Theological and Religious Approaches to Soil Stewardship - Principles of Sustainable Soil Management in Agroecosystems - page 297

about to help farmers adopt more sustainable soil management practices but did so
using the platform of Catholic tradition. Leaders from the National Catholic Rural Life
Conference (NCRLC) felt that the best way to instill a stewardship ethic among farm-
ers was to tie it to local religious traditions and give deeper purpose to conservation
practices. The NCRLC renewed attention to Rogation Days (spring rituals to bless and
protect fields and crops) and Ember Days (celebrations focused on the seasons), tradi-
tions that had faded in observance as agricultural livelihoods became less common.
The NCRLC also saw these efforts as an opportunity to renew religious life and
make it more present to the challenges, meaning, and practice of rural life. Allying
with leaders interested in liturgical renewal, they brought elements of farming life
directly into worship traditions, such as prayers related to soil and farming and serv-
ing Eucharistic bread and wine from local farms to highlight the connection of the
sacramental elements to the daily lives of parishioners. In so doing, they highlighted
the relevance of the liturgy, employing it as a spiritually rooted means of encourag-
ing better practice. Soil Stewardship Sundays, first known as Rural Life Sundays,
began as an early expression of these common agrarian and liturgical goals and suc-
cessfully effected change toward more sustainable practices (Woods 2009).
As the movement began to grow, and as the Dust Bowl of the 1930s hit, Rural
Life Sundays were expanded beyond Catholic tradition to reach communities and
farmers of other denominations. The International Association of Agricultural
Missions recommended observing Rural Life Sunday starting in 1929. Episcopal
liturgy drew on resources similar to those found within Catholic prayers. The United
Methodist Rural Fellowship also supported the movement. Lutherans broadened the
theme to include Earth stewardship in all its manifestations. In 1955, the National
Association of Conservation Districts adopted the program, and it now claims that
Soil Stewardship Sundays and Soil Stewardship Week may be the largest religiously
linked conservation effort in the world, with materials and resources distributed
widely since the 1950s.*
12.5.4 e merging r eligious a pproacHes to l and s teWardsHip in a frica
More recently, various religiously affiliated development and relief agencies have
begun to connect land use with religious principles to enhance prospects for farm
communities in Africa. “Farming God's Way,” sponsored by Caring for Creation
Kenya, is a program developed in Zimbabwe that promotes science-based farm-
ing practices in concert with biblical principles to “radically transform farming
practices.” † Farming God's Way is also being promoted as an extension movement
unto itself, offering technical and managerial instruction integrated with biblical
themes. ‡ Another example is The Reckoning International, a Christian nongovern-
mental development, microfinance, and business training agency, which is begin-
ning to expand their work into forestry and agriculture in Africa (Melissa Herman,
* The National Association of Conservation Districts (http://www.nacdnet.org/stewardship/) provides
many related resources on their Web site.
† The Farming God's Way program (http://kenya.careofcreation.net/what-we-do/farming-gods-way/) is
part of the larger Care of Creation organization (http://www.careofcreation.net/).
‡ See for example http://www.farming-gods-way.org/home.htm.