Creation Care Pastors Training
Last week, we held our annual Creation Care Pastors’ Training in Marafa.
This 1-day workshop gathered six pastors from churches where George, our Creation Care Officer, had led Creation Care training in the past months. In addition, four new churches were represented, as we are continually looking to reach out to more congregations in the Dakatcha area.
The objective of this meeting is to continue building the capacities of pastors so they feel equipped to preach the Creation Care message to their congregants. This year, to make the day as relevant as possible for participants, we started with the pastors’ own questions and challenges and focused on those specifically. This approach also enables us to get feedback on their general understanding and better understand their issues.
We started by listing and discussing what works well/not so well, and what are their main challenges. The pastors then discussed three creation care questions in small groups, and presented their conclusions to the rest of the group. This was a great way for them to learn from each other and build confidence in sharing this message. All pastors participated actively, and presentations often generated animated discussions on Scripture passages. This engagement rests on the trusting relationships built with pastors throughout the Creation Care training.
Pastors presenting the results of their group discussions – a great way to generate discussion and practice Creation Care teaching!
This workshop reminded us of the importance of accompanying pastors on the long-term, and it was therefore decided to hold such events on a quarterly basis, to continue building relationships and provide a space for pastors to exchange thoughts, challenges and experiences.
This workshop reminded us of the importance of accompanying pastors on the long-term
It also highlighted that there is still much work to be done in this area: in an area so heavily dependent on charcoal burning, how do we share a true, relevant and realistic Creation Care message? “How do we tell people to stop burning charcoal?”
Charcoal burning is rapidly destroying whats left of Dakatcha Woodlands
This is where our Farming God’s Way programme complements Creation Care teaching, as we are able to meet with farmers and better understand their livelihoods and challenges, in order to offer practical and appropriate solutions for a sustainable lifestyle in Dakatcha Woodlands.
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Have you met George, our Creation Care Officer? In this interview, he tells us a bit about himself and his work in Creation Care: https://youtu.be/6PlgRbSvR2E