Teresa’s Note: April 12, 2024

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Dear friends and members of University UMC: I hope you all enjoyed a great eclipse viewing on Monday. Like the gorgeous Texas wildflowers, the experience of viewing the eclipse opens me to the beauty and wonder of creation. For the last couple of years, we’ve had a post-Easter sermon series centered on the theme of creation. One year we looked at topics like the sky and trees. We considered how those themes show up in scripture and the valuable lessons they teach us. Last year we looked at animals in some of the iconic Bible stories - big fish and sheep, for example. As I spent time reading and praying and visiting with staff about what I’d do this year, I landed on creation care and climate justice. In Genesis we learn caring for creation was our first task, but we know our failure to be good stewards has led to the reality of climate change. Some do not see climate change as an urgent matter. But when meteorologists saw that July 2023 would be the hottest month on record many began waking up to the reality in a new way. It became personal as heat waves were experienced. The facts around climate justice can be overwhelming and disheartening in ways that lead to real fear. We fear the future. We fear that, in order for things to change we will have to lose everything we hold dear, such as our lifestyle including how we travel and what we eat. Katherine Hayhoe is a climate scientist and professor at Texas Tech and she shared in a TED Talk on climate change that ultimately fear is not going to motivate us for the long term. Instead, she argues, we must be grounded in rational hope. This means doing the good we can no matter how seemingly small of an act we think it is. For example, carpooling every once in a while or avoiding driving altogether a day or two a week. It also means learning and celebrating the good news that is out there in the world. Even here in Texas, we lead the country in wind generation and the city of Houston is going to be meeting its Paris targets, in terms of reducing its carbon emissions. I encourage you to take a listen to Dr. Hayhoe’s terrific interview with Krista Tippett on On Being. Katharine Hayhoe: Our Future is Still in Our Hands Below I leave you with a few readings and a video called  “God’s Gift of the Earth: A Photo Prayer.” You’ll also find information pertaining to General Conference which takes place later this month. There are links to videos and you’ll also find the General Conference webpage we’ve created on our UUMC website. As we look to the weeks ahead I’m striving to choose rational hope over fear! What a joy to be your pastor! Teresa The signs are all around us. We can see them springing up like wildflowers after the prairie rain. People who had fallen asleep are waking up. People who had been content to watch are wanting to join. People who never said a word are speaking out. The tipping point of faith is the threshold of spiritual energy, where what we believe becomes what we do. When that power is released, there is no stopping it, for love is a force that cannot be contained. Look and see the thousands of new faces gathering from every direction. There is the sign of hope for which you have been waiting. - Steven Charleston in Ladder to the Light: An Indigenous Elder’s Meditations on Hope and Courage All creation is the Lord’s, and we are responsible for the ways in which we use and abuse it….let us recognize the responsibility of the church and its members to place a high priority on changes in economic, political, social, and technological lifestyles to support a more ecologically equitable and sustainable world leading to a higher quality of life for all of God’s creation. - From The Social Principles of The UMC An Earth Day Prayer by Bishop Ken Carter Experience these words as God’s Gift to the Earth: A Photo Prayer O God, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen: You place us in your creation, and you com­mand us to care for it. Your works declare glory and splendor, and you call us to praise and reverence. Where we have degraded or destroyed earth’s bounty, forgive us. Where we have taken beauty and majesty for granted, have mercy upon us. Where we have become estranged from the creatures with whom we share this planet, grant us your peace. Renew us in the waters of baptism, refresh us with the winds of your spirit, and sustain us with the bread of life. In the name of Jesus Christ, and for the sake of the new creation, we pray. Amen A Vedic Prayer one of the oldest hymns of praise for Gaia-Bhū Devi-Goddess Earth Let us be responsible stewards in bringing healing and care to our beautiful planet. Let us live consciously, envisioning and appreciating Mother Earth as the source of life, health, fertility, and prosperity. Every day when we wake, as we place our feet upon her, let us begin the day with a prayer of gratitude, protection, and forgiveness. Namaste!   General Conference UUMC’S Webpage on General Conference General Conference Recap: How Did We Get Here? United Methodist Videos Short videos on a variety of topics pertaining to the denomination, including the upcoming General Conference 2409 Guadalupe Street Austin, Texas 78705 512-478-9387 Want to change how you receive emails from us? Click here to update your preferences or unsubscribe or unsubscribe from this list