A full listing of the steps the church took to become a Green Chalice Ministry can be found HERE
Bethany Beach Christian Church Celebrates Designation As A "Green Chalice Ministry"
“The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it." Psalm 24:1-2
Bethany Beach Christian Church (Disciples Of Christ), in Bethany Beach, Delaware, has diligently been working on being more faithful in it's stewardship of God's earthly resources. Under the leadership of Glenn Chisholm and a team of volunteers, along with their previous pastor, the Rev. Dr. Chris Hobgood and their current pastor, the Rev. Dr. Rusty Hesse, significant strides have been made to be more environmentally sustainable as a congregation and as individual people of faith.
Some of the tangible efforts at sustainability and earth stewardship happened when the chapel of the Christian Church Conference Center, the grounds upon which the Church sits, was rebuilt in 1998 to be a year-round worshipping community. Improvements such as well insulated walls, double-paned windows, and programmable thermostats were made. Even then, however, a 2015 Energy Audit by the University of Delaware showed the leaders how they could do even better with the improvements they already had.
But this was not enough for this intrepid congregation! They wanted to do absolutely everything they could to save energy and preserve resources for future generations. Some of the steps the leaders took were:
Replaced their old unrepairable copier with a “green” copier that has large plastic ink bottles which are recyclable when they are empty.
Segregated recyclable trash from non-recyclable trash according to the Delaware Solid Waste Authority (DSWA) guidelines and properly dispose of each.
Essentially eliminated the use of non-recyclable coated paper/Styrofoam cups by encouraging congregants to keep personal washable coffee cups at church. Storage shelf installed for personal cups (pictured below).
Window candles were replaced. The old bulbs, 7W C7 bulbs (26) needed to be replaced since they are in photo-sensor fixtures, burn all night, and collectively use about $135 of electricity per year. Replacing them with LED bulbs will yield a 7-month payback.
And MANY other steps were taken!
A complete listing of all that Bethany Beach Christian Church did - and is still doing - to live into God's call to be faithful stewards of all God has give us is available on the Capital Area Region's website at: www.cccadisciples.org or by clicking on the button below.
For more information about Bethany Beach Christian Church, go to their website at http://www.bethanybeachchristianchurch.org/ For more information about the Disciples Green Chalice Ministry Program go online to: https://www.discipleshomemissions.org/missions-advocacy/green-chalice/
