Green Chalice? What is that?
The Green Chalice Program is a hands-on mission of Disciples Home Mission of the General Ministry of
the Christian Church (Disciple of Christ). The purpose of the Green Chalice program is to encourage and
assist local congregations to live out their faith by caring for creation. Its goal is to empower congregations with ideas and resources to enable them to walk gently on the earth.
The Green Chalice Program consists of two tiers. The first level is to become a Green Chalice Congregation.
The second level is to become a CERTIFIED Green Chalice Congregation. In late 2015, CCC began the
process to become a Green Chalice congregation and in October of 2016, CCC was officially recognized by
the program. Here are the steps taken:
Step One: Green Team was created
Step Two: Green Team received approval from Administrative Council to sign the Green Chalice Covenant,
which says:
“As children of God and followers of Jesus Christ, we covenant to
Worship God with all creation and pray for the healing of the earth,
Study the climate crisis and engage others in climate solutions,
Repent and forgive the harm we have inflicted on the earth that sustains live,
Advocate for ecojustice public policies and witness by living sustainable lifestyles,
Rest in God’s good creation and invite others to delight in nature.”
Step Three: Make three changes that would move our congregation toward better caring for God’s creation.
The three actions items completed were the reduction of plastic/Styrofoam use, an energy audit was conducted with many suggested put into action, and lighting was switched over to LED.
Our next steps will be to create an action plan to move into the CERTIFIED Green Chalice status. Are you
interested in serving in this way? We will be having a strategy meeting Sunday, June 4th following worship to kick off our summer initiatives. My hope is for this to be a summer project and then we will continue to maintain the project with the help of the entire congregation.
Can’t commit to being on the team? Oh, but you already are serving! Each and every one of us has an
opportunity to help CCC continue to be an active Green Chalice Congregation.
How you ask?
- Turn off the bathroom lights when you leave
- Utilize the BLUE recycle bins throughout the building for paper, recyclable cups, water bottles, and
aluminum cans - Close blinds in rooms that are not in use, especially as we move into the summer months
- Help harvest veggies and herbs from the garden for delivery to Angel House Soup Kitchen
Shalom,
Pastor Heidi