Religious Diversity in the Earth Community

Friday Nudge: Please pray! I am heading to Geneva this weekend for a week of work with the World Council of Churches.

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Friday Nudge: Please Pray

Happy Friday! I am very excited at the moment. Once this Substack is posted, I will finalize my preparations for my trip to Geneva where I will meet and work with my colleagues on the newly created Commission of the Churches on Climate Justice and Sustainable Development. In November I was elected to this Commission, part of the World Council of Churches (WCC); my term extends until 2030. Representing the United Church of Canada, I am excited to work with and learn from more than 30 representatives of the WCC from around the world. While many of our meetings will be online, having this first one in person will build the relationships that will make our work together richer and more productive. I promise to return with pictures, stories and reflections from my time there.

Are you familiar with the WCC? Here the description on its website:

The WCC brings together churches, denominations and church fellowships in more than 120 countries and territories throughout the world, representing over 580 million Christians and including most of the world's Orthodox churches, scores of Anglican, Baptist, Lutheran, Methodist and Reformed churches, as well as many United and Independent churches. While the bulk of the WCC's founding churches were European and North American, today most member churches are in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America, the Middle East and the Pacific. There are now 352 member churches.

It is a broad ecumenical movement seeking to strengthen our faith across diversity and work toward justice and peace around the world.

As I depart for a week of meetings, I ask that you pray for the Commission and its work, and for me and every person on the Commission. Please pray that we all arrive safely, that our hearts and minds are open to one another, and that the relationships we build serve the cause of climate justice in the church and around the world. Friends, this is your Friday Nudge for this week! Praying for others is discipleship in action.

As I reflect on the upcoming meetings, I am aware, as the WCC is too, that ecumenical efforts for peace and justice, including climate justice, sit inside the larger religious diversity in the Earth community. I am reminded of a blog post I wrote more than a year ago about the nature of religious diversity within the Earth community, and have decided to share that with you this week.

Don’t worry! I will still post next week from Geneva. A book review of a major environmental activist is coming, and after that, the next essay in my discipleship series. Enjoy!

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Essay: Religious Diversity in the Earth Community

This essay was written in October 2022. Diwali is celebrated between October and November every year. In 2024, it will be celebrated on November 1st.

This was a craft to celebrate Diwali which my daughter made in Grade 1. I love how the world’s religions are taught in public school!

This past Monday [October 24, 2022], Hindus in India and around the world celebrated Diwali (or Divali), the “Festival of Lights.” One of the most widely celebrated festivals within Hinduism, it symbolizes the victory of light over darkness and good over evil. Hinduism is the third-largest religion in the world, with more than a billion followers. It is also quite possibly the oldest living religion in the world today.

At my daughter’s public school, educators are intentional about introducing the students to a wide range of religious and cultural traditions. Last week, she came home with a beautiful art piece she created at school earlier this week. She is in Grade 1, and she coloured, cut out, then glued to the paper plate a mandala (see the picture below), added some rhinestones, and the cord for hanging. (I’m a wee bit proud of her colouring and scissor skills!). I asked her what it was about, and she explained, “It is for Diwali.” In the time leading up to this festival, she and her classmates were learning about this tradition, as one of many our neighbours celebrate, here in Ottawa and around the world.

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