CARING FOR CREATION
“What does the Lord require of us: to act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with our God” - Micah 6:8
Climate change and the rapid loss of species on Earth are a reality. As stewards of God’s creation we are called to care for it. In doing so we will help protect the lives of those living in more vulnerable areas.
HOW?
By helping St Paul’s become an Eco Church and by becoming more aware of the consequences of our day to day actions.
WHAT IS AN ECO CHURCH?
Loving God and his creation should impact every aspect of our lives and that's why A Rocha UK has developed Eco Church – an award scheme for churches who want to demonstrate that the gospel is good news for God’s Earth. Along with other churches in the diocese, St Paul’s has made the commitment to tread as lightly as possible and minimise its use of resources. It also aims to encourage its members to do the same.
WHAT CAN WE DO AS A CHURCH?
We plan to hold a church activity each month and use this page to give details of recycling, repair and re-use possibilities in the area, a vegetarian recipe of the month, information about Fair Trade products, book reviews and much more – watch this space!
What can I do?
A Rocha UK has many resources to help us take a fresh look at our lives and the impact that we are having on our environment. It also has tips to help us reduce that impact.
Visit the A Rocha website: A Rocha UK – Caring for God's Earth and discover more.
To support St Paul’s and access the many resources on the website, click on Eco church and register (top right). The site will ask you to link yourself to a church. Click on the map and move the cursor to Tervuren and St Paul’s will pop up. Then click on St Paul’s.
Each month we will feature tips from A Rocha’s website on reducing our footprint.
What next?
We would love to hear your ideas and if you would like to join a small group charting our journey to becoming an Eco church, please get in touch with Dominic or Elaine Lambert.
REPAIR, RE-USE AND RECYCLE OPPORTUNITIES
We all know that the Earth’s resources are finite and that anything we can repair, re-use and recycle instead of just throwing it in the bag which will end up in landfill, is a good thing. Sometimes, however, it’s not so easy to find out what to do with a particular item that you think should have a second life, but you don’t want any more. Below are some suggestions and we would love to hear your ideas and recommendations.
Repair Café - Tervuren
Occasionally a Repair Café is run in Tervuren (there are others around Brussels). Check the events panel above to see if there is one coming up.
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Volunteers will repair things for you such as electrical item, sharpen your knives, and even simple clothing repairs.
Things that you no longer want, need or use
The secondhand or thrift shop (Kringwinkel ViTeS) is located at Brusselsesteenweg 290, 3090 Overijse. It is a shop that sells donated goods (furniture, clothes, household items, books, toys etc) and employs people who would otherwise have few opportunities in the job market. You can take goods yourself during shop opening hours (10.00-18.00 Mon – Fri and 10.00-17.00 on Saturday). Alternatively you can arrange for them to pick up goods.
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More details on the website.
Baby clothes and equipment
Souffle de Vie, a non-profit organisation in Uccle, which supports mothers in need and their babies and young children, is always very grateful to receive donations of baby clothes and equipment in good condition. Their address is: Avenue de Fré 203, 1180 Brussels.
Email: info@souffledevie.be or telephone 02 375 95 04 to arrange an appointment to drop off items.