First, South St. Paul and Church of the Apostles Given “Green” Seal of Approval
First Presbyterian Church of South St. Paul and the Presbyterian Church of the Apostles were recertified as an Earth Care Congregations by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Environmental Ministries. Presbyterian Church of the Apostles in certified through December 2013 and FPC South St. Paul is certified through January 2014. The achievement of recertification speaks to the great and growing commitment that First Presbyterian Church of South St. Paul and Presbyterian Church of the Apostles have to caring for God’s earth.
To become an Earth Care Congregation, these churches initially affirmed the Earth Care Pledge to integrate environmental practices and thinking into all facets of their church life and they completed projects and activities in the fields of worship, education, facilities, and outreach. Since then, their ministries have deepened and their impact is expanding.
The Earth Care Congregation certification is designed to recognize churches that have made the commitment to take seriously God’s charge to “till and keep” the garden (Gen 2:15). The Earth Care Congregations program was started in 2010 by PC(USA) Environmental Ministries. The goal of the program is to inspire churches to care for God’s earth in a holistic way, through integrating earth care into all of church life. The Earth Care Congregation certification honors churches that made that commitment, and encourages others to follow their lead.
First Presbyterian Church of South St Paul and Presbyterian Church of the Apostles join Westminster Presbyterian Church in Minneapolis and North Como Presbyterian Church in Roseville as being Twin Cities Areas’ four PCUSA certified Earth Care Congregations.
For more information on First Presbyterian Church of South St. Paul’s earth care program contact Julie Close at julclose@yahoo.com or (651) 459-5607. For Presbyterian Church of the Apostles, contact Marcia Lewis at 952-435-6841 or Eugene.k.kurata@frontiernet.net.
For more information on the Earth Care Congregations program go to www.pcusa.org/earth-care-congregations.
Rebecca Barnes-Davies
Associate for Environmental Ministries, PC(USA)
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