On 20 September, A Rocha France is organising its first-ever Day for the Care of Creation, providing local churches with a framework of resources for worship. Making disciples also means helping all members of our churches to develop a deeply Christian vision of our relationship with creation, all the more so when that relationship is being undermined by the upheavals currently taking place. Scheduled as part of the Season of Creation, which runs from 1 September to 4 October, this day aims to encourage Christian communities to become aware of the issues at stake and to seek the Lord so that they may pray and act in accordance with his will.
Mission: to mobilise Christians
As Christians, we acknowledge that our self-centred choices and sinful behaviour harm God’s creation. We commit ourselves to repenting and to preserving the integrity of God’s creation by living within it and using it in a more responsible and sustainable way. Trusting that God does not abandon his Creation, we respond to his faithfulness by committing ourselves to the pursuit of justice and peace. As we await Christ’s return and the restoration of all things, we seek the flourishing of the communities and ecosystems within which he has placed us.
Against the backdrop of a global environmental crisis, this mission is all the more challenging and requires the issue to be addressed comprehensively within the Churches.
Soulever le sujet dans les Églises
The media, whether print or broadcast, still give far too little coverage to environmental issues. Whilst the print media, particularly the national press, covers these topics more frequently (8 per cent of press articles in 2025) than the broadcast media (5 per cent on average), the latter tends to focus on ‘hot’ topics such as heatwaves or floods, without addressing their underlying causes.
According to analyses by the Media Observatory on Ecology, “coverage of environmental issues by the print media remains low; yet the press informs the work of policy-makers and broadcast newsrooms, which rely on this content to develop their own stories.” (ADEME website)
Among Christians, ecology is not one of the ‘star’ topics, unlike evangelism, sexual ethics or, depending on the church’s focus, spiritual gifts. (We do not include here the main topic rightly addressed by churches, namely the work of Jesus on the cross.) Furthermore, many churches are already busy carrying out charitable work such as charity clothing banks or food distribution drives and find it difficult to take on further responsibilities.
Yet the issue of caring for creation is of paramount importance, as it concerns God’s creation, the survival of our neighbours, and the living conditions of all creatures.
A day for creativity
We have therefore decided to launch a resource pack to help communities organise a day dedicated to this topic. Organising a Day for the Care of Creation is an opportunity to reflect, together with members of your community, on the role of Christians in preserving all living things, and to remember that the earth and all it contains belong to the Lord (Ps. 24:1).
Throughout the day, you can give glory to God for his Creation through prayers and songs of praise, organise activities for children to teach them that the earth belongs to God, explore the links between faith and ecology, and share biblical teachings related to this theme: living water.
Contents of the resource pack:
- An introduction to the day, including a biblical note, suggested hymns and devotionals for the service
- A programme outline for children aged 6 to 10
- A sermon based on Ezekiel 47:1–12 by Clément Blanc
- An outline for four sermons: ‘The Gospel and Environmental Protection’, by Frédéric Baudin
- Prayers on the theme of water
- A slideshow presenting ARocha and its current projects
Share them, use them, adapt them, to make this a day that will leave a lasting impression on your community and which, we hope, will mark the beginning or continuation of a long-term commitment to the care of Creation.