Nourished and Sent: Responding Faithfully to Climate Crisis

A sermon on Ephesians 5:15-20. And don't forget to join me tomorrow at Parliament Hill!

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Climate Prayer Vigil Begins This Week!

I begin my weekly climate prayer vigil on Parliament Hill this week. I will be at the Centennial Flame tomorrow, Thursday, December 14, from noon to 1:00 p.m. I will be praying for the Canadian federal government to stop all subsidies and other financial support for the fossil fuel industry.

My intention is to pray weekly on the same day and time until either my prayer is answered, or the Holy Spirit leads me to stop. Please join me, in person or by adding your prayers at that time from wherever you are.

Please join me, in person or praying where you are every Thursday, Noon - 1:00 pm EST.

Sermon: Nourished and Sent: Responding Faithfully to Climate Crisis

Preached on August 15, 2021, at South Stormont Pastoral Charge, Ontario

Scripture Reading

15 Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, 16 making the most of the time, because the days are evil. 17 So do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit, 19 as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, 20 giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 5:15-20 NRSV)

Let us pray:

God of Life,

May the words of my mouth

and the meditations of all our minds and hearts

lead us to deeper understanding of you

and the love you call us to live. AMEN.

Our reading from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians opens with a dire tone: “Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of the time, because the days are evil.” These are strong words, said in a challenging time.

We are in Dire Times

We don’t tend to think of the days as evil anymore, but we are certainly living in a challenging world. Indeed, we are in dire times. The UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is a body of hundreds of the world’s top scientists, and its reports are signed off by all the world’s governments. It has just released its latest report [August 2021], and the words are clear: “It is unequivocal,” it says in its opening words, that the climate crisis is caused by human activities and is affecting every corner of the planet’s land, air and sea.[1] We have passed the threshold of an increase in average global temperatures by 1 degree Celsius, and it is now inevitable that the planet will reach the 1.5° mark within the next decade. 1.5° of global warming is the point at which we reach an irreversible tipping point in the ability of the planet’s natural systems to function effectively.

The goal now, according to the report, is to keep the planet from warming even further. If emissions do not fall in the next couple of decades, then we will likely see an average warming of 3°, which will spell catastrophe around the world.

What 1.5˚ Warming Means in Canada

What does the 1.5° warming that is inevitable mean in Canada? Here, we are going to see virtually ice-free Arctic summers; the Arctic region is currently warming at least twice as fast as the global average. We will see warmer winters, with less snow and more freezing rain. Canada will likely suffer increases that are higher than the global average, especially in the winter. Due to extreme rainfall, we will see increased flood risks in places in Ontario, Quebec and the Atlantic region that normally don’t flood. And, our cities will be dangerously hot, with even hotter days than we have seen, and more of them. This will lead to more heat-related illness and death, and more frequent and intense wildfires. The heat wave in BC in July 2021 caused over 800 deaths; such deadly heat waves will intensify and increase in frequency.

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is calling the IPCC report a “code red for humanity.” Indeed, this is a dire time.

How are We to Respond?

Paul wasn’t facing the issue of climate change in his time. But it is one of the issues that we, as a church, are facing today. It is in this world, in this warming world, that we are advised to live a Christian life.

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