News Archive
My Hopes and Dreams for the Faith & Environment Conference
Letter from the chairman:
The program is set for the Presbyterians for Restoring Creation conference on Faith and the Environment. Hopefully you are considering attending our conference. But we are living in an economically troubled times today. How can we justify even holding such a conference? Why should I come?
I believe we need to answer God’s wake-up call about how we live and use God’s resources. We need to bring people of all ages and ethnicities together to start living in more environmentally positive ways. Our churches need to be the leaders of this effort so all of God’s people and the Earth are served. We need to use the extra sensitivity we feel in these extraordinary times to reprioritize our mission.
This conference will formally “kick-off” the new PC(USA) Environmental Ministries office and reconvene the Stewardship of Creation Enablers (SCEs). We’ll meet Katie Holmes, Program Assistant, and Bill Somplatsky-Jarman, Coordinator, as they conduct training for new and existing SCEs.
This July, Dr. Howard Frumkin, Professor Ellen Davis, and Rev. Pat Watkins are the perfect leaders to expand our horizons and build community for eco-justice. Our worship will be creative and inspiring under the leadership of Sam Hamilton-Poore, Nancy Corson Carter and Kate McGregor Mosley. Charles Pettee, a well-known North Carolina bluegrass artist, believes his music is his mission for earth care. He will team with Elizabeth Bahnson in concert and worship.
I am excited about our young stewards program to bring environmental education to junior and senior high school students. Montreat also has a child care and clubs program for children ages 6 months and older. But register for this early, as this is a very popular feature at Montreat. (see the links on the conference information page).
By coming to the conference this July, you will:
- Travel to a 5-star destination in God’s world;
- Learn some techniques to strengthen your relationship with God and with all of God’s Creation;
- Discover some ways to fund your environmental ministry independent of church finances;
- Be challenged to think about how to help your neighbor in need while preserving God’s Creation as an act of faith;
- You will be asked to share your story (or your neighbor’s story) of “making a difference” in small groups;
- Be challenged to travel responsibly to the conference to minimize your carbon footprint. A good guide is Getting There Greener by Union of Concerned Scientists found at www.ucsusa.org/gettingtheregreener.
- Enjoy a blue-grass concert Thursday night and square dancing on Friday night.
Don’t forget to get your scholarship applications in by June 1. After that time scholarships will be awarded on a first come basis if any scholarship money is still available.
The conference committee and I look forward to meeting each of you and anticipate that our joint conference experiences will be worthwhile and spiritually meaningful. Let us gather to give thanks to God for the good and abundant Creation of which we are a part!
Peace and Blessings,
Tom Pakurar, Conference Chairman