ELCA resources
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America provides social statements, advocacy information and resources.
Caring for God's creation is an ever-evolving topic in this world, as climate change accelerates changes and our we further understand how human’s influence on the health of our planet.
This page provides an archive of resources and letters on the subject of care for creation.
Climate change in our blog
Blessed Tomorrow’s March 2026 newsletter highlights major climate leadership opportunities for congregations, including hosting the National Faith + Climate Forum on April 25 (with up to $500 support), a new Faith + Climate Film Series launching in April, Earth Day leadership resources, and national recognition for Lutherans Restoring Creation.
From local hosting to film discussions and interfaith partnerships, the newsletter offers practical, faith-rooted tools for congregations ready to lead boldly in climate action. Read the full newsletter for registration links and resources.
February’s Good Green News from Lutherans Restoring Creation highlights upcoming opportunities for faithful climate action, including a February 24 Q&A with Bill McKibben on his new book Here Comes the Sun, newly announced dates for the Multiply! gathering (April 10–12, 2026), advocacy conversations like Coffee with Christine on March 4, and a practical climate action webinar on March 17.
Read the full newsletter for registration links, recordings, and ways to share these events with your congregation as we continue, together, the work of caring for God’s creation.
Drawing on Scripture’s call to learn from creation itself, Rev. Laurie Bayen introduces Sacred Ground, an innovative audio-based spiritual practice that invites people to encounter God in nature. Available through the free Otocast smartphone app, Sacred Ground offers brief, place-based reflections at more than 80 sites—highlighting Indigenous wisdom, climate impacts, and practices of respectful presence.
This growing project embodies a “church without walls,” offering a faithful response to eco-anxiety while nurturing creation care, justice, and hope. As Sacred Ground expands in 2026—including Spanish-language resources—Rev. Bayen invites partners to imagine what sacred stories might be waiting to be told in their own communities. Read more from Blessed Tomorrow and explore the full story.
On Saturday, April 25, 2026, faith communities nationwide will gather for the National Faith + Climate Forum, a free, live-streamed event focused on climate justice and care for creation. Participants can join from home or host local watch parties, with host sites eligible for up to $500 in support funding.
Featuring national leaders like Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, this year’s theme—The Future We Choose: Faith in Action for a Thriving Tomorrow—calls people of faith to lead with hope, courage, and action. No prior climate experience is needed. Register free today at nationalfaithandclimateforum.org.
The February 2026 Blessed Tomorrow Newsletter offers timely encouragement and concrete opportunities for faith-based climate leadership amid ongoing global and local challenges. Highlights include registration for the 2026 National Faith + Climate Forum (April 25), the American Climate Leadership Awards (April 16), new local action tools from ecoAmerica, and inspiring stories from Climate Ambassadors making a difference on the ground.
Designed to equip congregations and leaders, the newsletter centers on visible faith, local action, and hope for a thriving future. Read the full newsletter for events, resources, and practical ways to lead on climate where you are.
January Good Green News highlights new opportunities to live out our faith through climate justice, learning, and community. From the World Council of Churches’ Ecumenical Decade of Climate Justice to upcoming retreats, coffee conversations on environmental policy, and calls for eco-lectionary writers, there are meaningful ways for congregations and leaders to engage.
Explore resources, register for upcoming events, and learn how your congregation can take faithful action—read the full newsletter for details and links.
Caring for creation is not a solo endeavor—it is communal, faithful, and deeply Lutheran in its grounding. In this reflection from Blessed Tomorrow, Rev. Carol Devine lifts up Green Teams as a vital way congregations live out their relationship with God, one another, and the earth. When creation care is woven into congregational life through a team or committee, communities often find renewed purpose, deeper faith, and shared energy for meaningful action.
As the new year begins, this is an ideal moment to start—or refresh—a Green Team in your congregation. The article offers practical guidance on building inclusive teams, grounding the work theologically, starting with achievable goals, celebrating progress, and leading visibly in the wider community. It also highlights how Green Teams can partner beyond congregational walls for greater impact and points readers to free trainings, resources, and upcoming opportunities. Read the full reflection and explore the resources.
The January 2026 Blessed Tomorrow newsletter invites faith communities into a year of visible climate leadership, rooted in faith and expressed through action. Highlights include the announcement of Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson as the 2026 National Faith + Climate Forum keynote, funding opportunities through the American Climate Leadership Awards, tools for launching or strengthening Green Teams, and new research pointing to growing moral momentum for climate action.
Congregations will also find practical resources, inspiring stories from faith leaders across the country, and clear next steps for engaging climate care as an expression of discipleship. Read the full newsletter to explore how your community can lead visibly in 2026.
Blessed Tomorrow’s January 2026 newsletter invites faith communities into a year of visible climate leadership, with new opportunities for congregations to lead faithfully and locally. Highlights include the announcement of Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson as keynote speaker for the April 25, 2026 National Faith + Climate Forum, a final call for the American Climate Leadership Awards (with grants up to $50,000), and practical tools for launching or strengthening congregational green teams.
The newsletter also features new research, training opportunities, film projects, and inspiring stories from climate ambassadors across the country. Read the full newsletter to explore how your congregation can take meaningful climate action rooted in faith in the year ahead.
On the tenth anniversary of the Paris Climate Accords, Presiding Bishop Yehiel Curry offers a powerful reflection on the church’s call to care for God’s creation. Naming this moment as kairos—a time of crisis and hope—the Bishop urges the ELCA to deepen its commitment to stewardship, sustainability, and action alongside those most vulnerable to climate impacts. He also lifts up the leadership of young adults and Indigenous communities, and commends the ELCA’s social message Earth’s Climate Crisis. Read the full message from the ELCA.
The Center for Climate Justice and Faith at Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary (PLTS) is accepting applications for two online certificate programs—one in Faith-rooted Community Organizing for Climate Justice (due Dec. 15, 2025) and one Spanish-language Climate Justice and Faith program (due Nov. 28, 2025). These nine-month courses equip faith-based teams and Spanish-speaking leaders to develop projects addressing the climate crisis through faith and justice. Learn more and apply at centerforclimatejusticeandfaith.org.
El Centro para la Justicia Climática y la Fe del Seminario Teológico Luterano del Pacífico (PLTS) acepta solicitudes para dos programas en línea: el Certificado en Organización Comunitaria Basada en la Fe para la Justicia Climática(plazo 15 de diciembre de 2025) y el Certificado en Justicia Climática y Fe (en español) (plazo 28 de noviembre de 2025). Ambos cursos de nueve meses forman líderes y comunidades de fe comprometidas con proyectos que abordan la crisis climática desde la fe y la justicia. Más información en centerforclimatejusticeandfaith.org.
“But ask the animals, and they will teach you;
the birds of the air, and they will tell you;
ask the plants of the earth, and they will teach you;
and the fish of the sea will declare to you.
Who among all these does not know
that the hand of the Lord has done this?
In his hand is the life of every living thing
and the breath of every human being.”
On February 12, 2026, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it would rescind the 2009 “Endangerment Finding,” the legal foundation for regulating greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act. The ELCA, which previously testified in support of upholding the finding, has expressed profound concern and disappointment, calling this a “Kairos moment” for urgent climate action grounded in faith and science.
In its official statement, the ELCA affirms that caring for creation is a sacred responsibility and urges the EPA to restore protections that safeguard public health and future generations. Read the full ELCA statement and learn more about the church’s advocacy response here.