The Hawkes Bay Eco church gathering on Saturday 22nd February showed that there’s a whole lot of energy for the Creation Care Kaupapa in the Hawkes Bay! 35 people from 8 different churches gathered to hear from several speakers about conservation and the what/why/how of being an eco church, as well as share with each other the joys and challenges they’re experiencing as they take steps on their eco church journey.

Last week, I had the privilege of traveling to Te Taurapa – Southland to connect with churches and individuals passionate about creation care. It was a trip filled with deep conversations, theological reflections, and inspiring stories of churches living out their faith in practical ways. It was an incredible experience to talk about the care of creation while being surrounded by the beauty of God’s good creation. The setting of St Luke’s in the Bush reinforced the message that our faith must be deeply rooted in the land we inhabit.

From August 29th to 31st, I had the pleasure of visiting Dunedin with Kristel van Houte, National Director of A Rocha Aotearoa, hosted by Selwyn Yeoman, convenor of A Rocha’s Dunedin local group. Our hope was to deepen connections with local churches working in the creation care space, and  to experience the creative ways they are embracing creation care as part of their mission.