World Plenary 2024 - part five
The Friend reports on the 'Care for Creation' thematic stream of the FWCC World Plenary in South Africa (5-12 August)
The preparatory reading for this stream included a stark acknowledgment: ‘We confess that we have fallen short of our commitments in the Kabarak and Pisac calls [for ecojustice].’ Friends were called to reflect on what action is needed to arrive at true sustainability.
In the first session, Kees Nieuwerth, of Netherlands YM, described ‘Care of Creation’ not as a ‘thread’ or a ‘theme’, but a Quaker concern. He introduced two videos. The first was from Lynn Finnegan, of Ireland YM. She reflected on the ‘vastly different’ environments and challenges the worldwide Quaker community faces. Some communities focus on the need for ‘clean water and reliable crops and protecting against increasingly volatile weather systems’, while others ‘spend much of their time trying to persuade people in their communities that there is even a problem’.
Lynn spoke of going into nature to ‘just sit and listen. When I spend time here the right action always becomes obvious’. But balance was key: ‘If I spend all my time here, retreating into my faith alone, I forget to let my life speak.’
The second video was recorded by Ludwig Quirog, of Bohol Worship Group in the Philippines. He lives on an island where oceanic pollution is a significant problem. He described a local beach clean-up operation, but litterpicking ‘is not the solution. We do it to show people… how bad the problem is’.
Breakout groups discussed how to balance and nourish faith and action. ‘What steps do you take, or would you like to take, on these concerns?’
On Thursday, three Friends shared videos about climate issues in their regions. Emma Condori, from Holiness Friends Yearly Meeting in Bolivia, told Friends that seventy per cent of the Bolivian population consists of indigenous communities who depend on nature for food and livestock. She described a Quaker project to help families suffering in the wake of a potato crop failure due to lack of rain.
Adrian Glamorgan, from Australia YM, described the impact of rising temperatures, and the resulting crises in public health, mental health, and likely migrations in the human population. ‘Quakers have got answers, not so much in terms of technical expertise, but in terms of principles by which we might try and live a life’: simplicity, integrity, and equality. He described the enormity of the problem, and the need to manage ‘what could be an overwhelm, or a sense of despair, or unmanaged grief’. He cited Friends’ worship as vital for this.
Kees Nieuwerth spoke about the need to remain within planetary boundaries. On 2 August 2023 the natural resources available on earth for the entire year had already been consumed. ‘We are all living beyond our means.’ The responsibility was clear: ‘Most of the problem is caused by nations in the northern hemisphere, taking far more than their fair share.’
In breakout room, Friends reflected on what love required of them in their communities.
Friday’s session was introduced by Tracey Martin, of Britain Yearly Meeting. In a pre-prepared video, Lindsey Fielder Cook of QUNO said: ‘Climate change is often called a wealth crisis… [but] climate change is also a spiritual crisis. Our failure to see the sacred creation. Our failure to care for nature and for our neighbour.’
‘The Religious Society of Friends was established in the 1600s in England. A time when that country felt, as one historian described, “like a world turned upside down”.
‘Today, scientists tell us, and I quote: “Any further delay in concerted anticipatory action on adaptation and mitigation will miss a brief and rapidly closing window of opportunity to secure a liveable and sustainable future for all.” The world’s turned upside down.’
Breakout groups considered how all branches of Quakerism might move forward together on this spiritual imperative. In ministry one Friend offered a German saying: ‘Where the danger lies, also grows the saving power.
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