by Tom Rowley, A Rocha USA Executive Director From drink bottles to styrofoam cups to those clamshells that ironically protect organic fruits at Costco, plastic—the material so famously and presciently proclaimed as the “future” to Dustin Hoffman in The Graduate—is taking over. Consider the …
People
The Value of Nature
By Tom Rowley, A Rocha USA Executive Director The big idea behind PBS’ wonderful new series EARTH: A New Wild is that nature is lovely AND valuable. And that the key to protecting nature lies in its value. In the words of series host Dr. M. Sanjayan, the conservation movement must embrace “the …
Small Beginnings
By Tom Rowley, A Rocha USA Executive Director Two weeks ago, I spent the day with a dozen other men—nine black, three white—discussing racism, black men and the Church. Appreciative as I was for the invitation by Leroy Barber and Kilns College, I was a bit hesitant. Privileged by society because …
Hopey New Year
By Tom Rowley, A Rocha USA Executive Director As new year resolve fades and resolutions fail, I offer a more hope-filled alternative: keep your eyes on Jesus. In a world where people are dying, the climate is changing and species are going extinct—a world that is in biblical terms utterly …
Christmas: The End of Scorekeeping
by Tom Rowley, A Rocha USA Executive Director If you’ve never read “The Snake” by Anne Herbert, you should. In this humorous yet poignant revisit of Eden, Herbert likens original sin to keeping score. “At first we did have fun just like [God] expected. We played all the time. We rolled down …
Landscape Walk: The Art and Science of Paying Attention
By Flo Paris-Oakes, intern and member of Nashville A Rocha Recently, Nashville A Rocha hosted a landscape walk on property in Whites Creek, which is a rural community about twelve minutes north of downtown Nashville. Our special guest was Daniel Ballard, landscaper and owner of Green Thumbs Up …
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There is no Drought of Living Water
By Robert Campbell, Pastor of Santa Margarita Community Church and A Rocha USA Board Member The front lawn died sometime in November. We hold a small memorial in its honor every Monday and Thursday when we have permission to run the sprinklers, but choose not to. It is dead, all of it, from that …
Peter Harris :: All Things Reconciled – Christ and Creation
A Rocha founders Peter and Miranda Harris visited Antioch Church in Bend, Oregon this October. In the video below, "Peter discusses the current trajectory of the global environment and casts a vision for a more engaged, more concerned Christian community". http://vimeo.com/109542957 Source: …
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Living Planet Report
By Tom Rowley, A Rocha USA Executive Director Findings of World Wildlife Fund’s just-released Living Planet Report 2014 are grim. Population sizes of vertebrate species—mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish—have declined by 52 percent over the last 40 years. In other words, those …
People or Planet? Yes.
By Tom Rowley, A Rocha USA Executive Director Debunking the notion that God doesn’t care about the environment is easy enough to do. Jesus made it (John 1:1-3). Jesus owns it (Ps 24:1). Jesus redeems it. (Col 1:20). And if that isn’t enough for you, check out Revelation 11:18. (Spoiler: I fear we …