98 people from 22 different countries attended the 9th Assembly of the European and Christian Environmental Network (ECEN) conference held in Elspeet, the Netherlands, from August 29 to September 2. Eight people from Ireland and Britain attended, including Catherine Brennan SSL, chairperson of Eco-Congregation Ireland.
The theme was ‘Eco-justice, Growth and Hope’ within the context that discussions about sustainability are not presently high on the political agenda – a viewpoint reflected in the disappointment in the outcomes from the recent Rio+ 20 Summit.
The programme included speakers Professors Hans Opschoor, member of the UN Committee on Development Policy, and Hans Diefenbacher from FEST (Heidelberg), Revd Dave Bookless (A Rocha International) and Rabbi Awraham Soetendorp, Earth Charter Commissioner.
The main content of the discussions explored the very real tensions between a culture demanding infinite economic growth that is dependent on an planet with finite resources. Across Europe and beyond, people face environmental destruction on an unprecedented scale – climate change, loss of biodiversity, declining natural resources and toxic contamination. Economically, much of the world is unstable and uncertain, and the gaps between rich and poor wider than ever. Serious questions were asked about the value of narrow-based measures of economic progress such as GDP.
Rabbi Awraham Soetendorp mentioned in his lecture the idea of the body as a well-known image to express the relatedness of creatures to each other. If one part of the body aches, the whole body is in pain. But what if you no longer feel the pain of the other parts of the body? “That means that you don’t live anymore”, he concluded. How do we treat our mother, the earth? Do we recognise her as a living creature? Or is she no more than a number of sources for energy, rocks, minerals?
In the face of such immense challenges, the Christian churches are invited to respond in hope and faith. The Assembly therefore affirmed that hopeful action must be the guiding principle in responding to such multiple concerns, since hubris and passive despair are seen as contradicting the will of a God of love and justice.
ECEN continues to support and pursue its work through a number of Working Groups, which met at Elspeet. These include Climate Change, Creation Time, Eco- management, Energy, Nature Protection, Theology, Transform Our Living. Revised groups on Education and Water are also being explored.
The main outcome of the event, alongside the vital networking, support and encouragement for those working on ecological issues across our European churches, was a concluding statement calling for church engagement with a “green economy” or “economy of care”. This suggests a stronger need to work as advocates of change, especially with the institutions of Europe.
The Assembly called on Christian churches to take a lead in these matters. The world financial crisis is leading to growing economic problems. Unequal access to resources generates greater injustice internationally and within nations and regions. The capacity of the Earth to sustain abundant life is increasingly under threat. Therefore the need to change current patterns of resource production and consumption, and human lifestyle is paramount, with a renewed vigour to create a more sustainable and fair society.
This is the full text of the statement:
Ecojustice, Growth and Hope
Every Crisis is a Window of Opportunity for Change
We write as the 98 participants – representing 22 countries – gathered at the European Christian Environment Network’s (ECEN) 9th Assembly, held at the Mennorode Conference Centre in Elspeet/Netherlands, Aug/Sept 2012. This took place under the theme of Ecojustice, Growth and Hope, with contributions from churches of Protestant, Orthodox, and Roman Catholic traditions, who also gathered to celebrate the beginning of this year’s Creation Time together.
We are living in a time of multiple crises: the world financial crisis has led to growing problems in the real economy. Traditional growth (as measured by GDP) is no longer a viable solution. Keeping the limits within planetary boundaries of the Earth are severely endangered. The unequal access to resources has generated increasing injustice on the international level, but also within nations and regions.
In this time of such crises our churches are challenged to be signs of hope:
Christ has risen. With the women in the Easter morning, with the disciples accompanied by his living presence, we experience that in Christ life has power over death.
We trust in Christ, who promises us life in all its fullness (John 10,10). His life is a healing and transforming force not only for us but for all of Creation.
In Christ God made peace (Colossians 1,20). Being the victim of violence in his suffering on the cross, Jesus Christ is with all creatures suffering through our present crises. His resurrection is their hope and our hope.
Christ makes us the salt of the earth (Matthew 5,13). The life of Christ acts in ourcommunity lives and our personal lives, in the courage of our churches’ public witness, in our contributions to decisive and consequent political choices.
The necessity of changing our patterns, volumes and distribution of production and consumption, and our life style, and the necessity of a transition to a sustainable and fair society is widely recognized. Many individuals, many churches are engaged in this already.
We have the urgent feeling that this is not enough. More needs to be done, and that change is not coming quickly enough to lead our societies on to the path that could be sustained in the future.
The Five working groups at the Assembly made recommendations:-
We recommend that churches and Christians take action in different ways:
1. To participate in the work of the Transition Movement and to adopt Transition patterns for their own lifestyles, and share these and similar initiatives within the local community.
2. To continue to take action on climate change as an important issue on their agenda.
3. To support and take part in protection of biodiversity, to educate themselves and others, and to save endangered species and habitats.
4. To exchange and adopt new ideas regarding different schemes and measures in the field of eco-management.
5. To explore the riches of Christian theology that includes and respects the whole of God’s Creation.
European Christian Environmental Network (ECEN) is a church network promoting co-operation in caring for creation. ECEN is an instrument of the Conference of European Churches in co-operation with the European Catholic Bishops’ Conference, for addressing the relationship to nature and the environment from the perspective of Christian theology and Christian way of life.