By Carol Bolden
As Seventh-day Adventist Christians, we believe in being stewards of God’s creation. In an anonymous survey, church pastors in the Rocky Mountain Conference were asked about their attitudes toward the environment and the challenges in applying our beliefs about stewardship. We received 26 responses.
Although 92 percent of responding pastors believe that the promotion of a clean environment is important, 32 percent never refer to the environment in a sermon. The majority of pastors (60 percent) would be willing to place an “Environmentally Friendly” sign on church property. More than half (58 percent) were not acquainted with the Church’s official statement on the environment. Only 32 percent reported that their local church participates in making the community conscious of environmental issues. Fifteen percent of churches provide recycling containers for biomaterials and/or non-degradable materials.
Pastors believe that the world church should address the issue of a clean environment in these ways:
Establish an annual stewardship and environment week (22%)
Issue relevant public/official statements (39%)
Emphasize Sabbath rest as a contribution to environmental stewardship (61%)
Include more articles on the environment in church publications (39%)
Provide more promotional resources to local congregations (27%)
Educate students in schools (74%)
Provide ways to discard bio-waste (39%)
Encourage use of compostable products/provide recycling of buildings (57%)
While pastors highlighted a variety of solutions to environmental problems, some believe the topic to be inappropriate for the pulpit. Because environmental issues have become politically charged, pastors may see them as divisive and mired in party politics—or may fear that their congregations see them as such, rather than viewing stewardship of the earth as a responsibility given to us by God.
–Carol Bolden provides administrative support for the RMC communication department.