Summer Lecture Series: God as Gardener

Presented by the Rev. Dr. Bob Shore-Goss, member United Church of Christ Environmental Justice Council.

There is another way of Earth care other than to use the model of creation stewardship. Stewardship is a patriarchal model for tending the garden from a position of mastery and dominance. If we look at the biblical scriptures more closely, we discover a gardening model of involvement with Earth care based on descriptive notions of God as Gardener, Christ the Gardener, and the Spirit intimately involved in the relationship between the Gardener and garden. Earth theologian Thomas Berry affirms, “Gardening is an active participant in the deepest mysteries of the universe.” He is the author of God Is Green: An Eco-Spirituality of Incarnate Compassion (2016). His second eco-theological book is, Creating Christian Protectors (October  2020). Visit his website for the complete list of his books: www.mischievousspiritandtheology.com