Creation Care

Position

"The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it," says Psalm 24:1, and just as God placed human beings "in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it" (Gen. 2:15), so the Lord calls us, the crown of his creation (Ps. 8:5), to be stewards of his natural world. As a church we “affirm a commitment to work vigorously to protect and heal the creation for the glory of the Creator, as we wait for the restoration of the creation to wholeness” (Agenda for Synod 2010, p. 46). "We lament that our abuse of creation has brought lasting damage to the world we have been given: polluting streams and soil, poisoning the air, altering the climate, and damaging the earth. We commit ourselves to honor all God’s creatures and to protect them from abuse and extinction, for our world belongs to God" (Our World Belongs to God, para. 51).

History

In response to concerns about stewardship of the world in which we live, Synod 2008 called for a webpage that would offer "up-to-date and effective resources” regarding ecological and environmental awareness consistent with "the Denominational Ministries Plan and its call to practice justice and mercy and exercise stewardship of God’s resources" (Acts of Synod 2008, pp. 460-61).

Synod 2010 received a report and recommendations regarding creation care in the CRC and recognized "the Micah Network Declaration on Creation Stewardship and Climate Change as speaking to its concern for and responsibility toward creation" (Acts of Synod 2010, p. 871). Synod also called for assembly of a task force "to identify a biblical and Reformed perspective on creation stewardship," including a discussion of climate change (p. 871). The task force is scheduled to report to Synod 2012.

References

• Agenda for Synod 2008, pp. 227-30, 269-74
• Acts of Synod 2008, pp. 458-61
• Agenda for Synod 2010, pp. 30, 46-51
• Acts of Synod 2010, pp. 870-72