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Articles about "Articles & Essays"
The theme for UN World Environment Day 2013 (5th June) is "Think.Eat.Save", focusing on sustainable food... more
A short reflection by the Rev Dr David Reichardt, Presbytery Minister with the Parramatta Nepean Presbytery, about the highlights of the 2013 Synod gathering, including the Synod's "ecological concern coming of age". more
A resolution passed by the Synod in April 2013, asking the Synod and the Assembly to speak and act both pastorally and prophetically in the Murray-Darling Basin. The proposal was an initiative of the Moderator's Murray-Darling Basin Consultation group. more
A resolution passed by the Synod in April 2013, to divest from fossil fuels and invest in renewable energy. The proposal was an initiative of the Uniting Earthweb Group. more
A resolution passed by the Synod in April 2013 to call upon the NSW Government to protect important agricultural and conversation land and irreplaceable water resources from coal and coal seam gas exploration and mining. The proposal was an initiative of the New England North West Presbytery. more
The Uniting Earthweb website has links to a growing number of programs and resources for Lent, including Lent Event, Ecumenical Water Network reflections, Grace of the Forests" from the Columban Mission Institute and more. more
On Friday 23rd September, before the 2011 Synod gathering in Newcastle, a group of people from right across the Synod attended a “faith. on earth” passion booster day at the Hunter Wetlands Centre. Summaries of discussions from the day are now available. more
In this photo story, Miriam Pepper gives a flavour of the diversity of 14 community gardens in NSW and the ACT that were visited in a series of tours organised by the Uniting Earthweb Group. The gardens are either at churches or set up by Christians. more
Photographs and stories of four community gardens at churches in inner Sydney. more
Photographs and stories of four community gardens at churches in Canberra, the Monaro and the south coast. more
Photographs and stories of four community gardens at churches or set up by Christians in south-west Sydney. more
"Feed My People" community garden at Moree Uniting Church celebrates its opening. more
Ross Neville, Rural Consultant with the Board of Mission, writes about the new Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance, a collaboration which works towards a food system where people have the opportunity to choose, create and manage their food supply from paddock to plate. He discusses the global and Australian context and why food sovereignty is needed, and encourages the church to get involved. more
Rev Dr David Reichardt, Presbytery Minister at Parramatta-Nepean Presbytery, writes about his experiences in Indonesia being trained by climate change campaigner Al Gore in the facts of the climate crisis and what to do about it. more
Ross Neville from the Board of Mission and Miriam Pepper from South Sydney Uniting Church explore the global challenge of world hunger, developments in sustainable farming, and the importance of small farmers and consumers for driving change. The church, they argue, has an important role to play. A version of this article first appeared in Insights, November 2010. www.insights.uca.org.au. more
Ross Neville, the Evangelism, Mission and New Congregations Consultant with the Board of Mission, attended Greenbelt in August 2010, a Christian festival held at Cheltenham Racecourse in the UK. He reports on some environmental learnings from the festival. more
Rev Dr Jason John, from Bellingen Uniting Church and the Mid North Coast Presbytery's Ecofaith project, reports on the "Faith. On Earth" event held in Bellingen in September 2010. more
Nola Stewart, a member of Castlecrag Uniting Church and St Thomas’ Anglican Church North Sydney, gives her reflections on a "Caring for the Creation" studies workshop which she led and a conference on Population and Climate Change which she attended in Kampala, Uganda. more
Ross Neville, the Evangelism, Mission and New Congregations Consultant with the Board of Mission, reports on the 4th quadrennial conference of the International Rural Christian Association (IRCA). The IRCA met in September 2010 in to discuss the IAASTD report to the United Nations entitled “Agriculture at a Crossroads”. more
Jessica Morthorpe, a member of Kippax Uniting Church and Founder of the Five Leaf Eco Awards, gives a personal reflection on ecological issues and theology concerning introduced species. more
The ACT Uniting Church Young Adults Group helps out with a native revegetation project at Greenhills Conference Centre, and plants a snow gum in memory of the day. more
Professor Robert Barry Leal examines attitudes to food as these appear in the first book of the Bible. He seeks perspectives on current issues related to food, such as global inequality in access to food and ecological degradation. more
Nola Stewart, a member of Castlecrag Uniting Church and St Thomas’ Anglican Church North Sydney, reflects upon the Hebrew word "rada" in Genesis 1:26 as being the centre of strength in creation. more
Presbytery Minister of Parramatta-Nepean Presbytery, Rev Dr David Reichardt, is to bring the ~WaterLines~ message of... more
Miriam Pepper, a member of Maroubra Junction Uniting Church, reflects on how everyday practices can change our understandings. more
Retired associate professor of psychology and member of Crows Nest Uniting Church Les Higgins reflects on the human ability to perceive beauty in nature. This article is based on a talk Les gave at the seminar, ‘Re-imaging God, Earth and Ourselves’, which was co-sponsored by Eremos and held at South Sydney Uniting Church on 31 May 2009. more
'Project Green Church' is an initiative of Maroubra Junction Uniting Church. Its goals are to make the church more environmentally sustainable and to inspire others to follow this example. more
A small ecumenical group, including members of Uniting Earthweb, spent some days together in early May in “ecological learning” in central western NSW. This included participation in an event on “Caring for Creation” organised by the Sisters of Mercy in Bathurst. Following that, we the group visit four Christian farmers, and learned about stewardship of the land in farming, and the various issues facing people in rural and regional areas. This article is a report on the experience. more
Sharks. As one of the most feared and maligned creatures on earth, sharks represent a group of creatures which are one... more
Helen Yoo discusses the social justice impacts of climate change, focusing particularly on the Pacific region, and lays out the imperative for action. more
This text forms part of a presentation given by John Court at Dunmore Lang College, Macquarie University, on 8 July 2006. John explores attitudes toward nature, and Christian "stewardship with nature" and "kinship with nature" approaches. more
How much of the earth’s resources does it take to run your church? Electricity, water, and maybe gas are... more
Miriam Pepper, Project Green Church worker, gives an overview of the ways to integrate the environment and ecology into the life of your church. This article first appeared in the September 2008 edition of Insights. more
(Professor) Robert Barry Leal reflects on Christian attitudes to nature, and particularly on the notion of "dominion" from Genesis 1. more
David Reichardt is Presbytery Minister in the Parramatta-Nepean Presbytery, and is completing a PhD in ecotheology. In this article, David reflects on the need for a spirituality of our times that emphasises not only God's transcendence, but also God's immanence here with us in creation. The article first appeared in Grevillea in November 2008. more
Click here to access: liturgical resources for a service of worshipecologically senstive hymns and songsmaterials for... more
Miriam Pepper, Project Green Church worker, presents a critical perspective on carbon trading as a solution to climate change. A version of this article first appeared in TEAR Australia's Harambee magazine, December 2008 edition. more
An important component of earthing the life of your church is about your mission in your community. Why not... more
Support your congregation to integrate environmental actions into their everyday lives, through making changes at... more
George Emeleus is a PhD student in Ecotheology at the United Theological College. In this article, George reflects on the conversation between Christianity and science, and on his own journey deeper into this conversation. The article is based on an evening talk George gave at Chapel by the Sea, Bondi Beach, on 7th September 2008. more
Want a relatively easy way to help the environment and poor farmers in developing nations? If you don’t already do so, buying Fairtrade products such as tea, coffee and chocolate for your church and home is a great way to be a good steward of God's resources. more
Files related to "Articles & Essays"
In this sermon, Jessica Morthorpe of Kippax Uniting Church and the Five Leaf Eco Awards, talks about creation and praise - about how all creatures join in a litany of praise of God, and the imperative I think it gives to care for creation and for our endangered species. It was delivered at Springwood Uniting Church in the Blue Mountains on Palm Sunday 2011, on the occasion of the presentation of their Five Leaf Eco-Awards Basic Certificate.
Jessica Morthorpe of Kippax Uniting Church and the Five Leaf Eco Awards reflects on 1 Samuel 16:1-13, and talks about "what can one person do?" in the face of ecological crisis. The talk was first given at George’s Uniting Church in Eden on the 3rd of April 2011. St George's holds the most Five Leaf Eco Awards of any church in Australia - and so the main aim of the talk was not to inform or persuade, but to encourage. Jessica now shares this talk in the hope that it might be an encouragement to other churches and Christians caring for God's creation. You are all heroes!
Small group discussion about public policy issues concerning water, held at the "faith. on earth" event at the Hunter Wetlands Centre on 23/9/11.
Small group discussion about public policy issues concerning food security, held at the "faith. on earth" event at the Hunter Wetlands Centre on 23/9/11.
Small group discussion about public policy issues concerning coal seam gas, held at the "faith. on earth" event at the Hunter Wetlands Centre on 23/9/11.
Paper by South African ecotheologian Professor Ernst Conradie, delivered at "The Climate Crisis as the Crisis of Humanity" symposium held at the United Theological College, Sydney, in September 2011.
Web links to sites about "Articles & Essays"
http://www.spaceforgod.org.au/articles/climate-change-uca-responds
A paper written by Rev Dr Avril Hannah-Jones in January 2007, examining the responses to climate change of the World Council of Churches and the Uniting Church in Australia.
http://www.ecofaith.org/articles/thesis%20versions.html
A PhD thesis by Rev Dr Jason John, on evolution, ecology and theology.