Menu Close

Eco Church

Eco Church image

All Saints Wellington is pleased to have signed up to the Eco-church initiative:  A Rocha UK’s award scheme for churches in England and Wales who want to demonstrate that the Gospel is good news for God’s earth. 

Eco Church has been designed to help churches integrate environmental care throughout their church life and covers five key areas: worship and teaching, management of church  buildings, management of church land, community and global engagement and lifestyle.

We have recently been awarded the eco-church silver award. We are very grateful to Lynn Mann and the eco-church team for all the work they have done on this vital project.

Why is eco church an important part of our faith?

Part of our mission as Christians is “To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation, and sustain and renew the life of the earth”

“Living in a way that honours rather than threatens the planet is living out what it means to be made in the image of God. …..What we face today is nothing less than a choice about how genuinely human we want to be.” (Dr Rowan Williams)

What does this mean for the church?  For the community we live in?

The world’s leaders, including the church, now recognize that to protect future prosperity and well-being we must limit global warming to an average of 1.5 degrees Celsius. This requires not incremental change, but radical change—roughly a halving of carbon emissions each decade through 2050.” The World Resources Institute

2021 was the year of COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021 and Right Rev James Jones, Bishop of Liverpool 1998-2013, said: 

“It’s not an exaggeration to say that the future of the birds, the trees, the fish and all humanity will be determined by the decisions taken in Glasgow this year.

 We are part of nature, not apart from it. There is no future for anyone if the result of COP26 is bad for nature.

All our decisions – personal, purchasing and political – have to be greener for a healthier world.   We have only the one planet to inhabit and to nurture us. In this Anthropocene era it is up to each and everyone of us to live within nature’s means, for the earth is not a limitless larder.”

What can I do?

Have a look at A Rocha UK’s ‘Go Green for Lent’ page, and reflect on these other projects, challenges and teaching from A Rocha:

Have fun, learn more about creation and support our work with our new A Rocha UK Green Quiz<https://arocha.org.uk/greenquiz/>

Explore the new A Rocha UK website<https://arocha.org.uk/>, including our Eco Church page<https://arocha.org.uk/what-we-do/eco-church/>

Take a look at our Eco Church Resources to support, guide, and inspire you in the five key areas of church life that the Eco Church survey addresses, as well as resources for kids, youth, and in Welsh, available here<https://ecochurch.arocha.org.uk/resources/>

Stay connected, and receive updates and inspiration from the Eco Church community, by signing up to Eco Church Connect, our regular newsletter. You can sign up here<https://arocha.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=69f4c1083320061706fe47874&id=5156dbcd14>

Check out all our upcoming online and in-person events here<https://arocha.org.uk/events/>

Here are simple, practical lifestyle change you can consider.

Refuse:  Reduce:  Reuse:  Repurpose:  Recycle

  • Try to eat LOAF  Local, Affordable, Animal friendly, Fair-trade
  • Switch your electricity to a green supplier

Actions

Keep checking in here to see what we will be doing as a church – we’ll update you with our various projects.

Recently spent a day building nest boxes for swifts, whose numbers have been declining in the UK.  Hoping to see them around the church tower!

Have a look at the Church of England Eco Church page – do join with their webinars on a variety of subjects within the eco church umbrella.

https://www.oxfam.org.uk/oxfam-in-action/tackling-climate-change/ Read about the people who are impacted by climate change most and what you can do to help.