Our climate is changing – and increasingly we are seeing how these changes impact our surroundings. Nearly every region in the world is experiencing some form of climate change. In some places it means droughts, in others extreme storms, many areas see invasive species and plants, many regions have increased loss of habitat, and in still others melting ice and permafrost. What it means for all of us is a degradation of the amazing beauty that God created for us. As stewards of creation we have a responsibility to be doing all we can to slow these changes in our environment.

The flow of ice from glaciers in Greenland has more than doubled over the past decade.

At least 279 species of plants and animals are already responding to global warming, moving closer to the poles.

Warming of the oceans is having a devastating effect on coral reefs – they are dying and bleaching and taking away the habitats of fish and aquatic species when they do. The village of Shishmaref in N. Alaska, inhabited for 400 years, is facing evacuation due to rising temperatures, which are causing the thawing of sea ice and permafrost and making their shoreline more vulnerable to erosion from storm surges. The town's homes, water system and infrastructure are being undermined. 

The Episcopal Church’s Network for Science Technology and Faith prepared a "Catechism of Creation" which talks both about the sacredness of creation and our responsibility to it:

Genesis 1:26-28 states that human beings are created in God’s "image and likeness" and given dominion over all other creatures. "Dominion" does not mean "domination," but refers to the need for humans to exercise stewardship over the earth on God’s behalf. In Genesis 2, the human beings are given the garden to tend and serve, symbolizing our obligation to care for creation. Human beings do in fact exercise dominion over "this fragile earth, our island home" (Book of Common Prayer, p. 370). God wills that we exercise it in accordance with God’s desires and purposes. God declared the whole of creation to be "very good" (Gen. 1:31): earth and all of its living creatures have value in and of themselves. As "the earth is the Lord’s and everything in it" (Ps. 24:1), we human beings are called upon to tend and serve the earth as a sacred trust for which we shall one day give an accounting. [Full Catechism is available here]

We can make a difference. Even small changes in our daily living make a difference. Each of us can do something different today that will acknowledge the sacredness of creation. And our actions will encourage others in our communities to do likewise.

Lenten Discipline: Making a Change
This week commit to one simple change in your routine that will conserve or reduce your impact on the environment. Use cloth shopping bags instead of getting the plastic ones at the grocery store, change 1 light bulb to a compact florescent, use a coffee mug not paper or Styrofoam cup, or make sure to turn off all electronics when you aren’t using them. Click here for more ideas and to see what other Episcopalians and their parishes are doing.