St Mark’s Anglican Church

April 22nd was “Earth Day”. How did you celebrate it?

On the whole, we are people who love to celebrate. We celebrate the incarnation with Christmas, the Resurrection with Easter, and the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. In our families we also honor each other at birthdays, anniversaries and every other occasion we can think of. Perhaps you are wondering why we should bother with an event celebrating our earth….the “island home” regularly mentioned in the Eucharistic Prayers.

I would like to suggest that as Christians, celebrating Earth Day can become an occasion when we consciously honor the Creator and rejoice in His creation. Of course, when we look at the physical world that surrounds us, not all that we observe is worth celebrating. In our Canadian society we see evidence of disproportionate consumption and waste. The impact on our local environment cannot be ignored. After all, how much garbage should a person generate?

I have had the opportunity to travel to communities in both Asia and Africa this year. I observed great disparity between the rich and the poor during both of these trips. One would perhaps rightly imagine that those with more disposable income would generate more waste than those with little. What surprised me was that, while it might be relative, being poor did not guarantee that one would not generate waste.

This winter I began by challenging myself (and readers) to make an effort to decline plastic bags when shopping. Since that time, St. Mark’s has become an Eco-Congregation. We completed an initial inventory in which our perspective of St Mark’s “greenness” was recorded. From there we identified a number of areas where environmental stewardship might be initiated or further promoted. By beginning slowly and taking baby-steps, we hope that these initiates will be sustainable and that our goal of honoring the Creator and His creation will be evident within the place and people of St Mark’s.

Thus far, recycling and compost containers have been placed in the church kitchen. Recycling of paper continues through the church office. In addition, it is hoped that a compost bin will be placed on the grounds, and a rain-barrel will collect rain runoff and be used to water some plants in a particularly sheltered area of the church garden.

While the “green team” moves forward with these initiatives, it is equally important that we, as individuals, consider our personal responsibilities in this regard. I continue to avoid accepting plastic bags when shopping, and am now starting to look at the amount of excess packaging which comes with purchases. After all, why take something home that I am only going to throw out there?

This Earth Day, I hope that you thought about how you could live intentionally, seeking to honor our Creator by not inflicting further damage on His creation. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to follow His example, re-creating our corner of His world?

What changes or accommodations are you making in your personal lifestyle? Please consider joining our next discussion (to be announced in the Parish Pulse newsletter and on the website calendar) as we encourage one another in creation care.

Blessings,
Genelle Leifso, Environmental Steward