Network
of Earthkeeping Christian Communities in South Africa
NECCSA
Update: November 2002
A
monthly newsletter on Church and Environment in South Africa
1. You are welcome to make use of the NECCSA
Website
You may have noticed that the NECCSA website has been
updated considerably. You will find a number of documents, earthkeeping stories,
resources and issues for debate at the website. Since NECCSA is essentially a
network, this is probably the easiest way of networking that is available to
those of us with access to the internet.
You are most welcome to make use of this website to
raise environmental issues that you regard as urgent. We hope to make this a
premier website for South African Christians interested in issues of
environmental justice. Please regard it as your own!
2. Indigenous church gardens
Here are two stimulating stories on the earthkeeping
activities of NECCSA members.
On
our church grounds all the lawn has been removed and is to be replaced by
“water wise” gardening. Unfortunately
a very eager gardener has started planting bottlebrushes and “kurkeike”.
I went to investigate what the plan was for the garden and indicated my interest
in helping with the project. On request I have been allocated a piece of
garden. The aim is to plant as locally indigenous and bio-diverse as
possible. Once this garden is well established it will serve to educate
the children and challenge the other church members on our responsibility to be
worthy caretakers of God’s wonderful creation. The garden will provide a
focus point from where discussion can be opened onto wider environmental and
social issues. Locally indigenous gardens are an important starting point
for environmental awareness, but also an essential element of the church’s
testimony. We need to celebrate and nurture the nature around us, where we
are. The local indigenous bulb society referred us to a site being developed in
Plattekloof. We were able to rescue local Gladiolas and Watsonias, to be
used in our church garden. We also have donations from local nurseries
with indigenous plants. We have created some enthusiasm for the project in
the congregation and hope to follow through on this. - Karen Marais
I
have initiated and planted locally indigenous gardens at various Dutch Reformed
Churches and schools. These include the DRC congregations in Kenridge,
Durbanville, Parow-North,
Buffeljagsrivier.
A few other churches are on the waiting list. I am a full-time small animal vet
and do gardening as a hobby (I do not play golf)!). Ek het reeds ’n aantal
praatjies gehou by verskeie kerke rondom die praktiese uitvoering van die
versorging van God se skepping.- Dr Christie Kloppers
Please send us your story on earthkeeping so that other
may learn from it too.
3. Networking within the Anglican Communion
Before
the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) the Global Anglican Congress
on the Stewardship of Creation was held in Pretoria, and was attended by about
70 Anglicans from around the world, including bishops from England, Tanzania,
Rwanda, South Africa and Australia. A declaration was drafted to be
presented to WSSD by the Anglican Observer to the United Nations. A letter
was also composed to be sent to all churches in the worldwide Anglican Communion
encouraging them to place environment care on their agenda. The Congress
forwarded a resolution to the Anglican Consultative Council (a meeting of
Anglican representatives from all part of the world) meeting in Hong Kong in
September calling for the establishment of an Anglican Environmental Network as
an official network of the Anglican Communion. It was accepted.
In
September the Provincial Synod of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa
(the three yearly meeting of representatives of the Anglican church in South
Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, Mozambique, Namibia and St Helena) agreed to the
establishment of the CPSA Environmental Network, to encourage the sharing of
information and common action around environmental issues in Southern Africa.
For more information on this, please contact Bishop Geoff Davies at HYPERLINK:
"mailto:mzimvubu@futurenet.co.za"
4. Advent and ecology
Does anyone know of good resources that may be used to
link advent with environmental concerns? The following text seems to be helpful
but is not readily available:
·
Wood, B
1986. Our world, God's world - Reflections
for advent and the Christmas season on the environment. London: Bible
Reading Fellowship.
Who has got a good sermon or liturgy on advent and
ecology?
5. Two good reasons to become a member of NECCSA (if you have
not done so)
The
benefits of NECCSA membership include the monthly NECCSA Update and hard
copies of the biannual newsletter. However, to be honest, you may well receive
such communication without being a member. A much better reason for becoming a
member is that you will contribute in this way to earthkeeping in South
Africa, to the quest for environmental justice and to a sustainable society. You
can do so by sharing the story of what you are doing for the environment in your
context and by regularly communicating with the network on specific
environmental concerns, news and events, resources, publications, etc. Unlike
the consumerist ethos that emphasises what you can get, becoming a member of
NECCSA is a matter of what you can contribute from a Christian perspective.
Information
on the vision and aims of NECCSA and application forms are available at the
NECCSA website.
NECCSA
website address: www.neccsa.org.za. You
are invited to accept ownership of this website in order to use it to share
information on Christianity and earthkeeping practices. Please send any
information to the email address below.
You
are welcome to distribute this NECCSA Update electronically to any other
interested person. You are also welcome to send news to be included in the next
NECCSA update to emcemp@iafrica.com by
20 January 2003. You may send such contributions in the language of your choice.
Distributed by EM Conradie 24/11/2002.