Weeks back we spoke with Fast Company magazine for this piece about creation care as a Lenten fast practice. It feels like a long time ago but the article just came out and reminds us of all that congregations are doing (and will continue to do) to creatively respond to the climate crisis. St. John United Lutheran Church, an Earth Ministry Greening Congregation, is also featured in the piece!
From a distance, the Lenten display in the chancel of St. John United Lutheran Church in Seattle looks similar to displays installed by churches around the world in the weeks leading up to Easter Sunday. Sunlight streams through stained glass windows. A gothic arch frames a statue of Jesus Christ. A black shroud and a large wooden cross lay across the altar, signaling the coming of Good Friday.
But look closer, and you will spot something new: clear ribbons of plastic, winding their way from a font of holy water to the base of the cross. Members of the St. John United congregation cut the strips from an old plastic drop cloth that they found gathering dust in church storage. The imagery is ancient, but it serves a very modern purpose. This year, the community at St. John United is participating in a single-use plastic fast.
“It’s kind of pretty, but you recognize that it’s plastic,” Reverend Anna Rieke, who leads the congregation, says of the design. “It’s a conflicted experience.”