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EcoFaith Recovery
A team eff ort is essential for humans to fi nd a new way to relate to the earth, said Robyn Hartwig, speaking for the organization EcoFaith Recovery. “We believe God is stirring up in us
‘It is only because of our faith in God that we have enough hope, cour- age, creativity and patience to engage this work.’
and others the spiritual and relational power to take public action for the recovery of human life and healing of God’s creation,” said Hartwig, a pastor of St. Andrew Lutheran Church, Beaverton, Ore. “We do not believe we can have one without the other, and we do not believe we can do any of it alone.” To build that community, EcoFaith Recovery
(
www.ecofaithrecovery.org) was founded in 2010 and has brought together a broad network of volunteer leaders and faith-based communities in the Pacifi c Northwest. T e organization actively cultivates and trains new
leaders through its “Practices for Awakening Leader- ship,” a framework for personal and organizational growth that “supports faith communities in taking courageous public action for the recovery of human life and the healing of God’s creation.” For EcoFaith that recovery and healing encompasses
not just restoring the natural world but also changing ourselves as humans who have grown up in an addictive and dysfunctional system. To change the system, people must change how they relate to it. “To recover a more regenerative way of being
human within God’s earth community is work that we must engage in for the rest of our lives,” Hartwig said.
Zion Lutheran Church, Dayton, Ohio
Making a real dif- ference was on the minds of members of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church, Dayton, Ohio, as
they conducted a strategic plan in 2008. What emerged was the desire to do something to create a better con- nection to their community, as well as do something positive for the environment. T e following year they created a community
garden on the church property that is fulfi lling both objectives. “We now have 60 plots, 15 of them reserved exclu-
sively for growing produce to donate to the local food pantry,” said Ron Root, the project’s lay leader. T e rest of the plots are open to anyone in the
community to use for a small fee. T e church has cre- ated a partnership with Five Rivers MetroParks, a public parks system in the Dayton area, to share resources. “We now have a closer connec-
tion to other people in town and we donate approximately a ton of produce each year to the pantry, so we are supporting the community in multiple ways,” Root said. T e largest obstacle was getting
water to the site. “T e garden sits 700 yards behind the church, which made running a city-provided water line too cost-prohibitive,” he added. T e solution came with a well and a small, farm-style windmill that oper- ates the pump. T e water is stored in a raised tank and pulled down by gravity. T e garden also has a large composting area for all
‘We now have 60 plots, 15 of them reserved exclusively for growing pro- duce to donate to the local food pantry.’
to use. T e goal of the garden being carbon neutral and self-supporting has been reached. Among other environmental moves, the church
renovated the parking lot, grinding the asphalt for use as a drain pipe slope. “We see our environmental activities as a major
focus, which also supports our ministry of serving oth- ers’ needs,” he said.”
All that EcoFaith does is a team effort, says Robyn Hartwig, pastor of St. Andrew Lutheran Church, Beaverton, Ore., and a leader in the Oregon-based group that cultivates and trains leaders to actively recover and heal creation.
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www.thelutheran.org
CARLA BECKER
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