In September 2019, in the light of the climate and loss of biodiversity crises, Christ Church launched an “Eco -Group”, with the aim of examining our own responsibilities in this area. By working towards the A Rocha Eco-Church awards, we are looking at all aspects of church life, from the way we use our buildings and grounds to the worship and teaching and our individual lifestyles. Through regular input into Church meeting and items in our monthly magazine, Comment, these issues are kept in the foreground of our thinking. The most recent four articles in Comment can be found below.
JUNE 2023 - We have now been awarded the A Rocha Bronze Award - Certificate here
Item from October 2025
Many denominations globally have, during September, been observing The Season of Creation (also known as Creationtide), a period when Christians are invited to reflect on and advocate for God’s wider creation. Here is a prayer offered by A Rocha for The Season of Creation, but appropriate at any time.
Creator of all, we praise you for the gift of life and for the faith that unites us in care for our common home.
We confess how estranged we have become— from one another, from your Creation, and from our truest selves. We acknowledge that our greed and destructive impulses have fractured our relationships with you, with others, and with the Earth. Fertile fields have become barren, forests lie desolate, oceans and rivers are polluted. Thriving communities have become places of suffering, and the earth cries out.
Beloved Christ, who spoke “Shalom” to frightened hearts, stir us to compassionate action. Inspire us to work for the end of conflict, and for the full restoration of broken relationships— with you, with the ecumenical community, with the human family, and with all Creation.
Prince of Peace, through your wounds, teach us to stand in solidarity with the woundedness of others, of creation, and of the world. Through your resurrection, make us people of hope— with a vision of swords turned into ploughshares and tears transformed into joy. May we come together as one family, to labour for your peace— a shalom where all your people may dwell in safety, and rest in quiet places.
Amen.
Eco-Tip for October: There is a lot of plastic merchandise for sale for Halloween, much of which will be thrown away after one use. Is this good for the planet – or our children?
Item from September 2025
The hidden costs of church flowers
It has long been a lovely tradition in churches to decorate the sanctuary with fresh flowers, a delightful way to celebrate the beauty of God’s creation. Often the expectation is a formal display, with perfect, often unseasonable blooms carefully arranged and secured in place in blocks of floral foam or “oasis”. We enjoy these arrangements, but it has been eye-opening for me recently to discover the environmental cost of some of our practices.
Let us start with the use of oasis. It may do its job perfectly but it is a type of plastic, not biodegradable or recyclable, and held together by a mixture of chemicals known to cause biological and environmental damage. It does not decompose but simply breaks down into tiny microplastics. This means they’re easily spread as they break up and we wash the green dust down the sink, polluting water sources, killing wildlife, and ultimately damaging human health as they enter water systems and the food chain. The RHS banned the use of oasis in 2020. Happily, there are alternatives for flower-arranging, including using scrunched-up chicken wire, making structures from twigs, or simply using taller vases.
The other main issue is the carbon footprint of imported blooms. By the time they reach the UK, these stems have usually travelled thousands of miles across the world in refrigerated containers. And then there are the tonnes of non-recyclable cellophane that these bunches are wrapped in before being sold. The carbon footprint of imported flowers can be 10 times that of a homegrown bouquet. (Although not specifically a church issue, it is sobering to note that a typical Valentine’s bouquet of a dozen Kenyan red roses – roses do not grow in the UK in February! – is estimated to have a carbon footprint of 75kg – about the weight of an average man.) Furthermore, according to Greenpeace, Colombia-grown roses may be sprayed with a shocking 200kg of pesticides per hectare.
Ideally our church flower displays should be compostable, local and seasonal. Maybe we need to accustom ourselves sometimes to a different “look”, particularly at those times of year when British grown flowers are not readily available. Winter foliage, seed heads, berries……….? With a bit of creativity it is still possible to create some beautiful displays. It will be fun to experiment.
Eco-Tip for September: The above! As far as possible let us bear in mind the basic principles of local and seasonal when we make our own choices in buying flowers.
Item from July/August 2025
The warfare currently raging in the world is obviously a tragedy for all caught up in it in terms of the human suffering and physical destruction. And the fact that other nations, including our own, are feeling the need to increase their spending on defence – inevitably at the expense of other, more socially useful programmes – is desperately sad. In the midst of all of this, climate and environmental matters can seem to slip down our list of concerns.
The sad fact is that war and even peacetime military activity do serious environmental damage. Direct impacts include pollution, habitat destruction and disruption to ecosystems as well as significant greenhouse gas emissions. The building up and maintenance of military forces requires considerable energy long before war even begins, and it’s mostly derived from fossil fuels. The best estimate we have is that military activity is responsible for 5.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Armaments and the military do not appear in the Paris Climate Agreement, meaning that they are not obliged to report to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on their climate action and progress. Yet the global military sector is on the top of the list of the world’s climate polluters.
The former UN Secretary general Ban Ki-moon once said: “the environment has long been a silent casualty of war and armed conflict. From the contamination of land and the destruction of forests to the plunder of natural resources and the collapse of management systems, the environmental consequences of war are often widespread and devastating”.
The Rev'd Andy Braunston, the URC's Minister for Digital Worship, recently shared a reflection he entitled “Why do the nations rage so furiously together?”, which included this prayer:
“O Most High, the nations rage and fight, they prepare for war not peace, and we have no words.
Crucified God, again and again you die in your people, as the forces of imperial might love death not life, and hide in the dark instead of seeing the truth in the light, and we have no words.
Most Holy Spirit, as simple fools we hope for peace, we long for weapons to be beaten into ploughshares, for flourishing in Israel, Gaza, and Iran, and for our words and prayers for peace to be no longer needed.
Amen.”
Eco-tip for July: Summer is the time for picnics. Let’s resist the temptation to use disposable plates and cutlery.
Item from June 2025
At the Church Meeting on 4th May, Christ Church adopted the following Environmental Policy:
The context
Christ Church recognises the urgency of the climate and nature crises. We believe in our Christian responsibility to care for creation and will take the practical steps necessary to strive towards safeguarding the life of the Earth in our church life and as individuals.
As a member of the Baptist Union and the United Reformed Church, we acknowledge the commitment made by both denominations to achieve Net Zero in our church life, the URC by 2030 and the BU by 2035. In line with these commitments, we will work towards reducing our carbon footprint year on year.
We accept our responsibility to use resources wisely so that climate change is mitigated, biodiversity protected, finite resources conserved and waste and pollution minimised. We will work with the A Rocha Eco-Church programme to guide and develop our practical actions.
Worship and Teaching
Care for creation will be embedded in the life of Christ Church, in our worship, children’s work and study. We will communicate our understanding of our responsibility for all that is entrusted to us in creation, making the links between damage to the environment and social and global injustices.
Buildings and Energy
We recognise our most important environmental impact will be an ongoing reduction in our carbon emissions. We will seek to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, working towards meeting our energy needs from renewable sources and reaching net zero carbon by 2035 at the latest. We will endeavour to make environmentally positive choices in all aspects of our work, including using eco-friendly products, reducing waste, improving energy efficiency, and encouraging environmental awareness among all users of our buildings.
Land and Nature
We commit to an environmentally friendly approach to our church grounds, managing our land as far as is practicable to be kind to nature and encourage bio-diversity.
Community and Global Engagement
We will engage with organisations and with the political process, locally, nationally and globally, in addressing the climate crisis. Recognising the disproportionate impact the changing climate has on the poorest in the world, we will support charities and campaigns which address this injustice.
Lifestyle
We will actively encourage individual members of our congregation to examine their own lifestyle and to take actions in their personal lives, including assessing their own carbon footprint, reducing their use of fossil fuels, considering how they travel and the food choices they make. We will promote re-use, recycling and repair and the avoidance of waste.
Christ Church Eco-Group. May 2025
Eco-tip for June
Let’s ditch the disposable coffee cups. Take your reusable cup with you if you are going to want a take-away coffee.