BONIFACE ECO-STEWARDSHIP TEAM (B.E.S.T.)

EARTHBOX Field Trip

B.E.S. T. invites you to visit the home of the EarthBox, “the world’s most revolutionary growing system,” for a demonstration program on Saturday, March 20, at 10 am. The patented EarthBox was developed by commercial farmers and has been proven both in the lab and on the farm. It is a maintenance-free, award-winning, high-tech growing system that controls soil conditions, eliminates guesswork and more than doubles the yield of a conventional garden - with less fertilizer, less water and virtually no effort. The EarthBox is especially good for apartment dwellers and homes with limited garden space. The EarthBox research center is located at 1023 Ellenton-Gillette Rd, Ellenton, FL 34222, a short distance west of I-75 exit 224. To register for this trip sign up in the Parish Hall during coffee hours March 7 and 14, or contact Grace Riker (email or 924-8908). Maps will be available in the Parish Hall.

From this...                                       ...to this!

earthbox pic 1                 earthbox pic 2

WHY IS THE ENVIRONMENT A RELIGIOUS CONCERN?

(From the National Religious Partnership for the Environment)

“The environment” is only a pale reflection of a much richer word: Creation. Not simply what happened “in the beginning,” but the world that reflects the glory of the Creator here and now…through which we are sustained and enlivened…in which we meet the neighbor whom we are to love as ourselves. Creation is the world in which we daily encounter bread and beauty, majestic mountains and familiar neighborhoods, painful brokenness and solace for the spirit. Creation is where we stand as we hear the divine summons to care for our neighbor and for the earth. 

Creation invests the world with a depth of meaning not fully captured by the terms “environment” or “nature”. Creation means that all things in heaven and earth are related to the One who gives them their being. Creation means that our dealings with everything around us are bound up with our relationship to the Divine. Creation means that we are creatures, too; the healing of the earth and the healing of human persons and human society must go hand-in-hand.

At the core of Jewish and Christian ethics are the commandments to love God and one’s neighbor. Can we love the Creator without celebrating and caring for the creation? Can we love our neighbor without protecting the environment on which that neighbor’s life and health depend?

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Stewardship is all that I do with all that I have after I say, "I believe".

 

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B.E.S.T. follows the Episcopal Ecological Network framework of Reflection, Education and Action:

  • Reflection . . . through prayer and worship.
  • Education . . . about current environmental issues before us.
  • Action . . . in ways that protect, heal and honor the integrity of God's creation.

B.E.S.T. sponsors creation-centered programs and worship for our parish, Preschool and Church School programs.

B.E.S.T. promotes environmentally sound practices for campus landscaping, energy use and the use of other resources.

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