environment – The Green Tau

Green Tau: issue 124

25th May 2026

Rivers of Spirit: Spirit of Rivers – a reflection

On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, ‘Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.’” Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive; for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified. John 7:37-39

The above is one of the alternative readings given for Pentecost which thinks of the Spirit not as wind or fire, but as a river of water.

Last Friday I took part in a thought-provoking event at St John’s Waterloo entitled Rivers of Spirit: Spirit of Rivers – https://stjohnswaterloo.org/tag/rivers-of-life/

We began by going down on to the foreshore of the Thames where, like children, we looked at all the treasures on the little beach – shells and pebbles, smooth-worn glass, ends of clay pipes, rounded stubs of brick, sticks and pieces of bone. We sang and we prayed as, with increasing reverence, we were drawn to the sound and the movement of the river, to the ebbing-flowing tide – drawn to the Thames living presence.

From that reconnection with the river, we were more open to hear the wisdom of the afternoon’s speakers.

Bishop Martin himself quoted from the passage from John’s Gospel, and talked about the living nature of water through the example of the eel.

Eels are amazing creatures. They are laid as eggs in the Sargasso Sea from where they voyage by ocean currents some 6500km to reach Europe. During this first couple of years they develop from egg to glass eel. They leave the sea and swim inland up various rivers including the Thames, where they continue to develop becoming elvers and then yellow eels and finally silver eels – this can span from 5 to 20 years. Now they are mature enough to make the return journey to the Sargasso to begin the whole cycle again. Eels in the past were numerous in our rivers and a source of food for many (and not just humans). But due to the effects of climate change, pollution, loss of habitat including from obstacles such as weirs and dams, their numbers over the last 40 years have declined by a staggering 95-98%. (1)

God’s Spirit, like rivers of living water, is there to cleanse and refresh us. But what if we harden our hearts and do not seek forgiveness and renewal?

The first two speakers, Al Barrett and John White spoke about the importance of creating communities. Al Barrett is the vicar of the Hodge Hill Church in east Birmingham. John White is the founder of the Hazelnut Community and author of the Rooted in Rubble articles from which I have recently quoted.

Al spoke about creating ‘bumping places’ – places where parishioners from many and diverse backgrounds can meet and get to know and trust each other. He spoke how during Covid they ‘rediscovered’ the green places in the parish including the common. Commons have existed for hundreds of years as spaces designated for use by the community – the commoners – who would have rights to graze animals, gather firewood etc. Where Commons remain today they are often important as essential green spaces for local people and as essential habitats for wildlife.

And Al described how finally he managed to ‘discover’ the River Tame which was barricaded out of sight and inaccessible to the community through which it flowed.

John spoke about how the Hazelnut Community’s garden brings people together in the garden and in the gardening. Gardens root us and place us in a right relationship with creation.

Debbie Colvin described to us our place – our home – within the Thames basin which stretches from the Cotswolds to the estuary, from the Chilterns and northwards to the South Downs. Within this area rainwater drains down to the Thames, but not just via stream and rivers, but also percolating down into the strata deep below our feet where the water moves and buffers, hydrating the ground, feeding into springs and wells. A slow and measured process whereby rain falling on the hills of Reigate may take 10-20,000 years before reaching Trafalgar Square. (Prior to the 1930s the fountains in Trafalgar Square were fed by artesian wells (2)).

Paul Powlesland spoke about his life’s journey that finds him as a self appointed river guardian for the River Roding and as the founder of the River Roding Trust. His love and respect of this river sees him clearing rubbish, planting willow and Black Poplar saplings and defending the rights of the river and the communities that live nearby. Called to jury service, Paul made his oath not on a Bible but on the River Roding, making this river a sacred thing, a being worthy of worship. (3) Much of this river, the third longest in London, is degraded – desecrated – by sewage, rubbish and pollution. Paul’s approach is hands on and includes pressing the Thames Water Authority to do its job properly. (4)

Paul himself lives off grid on a narrow boat which means his life is intrinsically connected to that of the river and the environment. His awareness of the drought that we are currently facing, is measured by how much water remains in the rainwater that provides him with water.

What struck me about the issues raised by these speakers was –

how little value we, as society, place on water,
our lack of concern/ interest as to where our water comes from and
our lack of concern as to whether it will be there in sufficient quantity in the future (humankind is extracting fresh water at a faster rate than the rate at which natural processes allow for replenishment (5))
our lack of concern for the health and wellbeing of our rivers – and not just our rivers, but the springs and aquifers from which they come, and
our lack of concern for the other living communities that depend upon rivers and the river environment.

At the same time, the speakers brought to mind way we might change our relationship with rivers:

looking at / treating rivers as living needs and rights, and
as beings that give generously of themselves to our benefit, and further,
that maybe we should treat rivers as sacred –
and not just rivers, but all water. In the past wells were often considered as holy places so why not also taps and reservoirs today?

And from this came thoughts about what we might do as local communities and as churches.

Create a map that shows local rivers, streams and wells.
Arrange pilgrimages to walk along or between these
To spend time in prayer and celebration in these places, to wonder and to rejoice.
Work out – maybe add to the map – where our drinking water comes from, and where it goes when we have used it
Find about local riverine habitats and whether they are in good or declining health.
To engage with – or establish – means of safeguarding and caring for wellbeing of your local river/ stream etc – and allowing yourselves to benefit from its contribution to your wellbeing.
Identify our local water sources as sacred.
Arrange water blessings for local rivers, streams and wells and wells
Provide blessings for taps, drains and water butts
Encourage people to value water – to treat it as sacred and not as something to be consumed rashly or without consideration
Encourage people to think about being less wasteful in the use of water. At current levels of consumption, we are likely by 2055 to see a shortage of 5 billion litres per day (6)
Encourage people to be aware of water cycles – seasonal changes, periods of rainfall and periods of droughts, of tidal cycles where appropriate.
Encourage people to do even small scale gardening (cress seeds grown on blotting paper) to appreciate the importance of water in keeping plants – and therefore us too – alive.

Prayers for the ecosystems of North America

28th March 2026

Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked. They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper. Ps 1:1a,3

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A Reading Proverbs 22:16-18

Oppressing the poor in order to enrich oneself, and giving to the rich, will lead only to loss. The words of the wise: Incline your ear and hear my words, and apply your mind to my teaching; for it will be pleasant if you keep them within you if all of them are ready on your lips.

Each week during Lent I am focusing on a different continent; this week North America

North America extends from the tiny Aleutian Islands in the northwest to the Isthmus of Panama in the south. The continent includes the enormous island of Greenland in the northeast and the small island countries and territories that dot the Caribbean Sea and western North Atlantic Ocean. In the far north, the continent stretches halfway around the world, from Greenland to the Aleutians. But at Panama’s narrowest part, the continent is just 50 km across. North America can be divided into five physical regions: the mountainous west, the Great Plains, the Canadian Shield, the varied eastern region, and the Caribbean. Mexico and Central America’s western coast are connected to the mountainous west, while its lowlands and coastal plains extend into the eastern region. Within these regions are all the major types of biomes in the world. https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/north-america-physical-geography/

Glory to God

Creator of successions of mountains ranges:

We praise you for the awe and wonder of these regions,

their reminder that we are but humans.

We marvel at the power of water to carve out canyons

and the power of water to generate energy.

Glory to God

Creator of forests and plains:

We praise you for the richness of their biodiversity, for tall prairie grasses and even taller trees;

for the smallest grasshoppers to the mighty bison,

for the whistling marmots and black bears that huff and grunt.

Glory to God

Creator of rivers, lakes and wetlands:

We praise you for the Great Lakes and the fresh water they contain,

for the Mississippi River and the fertile soil it nurtures,

and for the wetlands of the Everglades, the 360 plus species of bird

and the plump grandeur of the manatees.

Glory to God,

Creator of tundra and ice:

We praise you for the ingenuity of life that adapts to the extremes of climate and geography.

We marvel at the diversity of life – lichens and moss, polar bears and caribou,

and the many migrating birds such as the Arctic tern.

Merciful God,

Creator of human kind,

Forgive our greed that has mined land and sea for fossil fuels, jeopardising our future.

Forgive our greed that industrialises farming, destroying soils and draining lakes.

Forgive our greed that turns animals into commodities and disregards their sentient nature.

Forgive our greed for consumer goods that strips the earth’s reserves.

Merciful God,

Creator of our brothers and sisters:

Forgive the casualness with which we let the rich grow richer

and the poor poorer.

Forgive the casualness with which we let the rich break the laws

and yet still penalise the poor.

Forgive the carelessness with which we discard what we buy

ignoring the meagre pay of those who labour.

Guiding God,

Source of all wisdom,

Transform our hearts and minds, turn the direction of our hands and feet

so that with alacrity and commitment we will reform our lives

and live only in harmony with your creation.

Amen.

The Grace

Prayers for the ecology of Australasia

28th February 2026

The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom like the crocus Isaiah 35:1

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A Reading: Isaiah 42: 5, 10-12

Sing to the Lord a new song,
his praise from the end of the earth!
Let the sea roar and all that fills it,
the coastlands and their inhabitants.

Let the desert and its towns lift up their voice,
the villages that Kedar inhabits;
let the inhabitants of Sela sing for joy,
let them shout from the tops of the mountains.

Let them give glory to the Lord,
and declare his praise in the coastlands.

These prayers during Lent focus each week on a different continent; this week Australasia.

The Australasia realm is dominated by the Australian continent and 2 additional subrealms — New Zealand and the Australasian Islands: Papua, Sulawesi, and other Indonesian islands east of the Makassar Strait and south of the Java Sea, as well as the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia. Australasia encompassed a diversity of environments from the vast interior deserts of Australia, dry and wet tropical savannahs and rainforests, Mediterranean woodlands, temperate grasslands and alpine uplands. With its seven seas and immense coral reefs, Australasia is one of the most important realms for ocean biodiversity. The Great Barrier Reef, considered one of the Seven Natural Wonders, is the world’s largest coral reef system. https://www.oneearth.org/realms/australasia/

Australasia is already greatly affected by the ongoing climate crisis, with rising land temperatures and an increasing frequency of heat waves and bush fires; rising sea levels and an increasing frequency of heavy rain causing flooding, interspersed with increasing periods of drought. Rising sea levels disproportionately affect small islands nations. Rising temperatures in the oceans are destroying coral reefs.

An extract from ‘Kangaroo’ by D H Lawrence

Delicate mother Kangaroo

Sitting up there rabbit-wise, but huge, plump-weighted,

And lifting her beautiful slender face, oh! so much more

gently and finely lined than a rabbit’s, or than a hare’s,

Lifting her face to nibble at a round white peppermint drop

which she loves, sensitive mother Kangaroo.

Her sensitive, long, pure-bred face.

Her full antipodal eyes, so dark,

So big and quiet and remote, having watched so many

empty dawns in silent Australia.

Her little loose hands, and drooping Victorian shoulders.

And then her great weight below the waist, her vast pale belly,

With a thin young yellow little paw hanging out, and

straggle of a long thin ear, like ribbon,

Like a funny trimming to the middle of her belly, thin

little dangle of an immature paw, and one thin ear.

Her belly, her big haunches

And, in addition, the great muscular python-stretch of her tail.

There, she shan’t have any more peppermint drops.

So she wistfully, sensitively sniffs the air, and then turns,

goes off in slow sad leaps

On the long flat skis of her legs,

Steered and propelled by that steel-strong snake of a tail.

Intercessions

We give thanks for the beauty and diversity of the world you have given us,

for its colour and abundance, its richness and vitality.

Generous God, hear our prayer.

With sorry we acknowledge our part in damaging what you have created.

We acknowledge that our lifestyles have been selfish and careless.

We acknowledge that we could and can do more

to tend this earth and care for its inhabitants.

Merciful God, hear our prayer.

We pray for these who conserve plant and animal wildlife, birds and insects.

We pray for the work of agriculturalist and scientists

developing better, kinder ways of living on this earth.

We pray for the resilience of indigenous communities

that strive to live in harmony with their environment.

Gracious God, hear our prayer.

We pray for government leaders and advisers,

farmers and business leaders,

that they will hold dear the needs of the environment

and strive to avert the risks of the ecological crisis.

Enabling God, hear our prayer.

The Grace

Counting on 2026 …. Day 20

5th February

Sustain’s report (released November 2025), Bridging the Gap: How to fix the food system for everyone, calls for the creation of “just, healthy and sustainable UK food system will require system-wide change alongside strong leadership. Farming of nutritious food with lower inputs, lower greenhouse gas emissions, which restore nature and support decent livelihoods for a diversity of growers must become the mainstream to build nutritional security and domestic resilience against global shocks. Our policy recommendations include ways to significantly increase domestic fruit and veg production in the UK7 and, with this, more jobs (up to 80 jobs per thousand tonnes produced), benefiting local communities.9

“Alongside this we need to double the consumption of fruit, veg and pulses to improve people’s health while securing a market for growers, supporting the transition to climate and nature friendly farming. For this triple bottom line to be possible, good food must be available and affordable in local retail settings and across our schools and hospitals, sourced through ethical, value-based supply chains that provide growers with better and more reliable incomes than what they currently experience via supermarket supply chains.11

“If we are to produce food that is good for people and for the planet, and accessible to everyone regardless of their income, the Government must actively support climate and nature friendly horticulture and lead by example on how our food is bought and sold.” (1)

The report lists three clear policy recommendations:-

1. Fix the supply – Boost British fruit, veg and pulse production

• Introduce cross-departmental horticulture strategies across the nations to support green growth and boost production and consumption of fruit, vegetables and pulses

* Support small-scale and organic farmers through grants, better land access, and training programmes

2. Fix the missing middle – Ensure fair prices and invest in infrastructure

•Invest in local food infrastructure like food hubs, processing and packing facilities (particularly for legumes), and distribution centres to help smaller local producers get produce to market.

•Strengthen supply chain fairness to enforce fair dealing across more of the supply chain.

3. Fix the access – Enable everyone to eat good food

• Use the state’s £5 billion of public food procurement from schools and hospitals to create stable markets for organic and locally produced produce. This will deliver on the Labour Government election manifesto commitment to ensure 50% of publicly procured food is local or to a higher environmental standard.

Run pilots and roll-out schemes to make healthy food more affordable for low-income households and reduce NHS spending, such as vouchers and ‘fruit and veg on prescription’. (1)

The report details 9 different pilot schemes that have been running for the last two years, and the results show clear win-win outcomes for health, climate and environment, local economies, and food security.

Will the government take on these recommendations? Will they be supported by the farming industry, by retailers and by consumers?

https://www.sustainweb.org/assets/bridging-the-gap-how-to-fix-the-food-system-for-everyone-1764673053.pdf

Green Tau: issue 120

21st November 2025

Why poor diets are a systems issue not just a food issue.

Part 1

Recently The Eat-Lancet Commission updated its Planetary Health Diet. This is a scientifically developed diet that can be followed anywhere in the globe using local, traditional ingredients. As the name ambiguously suggests, it is a diet that both promotes our physical health and planetary health. It is a diet rich in plant based foods with small amounts of fish, meat and dairy items.

The 2025 overview begins with the arresting sentence: “The food we eat is more than a personal choice.” Can what we choose to eat make that much of a difference to the lives of other people?

The report continues: “It is a public issue with global consequences. What we eat affects agricultural land use, greenhouse gas emissions, water availability and quality, labor systems, and public health. Today’s food systems are, in many ways, failing. Millions face hunger, while others suffer from completely preventable chronic diseases. Food production contributes to environmental degradation and deepens inequality, when it could be the primary source of environmental regeneration, and justice. The EAT-LancetCommission’s approach to food addresses these challenges by linking health, sustainability, and justice. It promotes a shift in both consumption and production patterns, making healthy and sustainable food more accessible and reducing pressure on planetary boundaries. Transforming food will require cooperation across sectors, cultures, and regions. But the science is clear: changing what we eat is essential to building a future in which both people and planet can thrive.” (1)

What we choose to eat can shape how much land has to be used to produce our food and if that is less than at present, then more land can be used to restore biodiversity and the natural resilience of the world’s ecosystems.

What we choose to eat can reduce greenhouse emissions and so contribute to ensure a more amenable (or perhaps just less disastrous) environment for everyone.

What we choose to eat can reduce the amount of water needed for agriculture and so can make water available for more essential needs such as drinking and sanitation.

What we choose to eat can have an impact on the welfare given to livestock, the welfare given to the soil, the welfare given to agricultural workers and food producers. (For example a cheap cup of coffee may come at the expense of deforestation where the beans are grown, at the expense of an inadequate price paid to the person growing and processing the beans, at the expense of a poorly paid barista, and at the expense of society if the coffee chain doesn’t pay its taxes. (2))

So yes, the EAT-Lancet Commission is clear that diet is not just about the food we eat but also about the systems that being the food from the farm to the plate. And not only that, these systems also impact our health not just through the food produced but through the impact that food production has on our environment – and thus on our health – and that it has an impact on incomes earned by those in the food industry which again (as we will see in more detail below, impacts health.

Part 2

In many way the Planetary Health Diet as a guide, is not hugely dissimilar from the UK government’s Eat Well diet guide (3) – although the later increases the proportions of plant based foods at the expense of cereals/ starch and animal based foods. This Eat Well guide dates back to 2016 which itself is not very dissimilar to the 2014 guide known as the Eat Well Plate.

The UK government produces a regular National Diet and Nutrition Survey. This is “designed to assess the diet, nutrient intake and nutritional status of the general UK population … is used by UK governments to monitor progress towards achieving diet and nutrition objectives and to develop food and nutrition policies”. (4)

Has the Eat Well guide improved healthy eating in the UK? Sadly not.

According to analysis of the data by Field Doctor, the most recent survey shows :-

only 17% of adults eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetable a day
We eat 100% more sugar, and 25% more saturated fat than is recommended
96% of adults eat an insufficient amount of fibre
18% have sub optimal levels of vitamin D (5)

Whilst the Roadmap for Resilience: A UK Food Plan for 2050 (produced by The Agri-Food for Net Zero Network), notes that under 1% of people in the UK fully meet dietary guidelines and comments: “Poor diets cost the UK dearly – through pressures on the NHS, lost productivity and poor quality of life. Shifting towards healthy diets is a win-win that cuts emissions, saves public money, and helps improve the quality of life and work for productivity.” (6)

And The Broken Plate Report 2025 (produced by the Food Foundation) highlighted the following findings from its research:-:

Over a third of supermarket promotions on food and nonalcoholic drinks are for unhealthy food.
Over a third of food and soft drink advertising spend is on confectionery, snacks, deserts and soft drinks, compared to just 2% on fruit and veg.
Three quarters of the baby and toddler snacks that have front-of-pack promotional claims contain high or medium levels of sugar.

And

On average, healthier foods are more than twice as expensive per calorie as less healthy foods, with healthier food increasing in price at twice the rate in the past two years.
To afford the government-recommended diet, the most deprived fifth of the population would need to spend 45% of their disposable income on food, rising to 70% for those households with children.

And

children in the most deprived fifth of the population are nearly twice as likely to be living with obesity as those in the least deprived fifth by their first year of school
Ditto twice as likely to have tooth decay in their permanent teeth. (7)

Clearly both poverty and the high cost of healthy foods, plays a big part in the unhealthy diets of many people in the UK. Other factors are also relevant, some linked to poverty and inequality such as

lack of access to cooking facilities (especially true of people living in hostels, bed and breakfast or other shared accommodation). Research carried out in 2020 revealed that 1.9 million people in the UK didn’t have a cooker and 900,000 didn’t have a fridge. (8)
Lack of access to local shops selling fresh produce – so called food deserts – affecting 1.2 million people. (9)
Lack of time to prepare and cook meals especially for households juggling multiple jobs and/or long hours (apparently this hasn’t been widely researched (10) but in one recent survey of 2000 adults, 21% sited lack of time as a reason for not eating healthily (11)).

And other factors that have an impact across the board

Power of advertising in promoting ready meals and ultra processed foods. This report from Obesity Action Scotland is very clear as to the advertising has on diets. (12)
Lack of experience of cooking from scratch – again this is area which has received little research so the conclusion is conjecture.

What I think these various surveys show is, that whilst lack of financial resources a major factor in poor diets, unjust social systems may be a more embracing reason. It is unjust social systems that means that households do not have adequate cooking facilities, do not have access to fresh food shops, so not receive adequate incomes and especially so for those households with children. At the same time big businesses have a disproportionate amount of power in influencing what is advertised and to whom, and in controlling (or at least influencing) where and how food is sold, and a major role in continuing to underpay their workforce.

Systems change is essential nationally and globally if we are to ensure everyone has a healthy diet (ideally the Planetary Health Diet) and a healthy environment in which to live.

Postscript

The Food Foundation produced a manifesto report to educate new MPs as to what changes were possible to improve healthy diets for all. https://foodfoundation.org.uk/sites/default/files/2023-09/Election%2024_Manifesto.pdf

(3) https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5bbb790de5274a22415d7fee/Eatwell_guide_colour_edition.pdf

(4) https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-diet-and-nutrition-survey-2019-to-2023/national-diet-and-nutrition-survey-2019-to-2023-report

(5) https://www.fielddoctor.co.uk/health-hub/uk-eating-habits-2025

(6) Page 17 https://www.agrifood4netzero.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/AFN-ROADMAP-SUMMARY.pdf

(7) https://foodfoundation.org.uk/sites/default/files/2025-01/TFF_BP_At a Glance_FINAL.pdf

(8) https://www.turn2us.org.uk/about-us/news-and-media/media-centre/press-releases-and-comments/millions-across-the-uk-are-living-without-household-essentials

(9) https://sheffield.ac.uk/social-sciences/news/12-million-living-uk-food-deserts-studys-shows

(10) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0195666306003813

(11) https://www.psychreg.org/busy-lifestyles-hinder-healthy-eating-many-britons/

(12) https://www.obesityactionscotland.org/media/as3leiwg/food-and-drink-advertising-briefing-2023.pdf

Counting on … Day 53

1st May 2025

Whilst switching our finances may have the biggest impact, it is not necessarily an impact we can see straight away. Other lifestyle changes can have a more visible impact.

Turning down the heating, shorter showers, fitting LED light bulbs, etc will produce a visible drop in energy use. Using refill options, reusing cotton bags, and generally avoiding plastic packaging, will produce a visible reduction in plastic either going into the recycling or the dustbin. And reducing plastic, reduces both the consumption of oil and pollution. Driving less and using active travel (walking, cycling etc) and public transport options, will produce a visible reduction in fuel consumption.

Such visible impacts are encouraging because we can see that changes in the way we live do improve the wellbeing of the climate and environment.

Life style changes – sources of information

From the BBC – https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-49997755

From Friends of the Earth – https://friendsoftheearth.uk/climate/saving-planet-top-tips-help-climate-and-nature

From Imperial College –https://www.imperial.ac.uk/stories/climate-action/

From Greenpeace – https://www.greenpeace.org.uk/challenges/climate-change/solutions-climate-change/

From Green Christian – https://www.greenchristian.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/leaflet/nine-ways.pdf

For all our brothers and sisters – in thanksgiving for the life and teachings of Pope Francis

26th April 2025

‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Matthew 25:40

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A reading from Isaiah 58:6-11

Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin? Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly; your vindicator shall go before you, the glory of the Lord shall be your rearguard.

Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am. If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday. The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail.

Prayer of Pope Francis

All-powerful God,

you are present in the whole universe

and in the smallest of your creatures.

You embrace with your tenderness all that exists.

Pour out upon us the power of your love,

that we may protect life and beauty.

Fill us with peace, that we may live

as brothers and sisters, harming no one.

O God of the poor,

help us to rescue the abandoned

and forgotten of this earth,

so precious in your eyes.

Bring healing to our lives,

that we may protect the world and not prey on it,

that we may sow beauty,

not pollution and destruction.

Touch the hearts

of those who look only for gain

at the expense of the poor and the earth.

Teach us to discover the worth of each thing,

to be filled with awe and contemplation,

to recognise that we are profoundly united

with every creature

as we journey towards your infinite light.

We thank you for being with us each day.

Encourage us, we pray, in our struggle

for justice, love and peace.

Amen.

Counting on … Lent 3

7th March 2025

“Then God said, “Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.” And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind, and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good.” Genesis 1:11-12

Genesis tells us what science tells us: that the world has the inbuilt capacity to generate life. The world is life giving, life producing. We are part of that created being so we too have the capacity to be life giving. Celebrating and embracing and better appreciating this gift enhances our relationship with God the ultimate creator.

Counting on… day 2

2nd January 2025

Today is the Feast of St Basil the Great and St Gregory of Nazianzus both of whom were bishops and teachers of the faith. It is also the feast day of Vedanayagam Samuel Azariah, a 20th century bishop in South India, which is a reminder that saints and holy people are not just from the ‘old days’. All three remind us that as a Church – as Christ in the world – we have a role to play in providing leadership and pastoral care and in teaching – and this must embrace our relationship with the environment, with all our brothers and sisters, with the whole world so loved by God.

Counting on … day 216

18th November 2024

One of the slogans of climate activism is ‘Make the Polluters Pay’ which feels very right and grounded in what is just – a sort of global scale ‘Rylands and Fletcher’ case: if A uses the land and in so doing damages land belonging to B, then A must pay damages to B. So if Shell’s extracting of oil pollutes the adjoining land, Shell should pay the appropriate sum in damages.

Burning fossil fuels pollutes the atmosphere, increasing levels of carbon dioxide, fuelling climate change and triggering damaging adverse weather events such as floods, droughts, wildfires etc. logically the polluters – those burning the fossil fuels – should pay up. But fossil fuels have been burnt by so many different people – individuals heating their homes, small metal workshops, whole industries, transport systems etc -and over a considerable period of time. The United Kingdom has produced a cumulative total of 79,777,710,000 tonnes of CO2 since 1750. When we then call on the Government to ensure payment of a fair share in climate finance to vulnerable countries in the global south, that payment needs to reflect the scope of the damage our nation has caused.