The Episcopal Church has approved 44 Stewardship of Creation grants for local projects, including many great ideas that your parish or diocese could do too. Every Thursday, to help highlight the exciting work happening across God’s church, we highlight one here!
As part of a town-wide green event, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Jamestown, NY, received $3,000 to “offer educational information and materials to the community about creation care as a theological effort and eco-justice advocacy as a faith-based initiative.”
Rector Luke Fodor and parishioner James Colby launched the GreenUp Jamestown Coalition in 2016. They’ve held many events all over town in the two years since by partnering with groups like the Audubon Community Nature Center, the Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy, the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History, and Jamestown Community College.
“We realized they were interested in green Earth things, or could be,” Fodor told the Post Journal. “So we started just having conversations with people about this initiative and if they wanted to participate to bring us under a similar banner.” Read the Post-Journal article here: http://www.post-journal.com/news/page-one/2017/12/green-up-jamestown-brings-together-community-for-event-series/
One such event was “The Earth Day Art Happening” at the church earlier this year. Fodor and Steve Raynor of the Jamestown Dharmata Meditation Group shared environmental reflections and led mindfulness meditation and prayer in the chapel. Then local poet shared “An Apology to Mother Earth,” while “The Pillar of Light: An Earth Day Revival and Community Sculpture Project” was illuminated. This sculpture is a pillar of 1,056 mason jars, each filled with shredded artwork, research, poems, and other submissions and lit with LED tube lights. Finally, Bill Ward and the “Earth Day Revue” performed nature songs, followed by a wine and beer tasting.
Visit the official GreenUpJamestown website here: https://www.greenupjamestown.com/ Thank you for this important ministry, St. Luke’s, and congratulations on the grant!
Could your parish or diocese launch or participate in a similar coalition or event series where you live?
Episcopal Climate News 
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