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Churches in the Dirt
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B ETTER W O R L D
Mike Frost: Why Bother with the Earth? 23/2/22 10:04 am
SEEING A BETTER WORLD
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Welcome from CEO Melissa Lipsett
BETTER WORLD BRIEFING
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News and updates from across the globe
PLANNING FOR PLANET DISASTER
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To end poverty, we must do better in caring for our world
CHURCHES IN THE DIRT (AND SUNLIGHT)
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How Australian churches can love their neighbour and tend the Earth
WHEN WOMEN LEAD
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Celebrating International Women’s Day (all year long!)
POSTCARDS FROM OUR PARTNERS
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Our work in action
CURLY QUESTIONS
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‘Why bother stewarding the Earth if Jesus is coming back anyway?’ – Rev. Mike Frost
REFLECTION: WHO IS MY NEIGHBOUR?
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An excerpt from ‘The Earth is the Lord’s!’ devotional
Psalm 97:1
Cover image Thanks to agricultural skills she learnt through our Christian Partners in Bangladesh, Amsa grows her own food.
‘ The Lord reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice.’
© Better World Magazine is the quarterly magazine of Baptist World Aid Australia. CEO Melissa Lipsett Publisher Rebecca Oates Managing Editor Jo Kadlecek Writers Bethany Cliff, Chantelle Mayo, Meredith Wright Design Grant Sparkes-Carroll Design Assistance Lasso Creative, Matthew Huckel Baptist World Aid Australia has been the heart and hands of Australian Baptists since 1959, and today serves 73 projects with 38 local Christian Partners in 18 countries. Address Locked Bag 2200, North Ryde, NSW 1670 Australia. To find out how to support the work of Baptist World Aid, please contact E hello@baptistworldaid.org.au P 1300 789 991
We acknowledge and honour the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we are privileged to work and live. Printed on responsibly sourced paper
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FR O M O U R CEO
the Earth (Genesis 1:28) and to look out for each other as God provides for them (Genesis 1:29-30).
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What this passage also confirms for me is that we are to take seriously the call to care for God’s creation. That’s why this first edition explores stories of how God’s people—our Partners (page 6) and churches (page 8)—are caring for the environment and loving their neighbours as a result. With increased disasters affecting some of our most vulnerable communities, we have an enormous opportunity and responsibility to lead the way in addressing our environmental crises.
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Seeing a Better World
This is our very first edition and the beginning of a journey together with some of you. For others who’ve supported us for a while, the magazine is a new chapter and a new look, a new way of seeing how God is at work through Baptist World Aid. Of course, our commitment to ending poverty will never change. Better World Magazine helps all of us explore more deeply the stories, issues and voices we need for responding to God’s call to serve the world’s most vulnerable communities. In each edition, we’ll dive into timely topics and learn about the inspiring work our local Partners are doing around the world. We’ll listen for God’s voice and watch how he’s moving so that together, we can grow and join him in his work around the world.
We’re also committed to ensuring women and girls receive fair opportunities to flourish. As we celebrate International Women’s Day (8 March), and as shops fill with ‘girl power’ clothing, I think about those who sewed them. Roughly 75 percent of the 50 million garment workers in the world are women, most are underpaid, work excessive hours, and often experience violence. Their experience is a stark contrast to the phrases they sew on T-shirts this time of year. That’s why in each edition of Better World Magazine you’ll meet some amazing women, many of them leaders in our Christian Partners’ programs—like Pacharo (page 10) who’s taking her village in Malawi to a whole new level. She, like many women in vulnerable communities, is part of the key to lasting change. We’ll also include a guest columnist to challenge our faith and deepen our thinking about these important themes. Who better to start us off than Rev. Mike Frost (page 14)? Across the pages of this first edition and those that follow each quarter, I pray that together, we’re challenged and encouraged to see— and to work for—a Better World for all. Because of Jesus
This beginning reminds me of another, one we find in Genesis 1. I’ve always loved how God’s handiwork at creation is one of equality: man and woman made equally in his image (Genesis 1:27), both given equal responsibility to steward
Melissa Lipsett CEO Baptist World Aid
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BETTER WORLD BRIEFING
MILLION PEOPLE in Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, and Uganda are estimated to need food assistance through mid-2022.*
CA M B O DIA
‘Every little bit helps. We know God is with us,’ said our Christian partner supporting our India COVID response. PAP UA N E W G UIN E A
KEEPING HOSPITALS RUNNING
SOWING SEEDS OF SUCCESS Years ago, Jras Thean (pictured above) had little agricultural knowledge and even less of a plan for his family or future. But attending workshops with Baptist World Aid’s Partner in Cambodia led to a holistic approach to caring for God’s creation.
happen, so we attend more training.’ Jras’ efforts have meant the family has a more sustainable livelihood due to greater diversity in their livestock and crops, increased knowledge and skills, and a solid plan. In the face of uncertainty, Jras has a vision for his village to ‘come together hand-in-hand with my family to produce fruitful results and improve livelihoods.’
Health services buckled under pressure as the Delta variant hit communities across Papua New Guinea. Our Partners have helped three regional Baptist hospitals stay open and equipped to care for COVID positive patients in regional PNG, but the situation remains dire. They are currently working to educate communities and combat misinformation about vaccinations, with plans to establish training centres to equip Community Health Workers.
IN D O N ESIA
‘This year we sold three buffalo for US$1,000,’ Jras said. ‘For me this was unbelievable, absolutely wonderful!’ But COVID-19 has cast a long shadow over communities like Jras’. Progress across many countries has been set back by 20 years. It’s a catastrophe for vulnerable communities finding a path out of poverty. Despite COVID’s threat, Jras and his family are grateful. ‘We try very hard to create our business for our family and save up for the expected shortfall of food,’ Jras said. ‘We cannot know when [COVID] will disappear or what will
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IN DIA
COMBATING COVID Millions in India have contracted COVID and hundreds of thousands of people have died. Our Partners support 11 hospitals across north, central and north-east India, providing lifesaving resources including: oxygen tanks, ventilators, Personal Protective Equipment, infrared thermometers, lab kits, hospital beds and essential medical supplies to over 11,000 people. Newly established COVID wards enable treatment of patients, many of whom were already vulnerable and living in poverty.
FOOD ON THE TABLE Indonesia recorded close to 50,000 new COVID cases and more than 1,000 deaths daily in 2021. Our Partners run agricultural programs to improve skills in food production. So, when COVID hit, communities can harvest and store food and remain food secure. U G A N DA
SCHOOLS REOPEN The longest school shutdown in the world has ended in Uganda. Child labour, child marriage and exploitation have increased during
* Source: FEWS NET: East Africa Food, Source: Ethical Fashion Report.
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800,000
TONNES of textiles are sent to landfill yearly in Australia alone.*
LAUNDERING SYNTHETIC CLOTHES releases mircoplastics equivalent to 50 billion plastic bottles into waterways each year.*
this time. Throughout lockdown, our Christian Partners supported children schooling from home, partnering with a local radio station to make lessons available on air, and providing printed materials to households. Children took part in child-led radio shows, raising awareness on child rights issues and COVID safe practices. LEBA N O N
LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS With crisis after crisis, and at least 74 percent of the population now living in poverty, our Christian Partners are helping address the rapid spread of the Delta variant of COVID; economic collapse, rising food and fuel prices, and water shortages; and vulnerable children ending up in child labour while access to schooling is difficult. ‘The [Partner] has been helping us with many things since the start of COVID, like food vouchers, winter and hygiene items!’ says Imane, a Syrian refugee in Lebanon, ‘If it wasn’t for them, I don’t know what would have happened to us.’
THE CLIMATE CHALLENGE The climate crisis is threatening global efforts to eradicate poverty. Addressing the risks, as well as taking advantage of the opportunities to take climate action, reinforces sustainable development and supports poverty reduction.
on disaster preparedness and climate resilience among the communities they serve. Rising temperatures and diminishing rainfall have devastated crops. Our Partners are working with communities to support climatesmart technology and innovation. For more on this, see page six. (Planning for Planet Disaster).
CLOTHES AND THE CLIMATE Most of the world’s clothing is produced in low to middle income countries who are the lowest contributors to the climate crisis but feel the greatest impacts. Our 2021 Ethical Fashion Report delivered fresh insight into the industry’s impact on the earth.
KEN YA
CARING FOR FAMILIES Recently, successive ‘rainy seasons’ have delivered little rainfall and at least 2.1 million people in Kenya are severely food insecure due to drought. Rising fuel prices, currency depreciation, and inflation places families under pressure, forcing many to go without meals. Our Christian Partner provides food and livelihood support to families, as well as water to schools and villages, specifically helping the most vulnerable households— including people with disabilities and single mothers.
GLO BAL IM PACT
BA N GL A DES H
ON THE FRONT LINE Bangladesh’s low elevation, population density and weak infrastructure make it vulnerable to the climate crisis. Our Partners have faced this future for years, working
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BAPTIST
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FEATURE
DEEP DIVE | C L I M AT E
MAGAZINE
| MARCH
Planning for Planet Disaster To end poverty, we must do better in caring for our world
WORLD
By Chantelle Mayo
BETTER
If we want to end poverty, we can’t ignore the changing environment.
‘The idea of having my own business that can sustain my family was always lingering in my mind but appeared like a dream.’ When Aluna’s husband died, her future and the futures of her eight children were uncertain. Aluna (pictured above) grew small amounts of food on her land, but not enough to live on. At the same time, the environment was changing, previously successful crops didn’t flourish, and drinkable water became scarce. Fortunately, our Christian Partners in Kenya have run development programs that incorporate climate resilience for decades. Aluna and her community learned to adapt to the changing climate, ensuring they and other vulnerable communities have access to water and the knowledge, skills, and resources to grow climate resilient crops. Aluna can now feed her family and earn an income from the food she grows.
If we want to end poverty, as we’re called to do, we can’t ignore or underestimate the importance of caring for and adapting to the changing environment. From the fields of Cambodia and Uganda to the villages of Nepal and Malawi, Baptist World Aid programs have long integrated environmental practices that help the communities. We’ve had to. Because those most severely affected by environmental crises such as natural disasters, loss of natural resources and sea level rise are those who’ve contributed the least to them. The immediate effects of disasters are compounded when a country has a large population living in poverty, so it’s natural that our first thought is to react and respond to immediate needs with food, temporary shelter, and emergency healthcare. But responding to disasters only as they happen without addressing issues such as climatic change,
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which can have a huge impact on the frequency and severity of environmental crises, just isn’t sustainable long-term. That’s why, as well as working with communities to address issues in the here and now, we need to preserve food and water sources and lessen the risk and severity of environmental problems as much as we can. ‘There is no question that we must act now to prevent climate change and environmental degradation from undoing decades of good development,’ says Laura Fontaine, Baptist World Aid International Programs Manager and Climate Change Advisor. ‘Integrating climate change elements in our programs is fundamental to building resilient and sustainable livelihoods in the communities we partner with.’ Satkhira District (pictured below) is one of the poorest and most disaster-prone regions in Bangladesh. Changes to the natural environment have affected local industries and livelihoods and increasingly severe floods, cyclones and storms threaten an environmental crisis that the vulnerable population will be unable to recover from. Our Partners in Bangladesh have been working to build the region’s resilience to environmental change and increased disaster risk since 2018. By identifying crops better suited to volatile climates and finding local markets and vendors that sell those crops,
communities have not only learned to adapt and implement more sustainable agricultural practices, but also gained local business partners and access to new channels for marketing and selling their products. ‘Our program in Bangladesh reinforces to us the power and unintended co-benefits of our climate and Disaster Risk Reduction work,’ said Fontaine. ‘We were thrilled to see that through targeted environmental projects, our local Partners achieved the triple win of reduced emissions, increased agricultural productivity and enhanced community resilience to potential future crises.’
Responding to disasters only as they happen just isn’t sustainable long-term.
Meanwhile in Kenya, Aluna has established a flourishing business growing and selling capsicums and tomatoes. Her children can attend school, and she has plans to expand her farm and improve her profits. She is hopeful about her family’s future, and the future of her community. ‘Today I feel I have the privilege of helping my kids get their daily bread,’ she says. ‘I feel very much empowered as a woman and head of the household. The knowledge and support I got from the project have indeed helped me and changed a lot in me.’ *Names have been changed for privacy
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| MARCH
2022
BAPTIST
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CO M M U NIT Y | A U S T R A L I A
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Churches in the Dirt (and Sunlight)
WORLD
By Bethany Cliff
BETTER
‘We want the community to experience the goodness, joy, grace, and love of God through what we’re doing.’ J OS H D O W TO N (Pic t u r e d a b ove)
When Keith Blackburn and his bible study group from Canberra Baptist Church started a series on Job, they couldn’t have imagined the chain of events that were to follow. Inspired by their study, Keith and his group, ‘felt a responsibility to try and help (because) the basic message is you’re one small part of a large, interconnected creation.’ They realised that their daily behaviours can harm God’s good creation—the earth and every living creature in it—and so they wanted to find practical ways they could intentionally care for his creation. That’s why their church installed solar panels in 2010 and partnered with Baptist World Aid on projects in flood-prone Bangladesh. ‘As a consequence of melting snow and volatility brought on by climate change,’ Keith says of this community in Bangladesh, ‘they are probably the least contributors to the problem, yet they feel the brunt of it.’ It’s the
sad reality that communities most threatened by climate and environmental disasters are those who are least responsible and have limited access to resources to reduce their risk. Twelve years after first installing their solar panels, Canberra Baptist continues to support communities in Bangladesh with income from the panels and gifts collected at their annual Thank Offering. They also care for creation through other initiatives like their community garden, rain-water tanks and energy audits. Canberra Baptist isn’t alone. Many other Australian churches are getting creative in ways they can care for the earth and bless their communities, both local and global. Simple, creative initiatives in the local church are sprouting abundant grace within the community.
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In 2014 Enfield Baptist Church (in Adelaide) established Den’s Community Garden in memory of Den, a beloved church member who, ‘loved everything garden, nature and God’s creation,’ according to her daughter Casey Burgess. The thriving garden wraps around the community partnerships building. ‘It has grown physically,’ says Casey who works as a community development support worker, ‘and the community around it has grown so much.’ The beauty and abundance of Den’s Garden prompts those walking past to stop, look and walk through. The staff at Enfield Baptist welcome any visitors and over the past few years have had many opportunities to build relationships with those in their community. The church also runs a community gardening project which, ‘is about teaching sustainability,’ says Casey, ‘but the main thing is building relationships showing the love of Jesus.’ Northside Baptist Church (in Sydney) was also looking for ways to build trust and relationships within their bustling, urban community. And so, in 2016 they built their community herb garden after their strengths-based assessment pointed them towards a small area outside the church building. ‘It’s (herb garden) a free gift,’ says Josh Dowton (Executive Pastor). ‘We want the community to experience the goodness, joy, grace, and love of God through what we’re doing.’ By setting up no-strings-attached community gardens both Enfield Baptist and Northside Baptist have seen relationships in their community flourish. People ask why they open the gardens to anyone and, ‘to be able to honestly say because we can and we genuinely want to bless the community,’ says Josh, ‘the amount of conversations that results in is just extraordinary.’ People who are struggling economically or with limited space to set up their own gardens are nourished by produce from these gardens. And the hope is that they’re spiritually fed too, through witnessing the grace of God in these gardens. Each of these churches believe God’s mandate for his people is to care for creation and for each other. They’re some of many churches finding simple yet creative ways to take responsibility for the environment and be a loving neighbour in their community.
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GREEN STEPS YOUR CHURCH CAN TAKE
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Establish a produce swap – A place for the community to swap their home-grown fruit and veggies with each other.
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Do an energy audit – Are there lightbulbs you can switch out for more energy efficient ones?
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Ditch the plastic – Pick up some plates and cutlery from your local op shop for teatime.
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Host a clothing swap – Encourage your community to choose second-hand instead of new.
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Look up – Install solar panels on your church roof.
Clean-up day – Finish your Sunday service early and collectively pick up rubbish in your local community.
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Get creative! – Brainstorm your strengths and find space for a community garden. To find out how your church can get involved with Baptist World Aid, visit: bwaa.co/get-involved
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FEATURE AID WORLD BAPTIST 2022 | MAR BETTER
WORLD
MAGAZINE
WHEN WOMEN LEAD HOW ONE WIDOW IN MALAWI IS CHANGING HER VILLAGE
By Meredith Wright
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W
hen Pacharo was 18 years old, she was married and a mother. And when her husband died, she was left with five children and an eighth-grade education. In a remote village in Malawi with limited facilities, Pacharo’s future was uncertain and the obstacles to her flourishing were many. ‘Life was tough,’ she says. ‘I didn’t even know how to take care of my own children.’ But Baptist World Aid’s Christian Partner saw great potential in Pacharo, pictured here with her children. They saw her hard work, and humble character and asked Pacharo to chair the Village Development Committee (VDC). They’d created several groups in this village— including child protection committees, childcare and education facilities as well as the VDC. Despite her lack of formal education, Pacharo said yes. She took on this leadership role and slowly began to see her life—and the future of her small village—change. As a result, she’s gained knowledge, courage, and confidence as a leader. Now, Pacharo is not only providing for her own family, she’s driving new projects to serve other families in her community. ‘At first, I was afraid to chair the VDC meetings and thought they would not respect me because I am a woman,’ Pacharo says. ’But as time passed, I gained courage and confidence. I came to realise that there is no difference between a man and a woman in leadership roles.’
has a staff of one full-time health worker and several volunteers—including Pacharo. Pacharo also rallied the community to build a home for the health worker so they don’t have to travel far, and so there could be on-call access to care when young children needed it. Pacharo also secured funding for this full-time, on-call service from the local government.
‘I CAME TO REALISE THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A MAN AND A WOMAN IN LEADERSHIP ROLES.’ PACHARO From a shy, under-educated widow to a powerhouse woman on a mission, Pacharo has great plans for her community. The next projects Pacharo is lobbying for include a nutrition education program for families of young children, better access to educational facilities so every child receives an education and securing access to electricity for her community, all while running her small business growing and selling fresh produce. ‘My life changed from the time I was elected [Chair]’ Pacharo said. ‘[Now] our community is geared to work together to develop the area.’
In remote communities like Pacharo’s, access to health services can be difficult and families must travel great distances to receive care. So Pacharo led her entire community to participate in raising money to build an under-fives clinic in the village, as infant mortality in Malawi is high at around 40 deaths per 1,000 live births. The community came together to construct the clinic and when they ran out of funds, Pacharo lobbied the local government to fund the completion of the project. Now the clinic
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C O N SERVATIO N
LE A DERS HIP DEVELO PM EN T
| MARCH
2022
BAPTIST
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C O M M U NIT Y W O R KS
MAGAZINE
Bangladesh: On International Women’s Day we celebrate women challenging the status quo in their community, including women like Sufia (right). She leads a team of 15 female embroiderers producing Nakshi Kantha (traditional blankets) to sell at the market using skills she learnt from our local Christian Partner.
BETTER
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Postcards from Uganda: Samson is responsible for engaging with youth groups and encouraging them to develop their leadership capacity as part of the Child and Youth project team.
Malawi: Leah works in Malawi and oversees the Child and Youth project. Here she’s gathering feedback from community members on the project.
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LIVELIH O O D T R AININ G
C HILD A N D YO U T H PR O G R A M S
C OVID RESP O N SE
Nepal: Bimala, a member of our Partner community group in Nepal, carries vegetables produced on her farm.
Solomon Islands: Janet is a Health Coordinator at her local community organisation. Here she’s using a tippy tap that a community she works with has put in place.
our Partners Bangladesh: Milton is the deputy director of our Christian Partner in Bangladesh. Here he’s using a water tank set up as part of Baptist World Aid’s COVID response work.
Nepal: Melsan (left) is a Project Manager. Here he’s standing with the Chairman of a local NGO that his organisation works with to implement the SECURE project, assessing a pond that has been conserved as part of the project.
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CU RLY Q UESTIO NS | M I K E F R O S T
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‘ Why bother stewarding the Earth if Jesus is coming back anyway?’ If you think about that question for a minute, you realise that the questioner is being pretty utilitarian about the future. I mean, they’re asking about the usefulness of stewarding the earth, right? If Jesus is coming back to take the faithful off to heaven and fry everything else, what is the use of us caring for the planet? Even for people who don’t believe that Jesus will destroy the earth upon his return, ecological responsibility is often presented as a practical consideration. Students at the Global Climate Strike, for example, held signs about the future implications of doing nothing: ‘There is no Planet B,’ or ‘No nature = No future.’ A lot of the warnings about climate change are couched in terms of what will happen if we don’t reduce CO2 emissions—sea level rises, rampant bushfires, coral bleaching, etc.
But what if Christian environmentalism wasn’t just motivated by practical concerns, as important as they are? What if we were motivated by our theology? That is, by our understanding of the nature and character of God? Far from rubbing his hands in anticipation of obliterating the whole earth, the God we see in the Bible is intimately attached to creation. The psalmists write, ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it’ (Ps 24:1), and ‘For every wild animal of the forest
‘Why bother stewarding the earth? Because God loves it. God is proud of it. It reflects his glory and reveals his creativity, grace, and power.’ MIKE FROST
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is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the air, and all that moves in the field is mine’ (Ps. 50:10-11). Right throughout Scripture, God is portrayed as the earth’s creator and owner (Job 49:11), its sustainer (Heb 1:3; Ps 147:8-9, 15-18), its director (Isa 40:15, 22-24), and its redeemer (Rom 8:20-22; 2Cor 4:16-5:5). God loves creation. And the earth reciprocates with praise and worship. King David sings, ‘The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world’ (Ps 19:1-4). Why bother stewarding the earth? Because God loves it. God is proud of it. It reflects his glory and reveals his creativity, grace, and power. And whatever God loves, we should love too, right? That includes our rivers and coastlines, our rainforests and coral reefs, and it must also include caring for the people God loves—the poor, immigrants, refugees, widows and orphans. These are the very people most direly affected by the consequences of environmental degradation. It is the global poor who suffer most from malnutrition due to food shortages, higher rates of tropical disease, lung disease from pollution, and military conflicts over increasingly scarce natural resources.
disciples, if you love one another’ (Jn 13:35). Stewarding the earth is an act of love—love for God, love for the things God loves, love for the people God loves. Even if a third of the planet’s forest cover hadn’t been flattened, even if half a million species weren’t in danger of extinction, even if carbon pollution wasn’t acidifying and warming the oceans, Christians would still be motivated to steward the earth because God has filled us with a love for all that he loves.
‘By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.’ JOHN 13:35
Personally, I don’t believe God is planning to destroy the earth at the return of Christ. I believe the curse of human sin upon the earth will be lifted, the planet will be renewed, and heaven and earth will bleed into each other resulting in a whole new existence where love and justice are the norm. God never abandons the things he creates. He doesn’t turn his back on Israel. He won’t forsake the church. He won’t desert the poor. And he won’t discard creation. And therefore, neither should we. Michael Frost is an author, speaker and missiologist, and the Director of the Tinsley Institute at Morling College in Sydney. For more on Mike, visit his website: mikefrost.net
THAT ‘WHO IS OUR NEIGHBOUR?’ QUESTION By Meredith Wright (For context, read the full parable in Luke 10:25–37.) ‘‘ ‘Which of these three do you think was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?’ The expert in the law replied, ‘The one who had mercy on him.’ Jesus told him, ‘Go and do likewise’.’’ Luke 10:36–37 When I was a kid this parable taught me that Jesus values kindness indiscriminately. But as an adult who seeks to do likewise, I am floored by its message and led to reflect on my definition of love and of neighbour. When I ask Jesus, ‘who is my neighbour?’ I hear the lesson he’s teaching in this parable. And it’s not a comfortable one.
DIG DEEPER : SCA N H ERE TO KEEP RE A DIN G T HIS A N D M O RE FR O M O U R TEN-DAY DEVOTIO N AL ‘T H E E A R T H IS T H E LO R DS! ’ O R VISIT B WA A.C O/ N EIG H B O U R
Jesus told his disciples, ‘By this everyone will know that you are my
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OR
BET
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You See the World as God Intends. Where justice wins Where workers are paid fairly Where families flourish Where poverty has ended
Be an Ambassador For the World You Want to See.
BETTER WORLD AMBASSADOR is a new way to give to the work of Baptist World Aid, while being equipped to live for the world God intends. For more information, visit BWAA.CO/SIGN-UP
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