Pilgrimage for climate justice

On the Road with Participants of the partnerchurches

19.09.2015 | We joined the pilgrimage of climate justice - the pilgrims and partners of 32 memberchurches from all over the world. We walked together about 4 km from Alt-Mühlendorf to the Arche Warder as a place of empowerment.

On 40 hectares of the Arche Warder more than 1,200 animals from almost 86 different breeds can be found, including black and white Angler Saddleback pigs, Telemark cattle, Poitou-Donkey and Leinegans. In former times these breeds were common. Today, many of these breeds have less than 200 animals remaining worldwide. This is a threateningly small number, because the minimum numbers required to properly maintain a breed is between 5,000 to 7,500 animals.

Next to the pigs and hens we celebrated a service in singing: „we are marching in the light of God; we walking in the climate justice together“

In addition four statements of the participants: Maarten Diepenbroek, pastor in the Lutheran Church in the Netherlands: Mijn ervaring: ik was erg onder de indruk van de korte viering tussen de dieren. Zingen in de stal. Tijdens het gebed hoorden we de varkens knorren. De verbondenheid met de natuur kwam zo heel direct tot uiting. De zegen ontvangen tussen de ezels en de kippen. Het deed mij er gaan Franciscus van Assisi denken. Leven in verbondenheid met God betekent voor mij ook zorg dragen voor mens en dieren. God trekt zich ook het lot van de dieren aan, lezen wij in het Bijbelboek Jona 4.

Gilbert Ilunga Nkasa Talwa, General Secretary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Congo(DR): The Lutheran world family joins pilgrims on their walk for climate justice to the Arche Warder. As a matter of fact, from the 2015 Consultation where we showed and comiitted to engage on the way of climate justice together, we joyfully accepted to join pilgrims and walk together because, every individual has the ability and responsibility to act for the climate justice. Therefore, our walking constitutes the first step our common assignment in favour of our planet. In fact, we are all accountable for climate justice.

Varia Muradova, Lutheran Church in Kalingrad: I had no idea what to expect from our walk together, but on the move I found out some beautiful moments, one of the is a shring umbrellas, because of the rain you got a chance to get together with new people and each time you needed to communicate and finding new stories you smiles! For me was the highlight my talk with Bishop Kahutu from Kenia. I asked him to tell his story, how he's decided to become a prist, and it was so beautiful to hear how amazing God's ways!

Mark June Yanez, Lutheran Church of the Philippins: It is always fulfilling when one takes part in something apparently simple and small yet significant and far-reaching like joining the Pilgrimage Activity at Arche Warder. The walk, the talk, the fellowship, the prayer, and most of all, the common desire among people coming from all over the world and various walks of life having one goal - to send to the world the urgent message of protecting God's Creation from more destruction - was so meaningful and moving.