Faith, love & hope
It would be very difficult, now, for anyone to claim that they're unaware of the damage that has been done to our planet by humanity, or of the dangers we now face because of climate change. In the face of ever more dire reports of climate-caused catastrophes, it would be all too easy to give up hope and decide that there's nothing we can do. But Christians are challenged to live lives not only of faith and love, but also of hope, so maybe this is the challenge facing our generation, and our Church.
Hope is not optimism or empty wishing. It is dynamic, action-based and joyful. We recognise that we can have little effect on corporate business, on international multi-nationals or on foreign politics, but there is plenty we can do in our own spheres of life and work, and if those actions make a small difference, and that small difference is multiplied by millions of other people who care passionately about the future of our planet, then it will make a difference and we do not, should not, give up hope.
As a result of hard work, enthusiasm and commitment by David Uzzell and the Holy Trinity Eco-group, in 2021 Holy Trinity became the first Church of England church in the diocese, and the 14th in the country, to be awarded an Eco-Church Gold Award. At that time we celebrated what we had already achieved and stated some of our aspirations for the future. Since then we have suffered Covid and its aftermath, political turmoil and changes in our country and our church, so it may be that some of our energy and enthusiasm has waned a little. In view of this, we were delighted that Clare Marren, on becoming our curate, showed her commitment to re-invigorating our commitment and action. There have now been several meetings of an eco-group keen to improve our environmental footprint, and a number of projects are already underway.
In the pre-covid days (interesting how we tend to divide the past into pre- and post-covid) we started including, in the church newsletters, short tips and suggestions as to ways in which members of the congregation could make a difference in this area. We are now going to start this again, and I am hoping that lots of you will join in to encourage each other. There is plenty of expertise and imagination in the congregation, and it would be good to collate and share that.
This is a chance for us all to be creative, to think about our own actions and to share constructive ideas. It is not about shaming ourselves or other people; it's about looking for signs of hope and re-committing ourselves to working in all sorts of small ways, for a better, safer world. Many of you will have simple ideas that you have tried out or are planning to, and the more basic and concise contributions we can share, the better.
I therefore suggest that on the first Sunday of each month, we include a very short tip as an 'Eco-spot' in the newsletter. I've asked David to start the ball rolling today, but I sincerely hope that lots of you will join in. Please send your suggestions (just a couple of sentences is all that's needed) to me as they occur to you and I'll collate them and feed them into the office each month. Send them to the office (comms@holytrinityguildford.org.uk) with 'Eco for Alwyn' in the subject, and Chloe will forward them to me.
Over to you.