EARTH:

Earth Action, Reflection, Theology, and Hope

How I Spent My Summer (Eco) Vacation

Summer evokes memories of long car rides, visits to National Parks or big cities, and spending time with family and friends. It can take us out of our ordinary world and allow time for wonder and contemplation. An eco-vacation does just that. It mindfully connects us to God’s creation and brings us face-to-face with our responsibilty for Earth Care.

In this edition of Earth, take a mini vacation with some of our favorite writers. Enjoy the wide-ranging beauty of Creation, whether it’s a long walk through Spain, or a few steps outside the front door. Wherever you go, God is there, in summer and always.

Eric Diekhans
Editor

Forest Bathing

If travel sometimes feels like a quick, refreshing shower, a stay-at-home vacation can be a long, luxious bath. Nancy Corson Carter discovered the joys of forest bathing as she observed the lifecyle of transplanted hostas.

A Camp Committed to Creation

Ferncliff, located just ten miles outside of Little Rock, Arkansaw, was founded in 1937 as a place for youth and adults to gather and experience creation in community with one another. Almost one hundred years later, the camp continues its commitment to offering a unique experience steeped in sustainablity.

Camino de Santiago: A Photo Essay

“The Camino de Santiago, or the Way of St. James, is an ancient pilgrimage trail originating in medieval times. Made up of a vast network of roads and paths, pilgrims travel to arrive at the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela (in Spain). Legend has it that the remains of the Apostle Saint James the Great were buried here.”

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Protecting Utah’s Wildlands

by Jenny Holmes

Building on the 2022 General Assembly policy to support the 30 x 30 initiative to protect 30 percent of lands and waters in a natural state by 2030 for biodiversity and the climate, the General Assembly added some specificity to implement that policy by passing DOE-08, On Adopting Protecting Utah’s National Monuments and Wildlands for Ecology and Justice. The recommendation that passed on a consent agenda after a 37 to 3 vote in committee asks the church and its people to commit to the following:

Join with denominations and faith leaders in the US and Utah who are urging the ongoing protection of Utah Wilderness, especially the restored Bears Ears National Monument, Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, and by signing the Interfaith Joint Statement on the Care of Creation & the Perpetual Preservation of Utah Wilderness.
Ask the Office of Public Witness to advocate as a national body and on behalf of the PC(USA) for America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act [protectwildutah.org] and to advocate for tribal sovereignty in the co-management of Bears Ears National Monument.
Encourage congregations, individual members of congregations, and presbyteries to take the opportunity to listen and learn about Bears Ears National Monument from the tribes that proposed the monument and organizations that are working to protect this landscape, and advocate for the environmental justice issues involved.

If you would like to learn more about one of the areas of concern in Utah, here is a great short video on spiritual and cultural significance of Bears Ears National Monument will speakers from the five tribes involved in its establishment at the stop in Bears Ears during "Totem Pole Journey" that took a totem pole from the Lummi Tribe from Washington State to Washington DC to raise awareness and urge President Biden to restore the Bears Ears National Monument.

Salt Lake City During General Assembly

A Photo Essay by Fred Milligan

Fred Milligan was the co-author (along with PEC member Pam McVety) of overture ENV-02 for the 226th General Assembly. Fred spent time in Salt Lake City during the two weeks of GA in order to connect with participants and advocate for environmental overtures. While in SLC, Fred captured images of the landscape, spaces, and people he encountered.

Learn more about the overture “On Removal of Investments In and Subsidies For Fossil Fuels” and other environmental overtures supported at GA by PEC.

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