Sanctuary From the Storm
Lent Devotion by Cathy Velasquez Eberhart
Everlasting bonds of tenderness are forged amidst the hardness of life’s struggles, thanks be to you, that in my soul and the soul of every human being sacred hopes are hidden, longings for what has never been are heard and visions for earth’s peace and prosperity are glimpsed.
—Sounds of the Eternal: A Celtic Psalter, by J Philip Newel
On this particularly cold winter day, spring seems far away. In the midst of unrelenting climate and political disruption, a world shaped by justice and peace feels nearly impossible to imagine. But I’m working to trust the rhythms of the seasons and the wisdom of the liturgical calendar, and so I seek the lessons this Lenten season can offer, lessons gleaned from other years’ seasonal journeys around the sun that assure me I can trust that something new is even now waiting to be born.
When I first started to understand the horrifying realities of the climate crisis, I had a dark winter of despair looking into that abyss. Those realities haven’t changed, and in fact are being demonstrated more urgently through a steady series of destabilizing events and extreme weather. What has changed is I am no longer alone, and I’ve found clarity and purpose in the midst of that uncertainty.
As the daughter of two retired United Methodist pastors, it was natural that some of my first actions to address climate change were taken in the relative safety of my small local church when we offered a series on a Faithful Response to Climate Change. That led to workshops with others in the Minnesota Annual Conference, engagement with Minnesota Interfaith Power and Light, attending the first Global Ministries EarthKeepers class and eventually the formation of the UM Creation Justice Movement.
While The United Methodist Church has a rich tradition of statements, writings, and resolutions affirming the vocation of Creation Justice, those “beautiful words” require action. That’s where the Creation Justice Movement shines. Work Teams for worship, advocacy, organizing, communication, and education have emerged. These teams are developing and implementing practical strategies for solar, net-zero, green teams, wild churches, creation-themed worship materials, advocacy, and more. Perhaps most profoundly, we now offer the power of community for all those who have felt alone in their despair, which in turn has inspired more action and more connection.
Making use of our United Methodist structures, we have once again drafted model resolutions for annual conferences that build off of the many successful creation justice commitments made at General Conference last year: commitments that encourage local churches to form green teams, transition energy use, and care for church land; commitments that require annual conferences to identify Caretakers of God’s Creation Coordinators, and commitments to take seriously the necessary work required to draw down and eliminate climate destabilizing emissions.
Linking all of these many actions together, a central vision is emerging from our meetings and conversations of a growing network of churches serving as hubs of resilience and transition.
We are learning from other community and faith groups about the concept of Resiliency Hubs: “energy efficient, community-serving places that have the resources and connections needed to support community members both in moments of crisis and in the everyday.” These hubs can make churches more resilient and responsive in times of disruption, while also offering connection, belonging, support, and love to our neighbors at all times.
I’ve been inspired by stories emerging from hurricane response in North Carolina that echo the experiences of the early church while offering a vision for the future of the church:
Acts 4 has been enfleshed throughout our West Asheville neighborhood in this time of tragedy.
“Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common. With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all” (Acts 4:32-33, NRSV).
—Dustin Mailman, associate pastor of Trinity UMC and the founding pastor of Deep Time, quoted in Disaster Response: How Fresh Expressions Serve in Ways Other Churches Cannot
May you find purpose and clarity during these stormy times. May you find sanctuary and then expand the circle wider. May our congregations and our denomination find purpose and new life as we build networks of resilience and refuge, belonging and love.
If you are interested in learning more, check out the UM Creation Justice Movement newsletter and join us at our monthly Movement Café.
Cathy Velasquez Eberhart
is a leader in the United Methodist Creation Justice Movement and a commissioned UM Earthkeeper. She is a lay member of Prospect Park UMC located on the border between Minneapolis and St. Paul Minnesota, a proud Reconciling Congregation since 1990. Cathy and her husband Guillermo run Velasquez Family Coffee, which sells coffee grown by their family in Honduras