Rev Peter Taylor by .

Te Hāhi Weteriana o Aotearoa Response to Climate Change Lament, Repent, Assent

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The earth’s climate is changing – there can be no doubt about it. We may debate about how much is due to human activity but we only have to watch the news about massive raging fires and extreme temperatures, huge downpours of rain followed by heavy flooding, frequent violent hurricanes and severe drought, all happening with either greater frequency or higher intensity, or both.

As Methodist Christians our understanding of what is going on and our responses will be different from secular humanists.

We believe that it is God who created the universe. We believe we human beings have been made in God’s image. The Bible tells us that we have been given a responsibility to be stewards of this creation, which sadly has often led to humanity assuming the right to exploit and abuse it. However Māori remind us that we too are part of creation, not separate from it.

I think our responses should be threefold:

[1] Lament

We have a responsibility to share with the creator what is happening to our planet, crying with many tears over the excessive mess the world is in. Spelling it out with God in prayer is not only an acceptable response but powerful, as our fellow Jews have long known (see for instance Job 3, Psalm 69 or Ecclesiastes 4).

[2] Repent

While lament recognises the problem, repent accepts our responsibility in creating the problem. Admittedly it is the western world, industrialised two hundred years ago, that has been mostly to blame, and I admit I have inherited the benefits of that world. To repent here is not just a personal response but an acknowledgment that humanity, as a whole, is to blame (even if some parts are personally blameless). This is something we can – and must - share with God.

[3] Assent

Assent is to agree to change our mindset, our actions and our attitudes, so that we can begin to repair the damage we have agreed is humanity’s fault. This is a prayerful response and as a church we have embarked on a ten-year emphasis on climate justice. It is up to us to work out what this means for each of us.

In this Season of Creation we would do well to Lament, Repent and Assent as Te Hāhi Weteriana o Aotearoa, locally, regionally and nationally.