By Noah Guthrie. The sprouting of these seeds echoes another resurrection, and their tattered flowers recall another body raised on a stem to be pierced, tortured, and buried. “Truly, truly, I say to you,” Jesus said, “unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24).
By Heidy Sumei Chuang. To paint the butterfly, to reveal its minute beauty in extravagant brushstrokes and living color, is to live in wonder and hope.
By Heidy Chuang. If the Church, in a world full of industry and agenda, can create spacious places for artists to flourish, they will become the storytellers, teachers, and hope-bringers God has designed them to be.
By Noah Guthrie. What can it look like, in practice, to treat creation as “sacred”? Part of what it may look like is entering a conversation with our landscapes and their species. It may look like asking, “What does the Living God – the Source, Redeemer, and Sustainer of this place – invite us to hear? And once we have listened, how might God invite us to respond?”
By Dr. Robert Sluka. A dugong hadn’t been spotted in Kenya in a long time – but what was the big deal? I argued that these animals were one voice in the orchestra of creation praising God, and that protecting them and helping them thrive again was an important part of our Christian faith.
By Sydney Houck. A Rocha USA interns and A Rocha USA’s Lead Scientist, Dr. Robert Sluka, have volunteered with the Brevard Zoo to establish oyster reefs, collect data, and build gabions – wire cages filled with oyster shells, which Restore Our Shores uses to encourage the colonization of oysters.
By Simon Stuart. As the birds accompany her on her journey from grief to hope, Ellis weaves in reflections on almost all of life. She gives us thoughtful insights to being a wife, mom, pastor, daughter, granddaughter, sister, friend – always in a way that rings true. She muses on the character of God, the state of the church and society, and much more, with great wisdom.
By Gerry Koning. At his death, the second Adam, Christ, was unclothed except for the crown of thorns he wore to the cross. These thorns seem to signify that, along with humanity’s sins, Jesus also bore the curse of creation.
Video by Heidy Sumei Chuang, A Rocha USA Advisor and Artist Partner, shares the powerful story of “The Butterfly Project”, where small acts of care for creation transform both human communities and the environment. Heidy’s journey of caring for monarchs in her neighborhood and fostering a creation care mindset in the children who grow up there is truly inspiring.
Beside the coiling whip of Bull Creek, three A Rocha interns waded through thorns, making war against the Glossy Privet. As we heaved our shoulders against vines and viper-green barbs, we brandished our weapons: a red flip-saw for hacking, a hawkbill knife for slitting trunks, and a weed-wrench for dragging saplings headfirst from the soil…
Flowing down the east coast of Florida in roughly the shape of a dragonfly’s wing, the Indian River Lagoon harbors about 4,000 plant and animal species, making it the most biodiverse estuary in North America…
A Rocha USA is a national community of Christians working in biodiversity conservation to protect and restore vulnerable habitats, species, and communities. We are part of a worldwide family of A Rocha organizations spanning more than 20 countries, with a shared 40-year history of caring for creation. In USA, we have projects in Texas and Florida, and national programs available for churches and individuals.
There were three of us: A Rocha interns, burrowers seeking burrowers. With a clipboard, a transect, some orange flags, and two pole-mounted sieves, we wandered down Playalinda Beach, as pelicans winged overhead and the Atlantic unspooled across the horizon…
‘Blue,’ the fifth installment of A Rocha’s ‘Elements of Hope’ video series, delves into the relationship between mental health challenges and the positive effects of nature on our wellbeing. We investigate how immersing ourselves in nature can pull us out of our internal struggles and rekindle our connection to God and His call for us to be stewards of creation. Link to a study guide is available in the Vimeo notes.
Bounce Back, the fourth installment in A Rocha’s ‘Elements of Hope’ video series, asks us to examine where we find our hope amidst environmental disaster, such …
Bounce Back, the fourth installment in A Rocha’s ‘Elements of Hope’ video series, asks us to examine where we find our hope amidst environmental disasters, such as extreme wildfires or terrible floods. The film explores the idea of ‘refugia’, defined as an area in which a population of organisms can survive through a period of unfavorable conditions, especially glaciation and fire.
Forests do not regenerate without fire, and, like our own personal walk with Christ, we too must face challenges and be pruned and refined to grow in our faith. Loving God’s creation comes with lament and heartbreak for the things that are lost. But there is hope.
Learn more about finding hope amidst disaster in the ‘Bounce Back’ film and share with your church, school, bible study or youth group. You can find the accompanying discussion guide at arocha.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Study-Guide_Bounce-Back.pdf and download the video from our Vimeo channel.
From the Biologos Language of God podcast. In this episode we hear the story of three places where people are caring for the land that reveal an important truth: as we care for and find connection with the land, the land cares for and supports us. And it leads us to ask, can our relationship with God be complete without a healthy relationship with the rest of creation?
From the Eco Christian podcast with Caleb Cray Haynes. What do crayfish, dolly varden char, Aslan, and Frodo Baggins have in common? The answer to that is Matthew Dickerson! In Episode 38, Matthew and Caleb explore what happens when we pay close attention to creation and are drawn into moments of delight and wonder.
From Circlewood’s Earthkeepers podcast with Forrest Inslee. In these times of environmental crisis, it becomes crucial for us to think innovatively—even experimentally—to find ways to protect and advocate for the earth. In this conversation, Paul Dettmann shares insights into Cassinia, an organization dedicated to managing 30% of Australia’s ecosystems for conservation.
From the Eating for Eden podcast with Dr. Jessica Schroeder. In this episode Ben Lowe and Dr. Schroeder discuss a range of topics including the mission and values of A Rocha, the value of conservation work and caring for our non-human neighbors, churches and faith communities doing local work, reconnecting with the earth, and more!
Episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4uLNDMg400
Published by Waynesburg University. Students attended the marine service trip of a lifetime during their 2024-25 winter break at A Rocha USA. The group was led through the wonders of Florida’s ecosystems by Dr. Christian Hayes and Dr. Tracy Dohn-Cummins, working in conjunction with A Rocha USA to learn about southern marine life’s environmental challenges and actively serve local communities.
From the ecoChristian podcast with Caleb Cray Haynes. What is the deal with our beliefs around the end times and how does that affect how we think about climate change and biodiversity loss? Here we’re joined by Ben Lowe of A Rocha USA to talk about his research on this very topic!
Published by the Rabbit Room. “Our tuxedo cat, Gretl, has many quirks. She still suckles her fur at the age of seven, stretches herself across the stairs right as you go down, and casually walks away from you after meowing for attention. She also enjoys Christmas hymns. When the winter holidays come and my family sings around a wreath of pink and purple Advent candles, Gretl will often pad toward us to listen. She’ll flick her black, white-tipped tail as though it were a needle weaving our voices together…”
By Ecologist Rick Lindroth, for Biologos. “Nature connection is fundamentally important for our spiritual health. Rick writes, “what the Christian community has largely failed to realize is that in distancing ourselves from nature, we are distancing ourselves from God…”
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A Rocha USA
A Rocha USA, Inc.
PO Box 223
Wheaton, IL 60187
Email: [email protected]
© 2024 A Rocha USA
A Rocha USA
A Rocha USA, Inc.
PO Box 223
Wheaton, IL 60187
Email: [email protected]
© 2024 A Rocha USA
A Rocha USA
