Developing an ecotheology of critical hope in Cascadia
About a week and a half ago, I got to work with others to orchestrate and run the Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon and Oregon Interfaith Power & Light Creation Justice Summit. We held the summit virtually through Zoom, with some pre-recorded content and some live, as well as five workshops. The summit was organized around …
A few years ago, I was excited to learn about the concept of watershed discipleship, which combines the best of all my worlds: environmental concern from a Christian perspective, with an emphasis on social and environmental justice, with excellent scholarship combined with practical action. Not too surprisingly, many of its originators are from a peace …
Today marks my first day as scholar in residence at Reedwood Friends in Portland, OR. I'll be offering a six-week series on Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings on the topic "Quakers & Creation Care: ecotheology & action from a Quaker perspective." I'm excited to begin tonight by sharing my story of how I came to …
I'm soon finishing out my term as the Portland regional editor for Christ & Cascadia, an online journal and conference exploring the intersection of Northwest theology and culture. I recently went to their annual conference in Seattle. Unfortunately, I only got to go for the second day, as I was knocked out with a bad …
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Last November, I had the opportunity to preach at my Friends meeting, North Valley Friends. I was asked to share about Query 19 in our Faith & Practice document, which has to do with being a Christian steward of God's creation. A re-visioning of the Parable of the Tenants came to me then, and I …
We spent some time yesterday at Vernonia Lake, which isn't in the Chehalem Valley, but it's fairly accessible to those of us living in the Chehalem Valley. I've always passed signs to Vernonia when on the way out Highway 26 toward Tillamook, just as the road begins to enter the Coast Range, but I hadn't …
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For our Friday adventure this week, K and I visited Bob & Crystal Rilee Park & Equestrian Trails, which is just east of Newberg on Parrett Mountain. According to the Chehalem Park & Recreation District blog, this has only been officially zoned as a park for a few months, although the purchase of the property and …
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This is the third (of three) posts reviewing and thinking about the ideas found in Cascadia, the Elusive Utopia: Exploring the Spirit of the Pacific Northwest. If you missed the first two, the first post gave an overview of the book and the second post discussed the region we might call "Cascadia," and whether or …
Continue reading "Cascadia, the Elusive Utopia: book review, part 3"
Yesterday, I posted initial thoughts about the book Cascadia, the Elusive Utopia: Exploring the Spirit of the Pacific Northwest. In the first post I gave an overview of the text, and here I approach the question of where Cascadia is, and whether or not there is a nature-based spirituality in this region. Tomorrow I'll discuss …
Continue reading "Cascadia, the Elusive Utopia: book review, part 2"
As a native Oregonian, hikes in the Cascades and the Coast Range dot my childhood memories. My family and I, as a child and now with my own children, have taken trips to central Oregon's high desert, the agricultural areas of eastern Washington and Oregon, the Wallowa Mountains, southern Oregon, and the spectacular North Cascades …
Continue reading "Cascadia, the Elusive Utopia: book review, part 1"
Cherice Bock 