by Steve Gillard

Is the climate crisis too political for faith communities to tackle? What unique role do faith communities have when speaking about carbon pollution? As an environmental and social justice advocate, I spend a lot of time working to push my elected officials toward more sustainable energy policy. And as a lifelong Presbyterian, I spend a lot of time thinking about how my faith community can voice the moral imperative of taking urgent action to protect our natural world. As it turns out, a lot of other people are thinking about this, too.

I recently joined 1,500 other grassroots advocates at the Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) conference in Washington, D.C. There, between sessions on building our skills to effectively lobby Congress, a panel of activists from a variety of faiths—including Judaism, Islam, the PC(USA), and others—agreed that people of faith can draw from the deep wells of wisdom of our various traditions to combat climate change. And that wisdom shows us that we need to combine advocacy for pragmatic solutions with a prophetic voice that can imagine a better and more just future.

Although the Bible says nothing explicit about fossil fuels or climate change, Dr. Mirele Goldsmith of the Jewish Climate Action Network pointed out that the Bible is full of people courageously confronting new, daunting challenges, who can serve as examples for us when confronting the climate crisis. She and Colin Christopher, a Muslim panelist from the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, explained that our sacred texts show an awareness of our reliance on God’s provision through nature and connect that provision to faithfulness to God.

The panelists urged activists to connect their passion for addressing the climate crisis with their faith. Katharine Hayhoe, an atmospheric scientist, evangelical Christian, and the keynote speaker of the CCL conference, made a similar point. Scientific facts may not convince people of the reality and urgency of climate change; we need to continue to develop a vocabulary anchored in our rich faith traditions to connect with people's values if we are to expect them to take on big challenges, such as climate change.

The Church has a particular calling: to articulate a prophetic vision to push society toward a wholeness that does not yet exist. People of good faith can differ on what this means, but I believe we need investments in clean energy, we need to amplify marginalized and indigenous communities, we should divest from fossil fuel companies as a witness to the urgency of the climate crisis, and we need to eventually heal our broken relationship with nature. Too often we view nature as a resource to mine or as a garbage can to absorb our waste, instead of recognizing our reliance on it and our place in its web of interdependent relationships.

At the same time, the climate crisis is urgent and we need to take immediate action to curb greenhouse gas emissions, doing our best to engage our broken systems. CCL’s Presbyterian Action Team, which developed the overture to support carbon pricing that was approved at the last General Assembly, is one of several groups within the PC(USA) taking concrete steps to combat climate change. CCL's approach is known as carbon fee and dividend, which places a fee on fossil fuels that grows each year and returns the collected fees in equal shares to the public. This legislation, the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act (H.R. 763), would substantially lower carbon emissions without hurting low-income households and can attract bipartisan support.   

Policies such as carbon fee and dividend do not involve a radical reordering of society. We absolutely need politically feasible approaches that can cut our emissions right now. Passing H.R. 763 will make a difference, because currently companies do not have to consider the cost of climate change or health effects in the price of their products. 

But this one policy will not solve all our climate problems. To make either pragmatic or prophetic efforts into reality, we need each other. We need to make the climate a bridge issue, not a wedge issue, and the Church has a critical role to play. Please consider joining CCL’s Presbyterian Action Team, and please consider adding your name to this letter to Congress urging the to take action on H.R. 763.

by Morgan Besares Nelson

Have you ever had a meeting of divine moments?  When like a cascade of dominoes, one seemingly random, maybe even shallow act grows into a life changing experience?

​Friends, I am having a meeting of divine moments, right now! Let me explain.

A few months ago, after a day of wrangling wild toddlers, washing dishes, changing diapers, potty training and chasing the dog, I was done. I sat down on the couch and thought to myself- I have to get out of here, these kids are crazy. This house is crazy. I am going crazy! 

And then, as I was mindlessly scrolling through social media I saw a post by my friend John Creasy. He had reposted an announcement from Fossil Free PCUSA on his Facebook wall. They were sending a delegation to Puerto Rico and they needed people to go. He was asking- Does anyone want to go? I really admired the work John had done to encourage the denomination to divest from fossil fuels. Heck, I even started to recycle and use reusable zip top bags. 

I looked around at my disheveled living room and at the cheese puffs smashed into the carpet and thought, Forget this crazy mom business. I’m going to Puerto Rico. It is the island of my people. I probably SHOULD go. I should learn about what is happening there. I should get away from my crazies for a while.

So out of repressed tired-mom rage, randomness and impulsivity, I applied to be a part of the delegation thinking, there was no way they would accept me.

Well, they did.

A few weeks later, I got an e-mail that said I was in, I was part of the delegation.

I panicked. I applied out of bad motives! I was frustrated. I could not possibly go on a trip to Puerto Rico and leave my family for 10 days. That would be completely insane! Luckily I have a very enthusiastic cheerleader in my husband. He reminded me that as a Puerto Rican, I should know and see what was happening on the island and share what I learned with our community here and it was the opportunity of a lifetime.

So I said yes, and the life changing moments began.

As a part of our education to prepare us for the trip, all of the delegates were given a list of podcasts, articles, video clips and a few documentaries to read and watch.

Friends, I am being completely honest with you when I say that every story and historical account I have read or listened to so far has already changed my life.

As a Puerto Rican woman, I have a complicated relationship with being Puerto Rican and white. But I have never understood why. As I have been preparing for the trip I have delved deep into the history of the Puerto Rican people and I have learned just how complicated being Puerto Rican is. There is so much pain and beauty wrapped up in the story of the Boriqua and I am honored they have invited us to come and learn from them. 

I am curious about what I will learn on the island of my ancestors. I am excited to continue to be changed by this experience. I can only say for now that in my moment of impulsivity and angst the Divine One gave me a great gift and I believe the best is yet to come. 

Both the Presbytery of Boston and Presbytery of San Francisco have voted to divest from fossil fuels.

Here's the language they used. You can ask your presbytery to divest too. 

Presbytery of San Francisco

Motion in September 2018: Motion to divest from fossil fuels (it was a motion made on the floor.)

Motion in November 2018: Here was the follow up motion:  MOTION: Refer to the Presbytery of San Francisco's Finance Property and Oversight Committee (FPOC) a motion to place all investable assets with the Presbyterian Foundation's fossil-free funds, as a statement of our Christian calling to care for God's creation and the vulnerable people most affected by climate change. 

[The above motion is what the presbytery approved instead of what FPOC recommended: "Motion: The Finance and Property Oversight Committee (FPOC) recommends that the Presbytery of San Francisco Receive and Approve the following actions: Fossil Fuel Divestment Inquiry FPOC will investigate the costs of financial divestment of fossil fuels from its portfolios, including investment income costs & management fees, and report back to the Feb. Presbytery meeting. Note: The MRTI letter from GA does not actually recommend divestment but recommends engagement for the time being with MRTI in investigating the impact of fossil fuels by vendors in our region (Chevron, others)." (FPOC approved of the different motion language)]

Motion in Feb 2019:  Fossil Fuel Divestment Conversation Approve: Meet again with Schultz Collings and the Presbytery Foundation to plan a fossil fuel/sustainable investment strategy to execute in the next few months, within the already implemented investment strategy approved by Presbytery. Invite the present PSF members who have already met to attend the presentations. Report final plans at the May Presbytery meeting. [FPOC recommended that we move as much of our investments as possible to the Fossil Free Options]

Presbytery of Boston
Refer to the Presbytery of Boston’s Investment Sub-Committee a motion to place all investable assets with the Presbyterian Foundation's fossil-free funds (or equivalent alternative), with an eye to diversification of sectors and an eye to cost when possible, as a statement of our Christian calling to care for God's creation and the vulnerable people most affected by climate change. In making this shift, we are recognizing that by continuing to hold investments in the fossil-fuel companies that most egregiously contribute to the climate crisis, the PC(USA) is complicit in harming God’s creation and “the least of these” who are disproportionately affected by climate change.

Let us know if you start the process to divest. We want to help you in the process and celebrate your achievement.

by Jess Rigel

Recently I was blessed to attend a day-long retreat at Christmount Conference Center led by faith leaders and climate scientists working with the Creation Care Alliance (CCA) of Western North Carolina.  The CCA collaborates with over 50 local congregations to organize events and initiatives focused on raising awareness of the importance of environmental stewardship and the realities of climate change.

At this event, clergy gathered to hear Dr. Norman Wirzba of Duke Divinity School, climate scientist Deke Arndt, and storyteller Laura Lengnick of Cultivating Resilience.  Wirzba challenged us to view the climate crisis as a crisis of our inability to practice Sabbath; to rest in the reality that God made us enough in a world led by frenetic busy-ness and consumerism.  Dr. Wirzba encouraged us to practice Sabbath as a means of resisting these cultural norms, linking this call to the creation account in Genesis, as well as to the Sabbath commandments in Exodus and Deuteronomy.  He also reflected on his own agricultural roots, sharing tales of the influence of his grandparents, who were farmers in Canada, and of their personal and communal commitment to Sabbath as a demonstration of their faith, even and in spite of weather events that threatened their very livelihoods.

Deke Arndt, who serves as a lead editor of the State of the Climate report, then educated those present by linking climate science directly to negative shifts in economic disparity, armed conflict, immigration, and various humanitarian crises, yet the most powerful part of his presentation was rooted in his family history as well.  Raised in Oklahoma, Deke had grown up as a witness to the scars of the Dust Bowl on agrarian communities in the state.  He shared that because of the damage the Dust Bowl had caused to his family’s farm, both his great grandfather and his great grandmother had left Oklahoma to seek better lives elsewhere, abandoning his grandmother when she was only nine years old.  From then on, his grandmother worked her entire life in order to maintain custody of her four year old sister, and she managed, but not without consequences.  He grew up with a relative embittered by her own history and sense of loss; the soil was not the only thing left scarred.

After listening to Wirzba and Arndt’s testimonies, Laura Lengnick invited participants to reflect on our own stories and experiences of climate change.  We wrote about the first time we realized the climate was shifting and how it affected us emotionally, then shared those accounts aloud with one another.  People wrote about fires and floods and shifts in seasons; they wrote about heartbreak and guilt and even enjoyment.  It was a powerful witness to the way the consequences of climate change are affecting all lives, not only in terms of how the planet or the economy is responding, but also in terms of the individual psyche.  In sharing our stories, it became obvious that the spiritual impacts of climate change are as detrimental as the environmental impacts.
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We parted ways after a brief reflection on the day’s content, but I wish that we’d had more time together.  More time to hike and explore the place where we were, more time to focus on action items and share resources about next steps, more time to grow in relationship with one another.  It was a gift to enjoy the beauty of the Black Mountains and to learn about the work of my fellow faith leaders who love and value the earth as evidence of God’s sustaining care and boundless creativity.  I hope that we will continue to come together to strengthen one another as we work for justice for our communities and justice for our planet.    

by abby mohaupt

In September 2018, PCUSA co-moderator Cindy Kohlmann paid a visit to a meeting of the Presbytery of San Francisco, where I’m a minister member. Giving some remarks, she reflected on the work that the 223rd General Assembly had done in June, and she acknowledged that the church still had work to do.

Rev. Talitha Aho, Associate Pastor of Monclair Presbyterian Church in Oakland, CA, recalls that “the co-moderator laid down a challenge. All these presbyteries have been voting to divest- but have they done the work of divesting their own funds?”

The Presbytery of San Francisco has originated or concurred with every call for divestment from fossil fuels. Now was the time to move their own funds.

At this meeting, Rev. Aho was wearing a mask to protect her lungs from the smoke from the devastating Camp Fire blanketing the Bay Area. Rev. Aho made a motion to consider divestment from fossil fuels.

This motion was taken to a second discussion time at the November presbytery meeting. At that point, the motion was sent to the presbytery’s investment committee.

Members of the investment committee worked with their investment managers and leadership from Fossil Free PCUSA to determine the feasibility of divestment. Presbytery Associate for Mission and Church Assets Leonard Nielson said,"After we did the research, I am sort of surprised that the vote at GA didn't go through. We can certainly be helpful in helping others to understand that this particular divestment is not as complicated or risky as it was even 12-18 months ago. The investment market is starting to offer some really attractive products due to growing demand, and we can be a part of that demand."  

Marc Jung, a member of San Francisco Presbytery, echoed this sentiment.“When we looked into fossil fuel divestment for our presbytery, we discovered that there’s a growing variety of viable investment choices available for consideration.  So now it has become easier to make fossil free investments.”

At the February 2019 presbytery meeting, the committee recommended divestment from fossil fuels to the presbytery, saying that such a motion would be in line with the presbytery’s commitment to faithfully care for the earth, that divestment could be done quickly and efficiently, and that the reinvestment in renewables would not significantly affect the presbytery’s bottom line.  
The recommendation was approved on the consent agenda, unanimously.

After the vote, we held an open-space conversation, where members of the presbytery could ask questions about divestment. Participants shared their worries about climate change, talked about the fossil free options offered by the Board of Pensions and the Presbyterian Foundation, and wondered how to begin organizing for categorical divestment from fossil fuels as a whole denomination. I facilitated that conversation, my head and my heart wrestling with how we help our beloved denomination see that we must love creation with our whole selves, even our investments.

The presbytery’s process was swift and is a model for other presbyteries. Here are the steps they took:

1. A motion to divest from fossil fuels was made on the floor of presbytery.
2. That motion, affirmed, was directed to the investment committee.
3. The motion had a second reading/discussion time at a presbytery meeting.
4. The investment committee met with their investment managers, who offered several investment solutions.
5. The investment committee, determining that divestment from fossil fuels would be a powerful witness to the care of creation and would not harm the investment portfolio of the presbytery, determined that they would begin the divestment process.
6. The Presbytery affirmed that decision at their presbytery meeting.

Jeff Hutcheson, Presbytery Pastor for Mission and Vision, said “Everyone was united in taking action to love our hurting planet, and work creatively towards a brighter future.  The Presbytery of San Francisco is committed to realigning our resources and adjusting our lifestyles in ways that are life-giving for our planet and one another.  We desire to faithfully follow Christ who said "I came so that they may have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of." (Ephesians 10:10, the Message Bible)”

by abby mohaupt

In those days Caesar Augustus declared that everyone throughout the empire should be enrolled in the tax lists. 2 This first enrollment occurred when Quirinius governed Syria. 3 Everyone went to their own cities to be enrolled. 4 Since Joseph belonged to David’s house and family line, he went up from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to David’s city, called Bethlehem, in Judea. 5 He went to be enrolled together with Mary, who was promised to him in marriage and who was pregnant. 6 While they were there, the time came for Mary to have her baby. 7 She gave birth to her firstborn child, a son, wrapped him snugly, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the guestroom.
Luke 2:1-20 (CEB)



I wish I was home for Christmas. Home means eating cinnamon rolls made by my mom, playing with my nieces and nephews, meeting up with friends we haven’t seen all year… Home means getting to have cheese fries at my favorite restaurant and hugging my partner’s 80 year old grandmother who I love like my own.
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But earlier this month, my partner and I travelled to the Mexico-Texas border to meet and support (in our own small way) asylees who have left their homes to come north. We went with the PCUSA Wall of Welcome, joining students from Austin Seminary and leaders of the PCUSA. We went to listen and to learn. We went because we felt it necessary to leave our homes in order to welcome those who had journeyed so far in order to be welcomed.

I’ve been thinking about that journey in the context of Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem--how they sought welcome and ended up in a stable. How from the stable, Mary and Joseph--and now Jesus--had to flee because if they stayed their son would be killed. How their flight meant that other babies were killed… and that at the end of the day it was Herod who bore the guilt. In the same way, our governments today enforce systems of all kinds that mean children--and other living things--die.

We went to the border to meet real human beings who had fled their homes in search o life.

But going to the border (and another family trip in the spring) meant that we used up our resources to go home for Christmas. I don’t just mean our financial resources, though we don’t have limitless money. I mean also that we used up our carbon emissions budget for the rest of the year.

Everything we do has a carbon footprint. In our household we’ve tried to make ours smaller by investing in the solar power option from our utility company, having one of our cars be hybrid (and driving our cars as little as possible), eating an all vegetarian diet (though my partner sometimes eats meat outside of our home), buying only what we need, investing our time and money into advocating for divestment from fossil fuels, and putting on a sweater when we’re cold instead of turning on the heat.

But every time we fly, we make that footprint larger. I fly often for work and I have had to face the guilt of the fact that every time I buy a plane ticket, I’m contributing to climate change. And climate change is literally killing other human beings right now. I don’t know how to stop flying for work--not yet--and it is the question I’m bringing into the New Year.

But knowing that--we need to make our own sacrifices.

So on Christmas Eve, I’ll make a phone call home. I’ll laugh with my grandmother and listen to my niece sing to me over the phone. I’ll pick up cinnamon rolls made by my favorite local baker and snuggle up with my cats.

And as the night grows deeper, I’ll give thanks for the Little One who is coming into this world to love us and teach us and help us make home wherever we go.