Here in Barcombe, we are mindful of the five marks of mission:

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• To proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom

• To teach, baptize, and nurture new believers

• To respond to human need by loving service

• To seek to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and to pursue peace and reconciliation

• To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth

This page is about the last one, safeguarding creation. St Paul, writing to the Colossians, pointed out that “The Son is the … firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible … all things have been created through him and for him.” Wow. So, as his followers, we want to look after our little bit of the creation that was made by and through and for Jesus.

We have joined Eco Church and earned their bronze award in 2023. In the process, we found that we had already been doing a lot of the right things; but we also discovered there is so much more we could do. 

What have we done? Creation Care features in our preaching and prayers. We have installed an air-source heating system in the Conker Room. We manage the two churchyards with wildlife in mind. We use Fair Trade products in the kitchen at St Mary’s. We include an eco-tip in the weekly bulletin. These are just some examples. We know we could do more in each of the five areas of church life:

• Worship and teaching

• Buildings and energy

• Land and nature

• Community and global engagement

• Lifestyle

 

We would love it if you, dear reader, would like to get involved and help us become better and better creation carers.