Incarnating a CreatureKind Church at the Summer Institute for Reconciliation

by Sarah Withrow King

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created...and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things..."

Last week, I had the distinct pleasure of teaming up with Christopher Carter, who is an Assistant Professor at the University of San Diego, a Faith in Food Fellow for Farm Forward, and a member of CreatureKind's North American Advisory Council and Christine Gutleben, Senior Director of Faith Outreach at the Humane Society of the United States to co-teach "Incarnating a CreatureKind Church" at Duke Divinity's Summer Institute for Reconciliation.

Seminar participants feeding sheep at Piedmont Farm Animal Refuge. Photo by Christopher Carter

During the four-day-long event, our afternoon seminar discovered new ways to think about Christianity and animals. Following the "Word Made Flesh" methodology from the book Reconciling All Things, we discussed ways in which Christianity is good news for all creation. We lamented the realities of factory farming, a broken system that hurts animals, humans, and the environment. We visited a farmed animal sanctuary, to meet individual rescued animals and to hear their stories. We were invited into the notion of adopting an anti-oppressive mindset. We told our own stories of hope, of people and organizations working to bring about reconciliation in creation, and we talked about how to sustain ourselves spiritually for the long haul. 

Our diverse group shared their tender and courageous hearts with us throughout the week, we were able to learn much from one another, and we got to meet these two loves:

Photo by Julia Johnson

We are exploring the possibility of turning this extraordinary seminar into a webinar, so that more people can experience the renewal and fellowship that was such a blessing to us. If you want to help make that happen, please give a donation to CreatureKind today. 

Sarah cradling Charleston the rooster, who loved to have his face massaged. He fell asleep in my arms! Photo by Blue.

Upcoming Events

by Sarah Withrow King

There's a longer post to be made here, about the rising tide of Christian animal advocacy, the increasing awareness among Christians of our recent failure to lead the world in animal protection, and the inspiring ways that people are connecting their spiritual life with compassion for animals. 

But what I'll say now is this: all this energy means that some folks are gathering together to plan events for Christian animal advocates. Some of these are still coming together, and we'll keep you posted as they happen. Here's what we know now:

Christian Animal Welfare Summit in the Ozarks, September 1-4, 2017: This event will bring together advocates to ask: “How can we create a sense of community and cooperation among Christian Animal Welfare supporters so we can more effectively achieve our goals and connect with the broader movement?"

Spiritual Retreat for Vegan Christians, December 1-3, 2017: This small retreat is an opportunity for vegan Christians to gather at a beautiful retreat center in Philadelphia, PA for spiritual rest and friendship.  

CreatureKind Reception, January 2018: For the third year in a row, CreatureKind will host a reception in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Society of Christian Ethics. This year, we gather in Portland, Oregon.

To learn more about these and other events with CreatureKind, sign up here or send Sarah an email: swking@eastern.edu.