books: tending to eden

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via amazon.com

Today marks the 6-month anniversary of earthquake that shattered the heart of Haiti. News reports throughout the day have not been promising. But one organization has continued to make small, smart steps towards dealing with root issues that are certain to help the recovery of Port au Prince and the overwhelming poverty that has long been faced Haiti. That organization is Plant with Purpose. For years, they were known as Floresta and have recently changed their name. But their amazing, holistic work around the globe hasn’t changed.

Plant with Purpose’s Executive Director, Scott C. Sabin recently penned the book, Tending to Eden. Sabin has proven he can write. And about a passion of his, yet from various angles. I hope we see more in the future. Tending to Eden is part an autobiographical sketch of Sabin’s development from a Christian burdened by global poverty to a leader in advocating for creation care around the world. But more than this-peppered with insightful, brief essays by Christian leaders such as Tony Campolo, Robert Linthicum, Matthew Sleeth and Mark Labberton-Tending to Eden is a primer to understanding global poverty, environmental degradation and a Biblical perspective on these issues. I especially enjoyed chapter eight, where Sabin unpacks the connection between immigration and creation care, an issue close to my heart living in San Diego.

But potentially one of the best aspects of Tending to Eden is the overview of Plant with Purpose’s approach and work. I have read many books where the whole thing seems like a sales pitch for the organization the author represents. But Sabin’s approach feels different. It is the fine representation of the organization that makes this book worthwhile. Plant with Purpose does incredible work, dealing smartly with root causes of poverty. Yet, they also view their work as Kingdom work and therefore weave discipleship closely into what they do. It is for this reason, specifically, that I encourage you to read this book. You need to know about this organization. When we look at tragedy such as that still unfolding in Haiti, it is organizations such as Plant with Purpose that give me hope that things can change.

haiti: six months later...

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via plantwithpurpose.org

It's crazy to think that the devastating earthquake in Haiti was almost 6 months ago. While it is far from many of our minds, there is still a lot of recovery work still to be done. I was glad to hear that groups like Plant with Purpose are still hard at work in Haiti. Since the earthquake, they have "employed over 2,100 farmers... to plant over 170,000 trees and construct over 260 miles of soil erosion barriers." (Some of you may remember Plant with Purpose joining us for an art show last year.)

Monday, July 12 is the anniversary of the terrible quake. On that day I will post a review of Tending to Eden by Scott Sabin, the Executive Director of Plant with Purpose-which I've been hoping to do for some time now.

Stay tuned. Support the work of Plant with Purpose. Read Sabin's book.

tending to eden

Written by Scott Sabin, executive director of a Christian relief and development agency, Tending to Eden is an invaluable resource for environmentally conscious congregations and community groups. In this practical guide for creation care, Sabin offers:

  • Theological foundations for environmental stewardship
  • A global perspective
  • Practical strategies and case studies addressing:
  • Sustainable agriculture and forestry
  • Creating enterprise (micro-credit, micro-finance, and micro-enterprise)
  • Empowering the poor
via judsonpress.com

Just heard about this book from my friends at Floresta and Plant With Purpose. Watch for more on this book. Scott is a veteran Christian leader in creation care. People have been asking him to write this book for a long time. Can't wait to check it out.

more from kingsolver

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With all due respect for the wondrous ways people have invented to amuse themselves and one another on paved surfaces, I find that this exodus from the land makes me unspeakably sad. I think of the children who will never know, intuitively, that a flower is a plant's way of making love, or what silence sounds like, or that trees breathe out what we breathe in. I think of the astonished neighbor children who huddled around my husband in his tiny backyard garden, in the city where he lived years ago, clapping their hands to their mouths in pure dismay at seeing him pull carrots from the ground....

I wonder what it will mean for people to forget that food, like rain, is not a product but a process. I wonder how they will imagine the infinite when they have never seen how the stars fill a dark night sky. I wonder how I can explain why a wood-thrush song makes my chest hurt to a populace for whom wood is a construction material and thrush is a tongue disease.

- Barbara Kingsolver, Small Wonder, via

Climate Change and a Christian Response

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May 22nd, 2007
12pm-1pm (bring your lunch!)
Floresta USA Office

Dr. Mike Mooring is a Professor in the Biology Department at Point Loma Nazarene University, where he teaches ecology and environmental biology. He is active in wildlife research, and he and his students are currently studying the genetics and behavior of American bison during the summer months. For the past 10 years, Dr. Mooring has been teaching his students the Biblical principles of creation care at PLNU, and is currently Co-Chair of the Resource Stewardship Task Force. As a practicing ecologist and Christian, he is committed to bringing the urgency of the current climate crisis to the attention of the faith community. Dr. Mooring is married and has 2 young children.

Please RSVP to Floresta at 858-274-3718

el dia de la tierra

From Psalm 104:
30 When you send your Spirit,
they are created,
and you renew the face of the earth.

31 May the glory of the LORD endure forever;
may the LORD rejoice in his works-

32 he who looks at the earth, and it trembles,
who touches the mountains, and they smoke.

33 I will sing to the LORD all my life;
I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.

34 May my meditation be pleasing to him,
as I rejoice in the LORD.

Having children, my appreciation for nature has increased so much. When you watch a child as a lady bug crawls on her hand or splashes in the waves or sees their favorite color in a sunset you look in their eyes and see an amazement, a wonder you realize you may have lost. In that moment, they are worshiping their Creator- soaking in and appreciating what he has given to them so freely and abundantly.

I'm constantly amazed at how concerns around the environment have become political. Even more appalling is how right-wing Christians will cry 'conspiracy theory' when global warming is spoken of. It's shameful. I despise being associated with people such as this most of the time. It is God's creation plane and simple. Who cares who else is for taking care of this globe, our scriptures and theology would seem to make it very clear-at leat it has to me-that we are responsible here. It is our duty to care for this place. And yet, here in the US, at least, we destroy it with our tongue-in-cheek jokes and shameless consumption of the natural resources that not only damage the earth but often result in the slaughter of those that live near access to those resources. How can the same people opposed to addressing global warming also talk about world evangelism? If you want to reach people, you better take better care of the land they stand on... or there won't be anyone to "reach out" to.

So, today we make plans for our garden that we will plant as an act of worship and appreciation to our Creator. We will attend the Earth Day festival to celebrate the gift given within Genesis. And we will show our gratitude tonight as a community, pledging our solidarity with all that is good that God has created.