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Year of Plenty

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Christian Conference to Explore Intersections of Local Church, Land and Agriculture

image from flourishonline.org
Today is the last day of the outdoor Millwood Farmers' Market. This will be the conclusion of four years of hosting and running the market at Millwood Presbyterian Church. Being a Farmers' Market manager and a pastor has stretched the normal bounds of pastoral and church work, and has led many I'm sure to wonder what we're up to. In my upcoming book I have a whole chapter titled The Kingdom of God is Like a Farmers' Market, where I lay out the theological and cultural premise for the farmers' market as a ministry.

Far from being an isolated experiment, our church farmers' market is part of a larger exploration going on in North American churches, making connections between food, land and faith. One of the pioneering ministries, plowing new ground, (or if you prefer a more sustainable metaphor, direct-seeding new crops) is the Englewood Christian Church in urban Indianapolis, and more specifically their online ministry called, The Englewood Review of Books (ERB) by Chris Smith, which is part of their community development work. You can follow ERB on Twitter and Facebook. They offer some of the best comprehensive review of books and leaders making vital connections between faith and the environment, especially agriculture.

They will be hosting an upcoming conference titled A Rooted People: Church, Place and Agriculture in an Urban World. Claudio Oliver, one of their speakers, is a regular commenter on this blog from Brasil. I wish I could be there.

Year of Plenty

The Year of Plenty blog was created by Craig Goodwin in the winter of 2008 to chronicle the experiences of his family as they sought to consume everything local, used, homegrown or homemade. That journey was a wonderful introduction to people and movements in the Spokane area who are seeking the welfare of the community through local foods, farmers markets, community gardens, sustainable transportation, and more fulfilling and just patterns of consumption. In 2009 and beyond the blog will continue to report on these relationships and practices, all through the eyes of a family with young children. Craig manages the Millwood Farmers' Market, is a Master Food Preserver and Pastor at Millwood Presbyterian Church. Craig can be reached at goody2230@gmail.com