Bangkok, Brisbane and the Biblical call for creation care
Justice & Advocacy
“While the scale of climate injustice in the world can sometimes feel overwhelming, there are practical things we can do together to bring about a world where peace and justice flow like a river in our relationships with one another, with God and with God’s good creation,” says the Justice Unit’s Peter Branjerdporn, as the Season of Creation approaches
I grew up in Bangkok, Thailand. I can still remember the smell of the streets as I held onto my dad’s waist on our Honda scooter on the way to school. Visitors to my home city know the distinctive unpleasant smell rising up from the sewers beneath the busy streets I’m referring to.
Living just around the corner from the canals of Sathon Road that flow directly into the Chao Phraya River, I was very aware of how polluted one of Asia’s most important waterways was. Decades of illegal waste dumping made the once glorious and life-giving canals and river polluted and clogged with all sorts of rubbish and debris. Still today, plastic bags affect the flow of Bangkok’s main waterway, a symptom of ongoing ineffective environmental policy and education.
When my family moved to Brisbane, one of the first things I noticed as a teenager was how much cleaner the river was compared to the one I saw growing up in Bangkok. While there is much room for improvement, the environmental protection measures safeguarding our river have kept out much rubbish, ensuring this waterway flows freely and minimising pollution.
“Let Justice and Peace Flow” is the theme for Season of Creation this year, which will be held from Friday 1 September (the first day of spring) to Wednesday 4 October (the Feast Day of St Francis of Assisi). In Scripture the prophet Amos speaks of God not being pleased with burnt offerings and songs of praise from his people, but preferring to see “justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!” (Amos 5.24). Like Bangkok’s clogged-up and polluted waterways, I wonder what sort of things clog up the river of justice and peace that should be flowing from our lives as believers?
I used to believe that our call as followers of Christ was to simply proselytise, and not “waste time” on matters like creation care. I wish someone had shown me the Anglican Marks of Mission when I was much younger because they present a much more wholistic way for believers to live out their faith. In a world faced with the challenges of a damaged climate, it is a powerful witness to our Creator God when Anglicans “strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth”.
Communities most impacted by environmental degradation and the damaged climate are often the ones least responsible for creating it. While the scale of climate injustice in the world can sometimes feel overwhelming, there are practical things we can do together to bring about a world where peace and justice flow like a river in our relationships with one another, with God and with God’s good creation.
Here are three suggestions for this year’s Season of Creation:
- Celebrate Season of Creation through prayer and action using the resources compiled by the Justice Unit. There are links to liturgical and prayer resources, kids ministry resources, as well as creation care campaigns that your faith community can be a part of.
- Encourage your parish to practically care for Creation by participating in the ACSQ Sustainability Roadmap 2023-2030. Be one of the first parishes to join the journey towards sustainability with a self-audit using the resources available here.
- Attend St Francis Festival, which will be held at St Francis College on Saturday 15 October 2023 from 10am – 3pm, and promote the festival in your parish, school, organisation and the wider community. The organisers of this wonderful event celebrating spirituality, environment and creativity are still looking for more craft and plant stalls, musicians and volunteers on the day. Check out the College’s St Francis Festival webpage for more information.
Editor’s note 28/08/2023: The ACSQ’s first Sustainability Roadmap was launched earlier this year. The Sustainability Roadmap lays out a framework for the different parts of our Diocesan community to formalise Sustainability Action Plans in a staged rollout.
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