative dialogue in congregations and theological education is also conducting a longitudinal research study about ministry, preaching, and social issues that has surveyed more than 4,000 clergy and 1,000 laity since 2017. Leah received the Kentucky Council of Churches award in 2019. She is also co-founder of the Clergy Emergency League, a network of 3,300 pastors throughout the U.S. who provide support, accountability, resources, and networking for clergy to prophetically minister in their congregations and the public square in this time of political upheaval, social unrest, and partisan division.","sameAs":["https:\/\/lextheo.edu\/about-the-seminary\/faculty-staff\/leah-d-schade\/","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LeahDSchade\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/author\/lschade\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11705","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2929"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11705"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11705\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11726"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11705"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11705"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/ecopreacher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11705"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}