Season of Creation: Catalyst for Duty of Care
The Season of Creation is a time for Christians to come together in prayer and in action for the well-being of Earth.
The Season of Creation is a time for Christians to come together in prayer and in action for the well-being of Earth. This church-based season falls between Sept 01 (World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation) and Oct 04 (Feast of St. Francis of Assisi).
The Season of Creation is upon us, and it is (1) a helpful reminder that churches are located on Earth, alongside many living beings and communities, and (2) an obliging invitation to express our faith by caring for the well-being of Earth.
To use churchy lingo: As the Body of Christ, churches are called to practice (do, train, trial) our faith by working together for justice – on behalf of all beings, within and across many communities, on and with Earth.
This assertion informs my climate lectionary reflections (see here) during and beyond the Season of Creation 2025.
Duty of care
Season of Creation is a reminder of our duty to care for Earth – our home, our provider, our responsibility, our future. This duty of care is obliging.
But Earth is more than the place that we occupy. Like our parents – Earth is the life-source that gives us our daily bread, along with trials and temptations that nourish our souls. And like our families – Earth provides and tests our commitment of community and openness to companionship. Accordingly, we are called to care for Earth as an expression of our care for our parents, and care for our families.
In the prayer that Jesus taught his disciples, which churches have adopted, Earth is the location for the kingdom of God – your will be done on Earth as it is heaven. These words oblige us to care for Earth, as part of our commitment to the reign of God.
Caring for Earth is more than a duty. It is also the living out of our Lord’s prayer, and an expression of our faith.
Toss-up
Two court of justice events in the days leading up to Season of Creation 2025, toss up this duty of care.
(1) Torres Strait Islanders: On 15 July 2025, the Australian Federal Court found that “the Commonwealth does not owe a duty of care to Torres Strait Islander peoples to protect them from the impacts of climate change or fund adaptation measures” (excerpt from here). This was very painful for the uncles and aunties who brought the case to the Federal Court, and for their families /whānau (see video here).
While the presiding judge was sympathetic to the case (in other words, he saw the plight of the Torres Strait Islanders; he was not blind, as the justice system was expected to be), the technicalities of the legal system were deaf to the cries of the complainants. The branch of the federal government that was installed to establish justice failed to make the nation exercise duty of care for the islands and islanders – within the so-called commonwealth of Australia – already ravaged by climate crises.
(2) Pasifika Islanders: On 23 July 2025, the International Court of Justice (aka The Hague) “found that countries can be held legally responsible for their greenhouse gas emissions, in a ruling highly anticipated by Pacific countries long frustrated with the pace of global action to address climate change.”
“The court’s 15 judges were asked to provide an opinion on two questions: What are countries obliged to do under existing international law to protect the climate and environment and, second, what are the legal consequences for governments when their acts – or lack of action – have significantly harmed the climate and environment?” (excerpts from here)
The decision by the International Court of Justice lay the duty of care upon nations – they are obliged to protect the climate and environment, and they are responsible for their actions and inactions that harm the climate and environment. Nations that fail to serve these duties risk breaking international law (see here).
The International Court of Justice saw and heard echoes of what the Federal Court of Australia would not hear.
So what?
It is not enough to pray and reflect on the Lord’s prayer. It is also not enough to know that we have a duty to care for Earth – as expression of our faith.
We also need to live out our faith when there is a toss-up on the responsibility for the well-being of Earth. Put sharply: we express our faith in the reign of God on Earth when we expose and interrogate the Australian court’s failure to assign duty of care for some of its own citizens.
Season of Creation 2025 is upon us, and it obliges us to care (be bothered, do something caringly) for the well-being of Earth – including islands and islanders around us.