Keeping the Faith August 24, 2023

2023 August 24
Dear Ones,
The photos from Maui are devastating. My first thought was that they looked like photos of Hiroshima after the bombing in August 1945. It was a stark reminder that wildfires don’t just burn millions of acres of forests; they can destroy cities as well. Holy Innocents Episcopal Church in Lahaina was destroyed.

But that didn’t keep our Episcopal siblings from doing God’s work of relief and support. The mobile outreach ministry of the Diocese of Hawai’I, A Cup of Cold Water, was on the scene as soon as possible. Episcopal Relief and Development established an emergency response fund to provide immediate financial assistance, while people wait for insurance and other long-term relief programs to kick in.

As we listened to the news one evening recently, and heard stories of how people have helped each other, my mom said, “There are still good people doing good things in this world.” I offer this perspective to all of you—remember to look for the good people doing good things to respond to suffering. And then think about the ways in which God has called and empowered you to be one of those good people.

(For more information, go to https://www.episcopalhawaii.org/a-cup-of-cold-water.html and https://www.episcopalrelief.org/)

Bless you all….keep the faith,
Nancy+

THIS SUNDAY’S READINGS
Exodus 1:8-2:10 * Psalm 124 * Romans 12:1-8 * Matthew 16:13-20

BIRTHDAYS AND ANNIVERSARIES
Henry Stewart 9/2 * Tom and Alison Whitney 8/31
Allan and Mary Crane 8/31 * Jeff and Holly Stuhr 9/1

CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS
Sunday: 10:15 AM Eucharist In-person & online
Wednesday: 9:00 AM Eucharist/Bible Study
Thursday: 7:15 PM Zoom Compline
COMING UP: Thursday, September 7, at 9:00 AM
Christ Church Book Group on Zoom resumes

ANNOUNCEMENTS
Diocesan Flag Where should we hang the new diocesan flag? Leave your thoughts on the form on the bulletin board or email them to the office.
Choir If you are interested in being part of a reconstituted choir, please speak to Nancy or Susan
Isaiah Study group will resume in September. Day/time TBA.
Outreach Team meeting tentatively scheduled for September 20. Time TBA.

CREATION CARE TIPS
Greenhouse Effect and Greenhouse Gases Explained
Last month I wrote about the extreme weather reported in one week, and noted that 167 years ago Eunice Newton Foote discovered that carbon dioxide was causing the atmosphere to warm. Just what is the greenhouse effect, and what are greenhouse gases? I turned to NASA to find out more, and found this explanation: “The greenhouse effect is the way in which heat is trapped close to Earth’s surface by “greenhouse gases.” These heat-trapping gases can be thought of as a blanket wrapped around Earth, keeping the planet toastier than it would be without them.”

When we head to a local garden center to buy our vegetable seedlings or pollinator-friendly flowering plants, we immediately notice that the greenhouse is warmer than the outside air. Greenhouses, whether made with glass or plastic, trap the sun’s heat so that plants can be started long before the average last frost date; this allows for a longer growing season and more plentiful harvests. This is good. But when greenhouse gases blanket the Earth and cause it to heat, growing seasons may be longer, which can be an advantage, but other changes occur, too, and many are bad.

The World Meterological Organization explains for us: “Some atmospheric gases absorb and re-emit infrared energy from the atmosphere down to the Earth’s surface. This process, the greenhouse effect, leads to a mean surface temperature that is 33 °C greater than it would be in its absence. If it were not for the greenhouse gas effect, Earth’s average temperature would be a chilly -18 °C.” And again, it sounds like greenhouse gases and the greenhouse effect are good. But what happens when more greenhouse gases are produced, and the blanket becomes too thick? Winters can become colder(!) or snowier; summers become hotter; tornadoes become more frequent; hurricanes become more frequent and stronger; droughts and forest fires are more likely.

So, what are the gases that fall into the “greenhouse gas” category, and if they occur naturally, how are humans supposed to reduce them? National Geographic states: “Greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), ozone (O3), and fluorinated gases. Some greenhouse gases come from natural sources, for example, evaporation adds water vapor to the atmosphere. Animals and plants release carbon dioxide when they respire, or breathe. Methane is released naturally from decomposition. There is evidence that suggests methane is released in low-oxygen environments, such as swamps or landfills. Volcanoes—both on land and under the ocean—release greenhouse gases, so periods of high volcanic activity tend to be warmer…Since the Industrial Revolution of the late 1700s and early 1800s, people have been releasing larger quantities of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. That amount has skyrocketed in the past century. Greenhouse gas emissions increased 70 percent between 1970 and 2004. Emissions of CO2, rose by about 80 percent during that time…The amount of CO2 in the atmosphere far exceeds the naturally occurring range seen during the last 650,000 years.”

And that 70 % increase in total greenhouse gases, and 80% increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide, my friends, is what has brought us to the tipping point of climate change. The Earth needs us to change our ways.
– Patty
Hurt not the earth–neither the sea–nor the trees. Revelation 7:3

MINISTRIES LIST
This week:
Lector 1: Nancy Mering
Lector 2: José Garcia
Acolyte: Patty Watts
Euch. Minister: Patty Watts
Usher: David Mering
Altar Guild: Jan Wall & Allison Long
Coffee Hour: Melisa Sprague
Counter: David Mering
Church Closer: David Mering

Next week:
Lector 1: Allison Long
Lector 2: Sue Emerson
Acolyte: José Garcia
Euch. Minister: Sue Emerson
Usher: Peter Hammond
Altar Guild: Mary Bickford & Caroline Leonard
Coffee Hour: VOLUNTEER
Counter: Peter Hammond
Church Closer: Peter Hammond