During the 2024 General Conference of The United Methodist Church held in Charlotte, North Carolina, a group of United Methodist clergy and lay people joined an interfaith rally and march. The speakers, signs, and the short march called for an end to the big money funding of fossil fuels. Many of us with environmental concerns and a care for climate stewardship have come across the work of Dr. Anya Elizabeth Johnson. Her latest book, What If We Get It Right? continues the discussion of the much appreciated, All We Can Save, incorporating...

United Methodist and other leaders gathered in front of the White House in Washington D.C. for a prayer vigil in 2014. Together they prayed for a faithful immigration policy and to end deportations. Credit: UMNS photo by Jay Mallin CC BY 2.0. By Mel Caraway The climate crisis is very real. Yet as we look at the climate crisis, we unfortunately have a tendency to oversimplify it. We tend to look solely at the scientific aspects of climate and forget about how climate interconnects with so many other aspects of our daily lives. In order for us...

If you’ve subscribed a few months, at least, to the UMCJM newsletter, you know that most of the Advocacy Team’s action alerts have consisted of encouraging you to influence our government officials directly, for the good of God’s creation. We’re called on you to protect the environment through phone calls, letters to editors of print media, emails and so on. This month, though, we’re saying a few words about a way to multiply those kinds of efforts: Using social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X (formerly known as...

“Ethiopia, despite contributing minimally to global greenhouse gas emissions, is consistently cited as one of the most vulnerable countries, not only in Sub-Saharan Africa regions but also globally, to climate variability and change.” —Heliyon via ScienceDirect A Report From Rev. Gezu Mossissa  Rev. Gezu Mossissa serves in the Ethiopia Mission District, working ecumenically with the Ethiopian Council of Churches, and he is a former District Superintendent to the Mission District. Confronted with the changes to climate impacting his country...

Photo Credit: UN DRR with UNICEF 2009 CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.These children, their photo taken in 2009, would now be adults. Their playfulness and joy fills this photograph. Today their lives as adults should include the opportunities they need to thrive. Globally, the efforts of justice, resilience, and wellbeing are essential to building a hopeful world. The World Council of Churches works widely in coalition in witness with local to global organizations such as UNICEF and the United Nations. United Methodists acknowledge this work, calling people...

Header: Row of vegetables growing at Spring Forest Farm. The community employs regenerative methods for growing and nurturing the farm. All photos courtesy Elaine Heath.A reflection by Rev. Denise Honeycutt Online-enabled Morning Worship Each morning at 8am folks gather on zoom from around the world as a part of Spring Forest, for 20 or 25 minutes to read and reflect on a passage of scripture, to pray for the natural world and our personal concerns and joys. It is a grounding way to begin my day with like-minded folks as well as those who see...

The Big Silence A 4-Day Mostly Silent Retreat January 13–16, 2025July 20–23, 2025www.TheBigSilence.orgThanksgiving to New Year’s Day often feels like a sprint from one activity to the next until you stumble into the new year exhausted and in need of a big deep breath—physically and spiritually. Do you have a plan to recalibrate for 2025? Plan now to come to The Big Silence Retreat, January 13–16, 2025 at the beautiful St. Francis Springs Prayer Center in Stoneville, NC. Now in its 13th year, this retreat is co-led by two United Methodist...

By Karlah Burton On Saturday, October 5, 2024, the Creation Care Ministry at Saint Matthews UMC, hosted a fall festival—an Earth advocacy/healthy eating based fair. In 2023, SMUMC became a commissioned “Green Church” as designated by the Western NC Conference. The Green Church Initiative of the Western NC Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church suggests (Item B-7, Discipleship) that participating churches host a creation care fair inviting outside organizations to do displays and booths that help raise awareness.  This year the list...