Creation Care and the Gospel

Editor’s Note: Hello, dear readers! Did you know that September marks the beginning of the Season of Creation? In our Christian Calendar, this is the annual celebration to pray, hear, and respond as a community to the cry of Creation. To mark this season, we look back on a time when one of our staff had the opportunity to meet the wider global community involved in this work of earthkeeping.

From 24–28 July 2017, I attended the East Asia Regional Conference on Creation Care and the Gospel, organised by Lausanne and the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), in Hsinchu, Taiwan. It was part of the Lausanne and WEA Creation Care Network’s (LWCCN) global campaign for Creation Care, which gathered individuals interested and involved in creation care movements from East Asia. The theme of this conference was Creation Care and the Gospel, through which we discussed how the needs of the world, in terms of environmental crises, were connected to the mission of the church and the gospel. Over five days, and over good times of discussion and dialogue, we looked at God’s Word (theology), God’s World (science) and God’s Work (our response in mission).

These are some of the people I met: (see photo above)

Besides the fond memories I have of time spent with them, sharing discussions, food and journeys, perhaps what encouraged me the most was why they do what they do. They care for creation not because they have to, nor because they are “tree-huggers”, animal lovers or crazy environmentalists, but because through their own journey of faith and calling they came to realise all of creation belongs to and is important to God. The way we treat the communities and creation around us is important to God, the way we study, do business, work and live is important to God. And this was so real for many of them. The way they did their work, with integrity and concern for creation and community around them, the way they shared hope for restoration and reconciliation, was a testimony in itself, a telling of a kingdom that is to come.

We could not ignore the reality of the world we live in today. Because of the brokenness of mankind, creation is in a dire state. We spoke about drastic changes in climate, typhoons and earthquakes, loss of biodiversity, issues like pollution and food shortage. I felt the fear and gravity of it for the first time, hearing that two typhoons were headed for Taiwan as we had our conference. It would only get worse. Creation care is not simply an issue concerning the environment, creation care is about justice, it is about loving our neighbour, it is part of the mission of the church.  Creation groans as it awaits liberation (Rom. 8:20–22). Creation is the gospel’s concern, for God so loved the cosmos.

Then why does it seem that we, Christians especially, continue to live life choosing to ignore this groaning of creation? In Dr Richard Bauckham’s last plenary session, he suggests it is hope that has been lost, that we have gone with the world and accepted how this global civilisation we live in will one day destroy it all. But if we hold on to the ultimate hope that God will one day reconcile all things, then perhaps it is the duty of Christians to have hope, not simply for themselves, but hope for all of creation. And that this hope is rooted in love. I quote his last session:

“In Paul’s wonderful poem on the trio of Christian virtues: faith, hope and love, he says: ‘Love hopes all things’ (1 Cor. 13:7). It is the case that love empowers hope. Actually when we love, we simply cannot help hoping. No one who loves their children can fail to have hopes for them. No one who loves the lovely products of human art and culture can fail to hope that they survive to inspire others for all time. No one who loves red squirrels or snow leopards or rare orchids or coral reefs or tigers or Formosan black bears can fail to hope that they will survive in the habitats they belong to. Love inspires hope and energises hope. God loves his created world and we share in his love for the creatures. Our fundamental task is to re-awaken love for creation. Hope follows.”

— Rachel Leng (Taken from Perspective, September 2017)

Rachel is an FES staff worker (2015–). She is currently on sabbatical!