Nations’ Climate Sunday Service

The Nations’ Climate Sunday Service was held in Glasgow Cathedral on 5 September. It was a celebration of the combined effort of thousands of churches putting the environment at the centre of their worship and committing to action on the climate in the lead up to COP26. Many denominations and Christian organisations throughout Britain and Ireland attended the service to worship and pray for our political leaders ahead of their arrival in the city for the critical climate summit.

The service was a truly collaborative one, with scripture shared by a number of organisations supporting the initiative including the Church of England, the Baptist Union of Great Britain, Tearfund, CAFOD and Operation Noah among others. COP26 was commended in prayer by representatives from all four of the UK’s nations.

At the service, A Rocha UK CEO and chair of the Climate Sunday coalition, presented a  document giving the number and names of participating churches – more than 1800 at this point. It also contained a summary of churches’ commitments to long term action and a petition from churches to the UK Government, seeking decisive action on the climate crisis. This document, with final numbers, will be presented to the UK government and devolved governments of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland before and at COP26. There is still time to hold – and register – a Climate Sunday service if your church has not already done one. You can register and find resources to help you here. 

The vision of Climate Sunday is to leave a legacy of thousands more churches committed to caring for the environment, including the climate, as part of their mission, and be better equipped to do so. Similarly, A Rocha UK is encouraging our supporters to commit to further action beyond COP, in their home and church, and through campaigning for the government to commit to a fair and fast transition to a green economy.

Andy Atkins, said: “It’s hugely encouraging to see so many churches making their own practical commitments on climate change – surely one of the biggest moral issues of our generation. Clearly every section of society needs to contribute to heading off climate catastrophe including urging governments to use their greater powers and resources to maximum effect. There are still several weeks before COP26 and we hope hundreds more churches will hold a service, commit to action, and speak up in that time.’ 

Watch the Nations’ Climate Sunday Service online here.