Thanksgiving, Harvest, Grief and Action

August 1 is “Lammastide” – the name comes from the Anglo-Saxon meaning “Loaf Mass”. It’s an ancient celebration of the first of the harvests - usually the wheat or grain harvest.

Each year people gave thanks for the harvest which gave them their daily bread. Giving thanks for our food, the staples of life, helps us to pause and consider our dependency on the earth, the environment around us and those who grow, tend and process all the food we buy so easily.

Farming is difficult work, made evermore so by our changing and unpredictable climate.

We are grateful to God for his good earth, which is ours to care for and not to exploit; grateful for the skills of those in the fishing and farming industries on whom we depend and grateful for the supply chain that brings food to our doors.

This year, August 1 is also Earth Overshoot Day. This is the day in the year when humanity’s use of planetary resources and ecological services in that year exceeds what Earth’s ecosystems can regenerate or replace in that year.

To put it simply, in little more than half a year, human beings have already used up nature’s renewable resources.

We are depleting the earth; we will run out. We need 1.7 earths to sustain current human consumption.

In the 1970s, Earth Overshoot Day was in December. August 1 is the overshoot day for all the countries put together but we don’t all consume at the same rate. For the UK, overshoot day is 3 June - our consumption is greater than many other countries.

But there is hope. We can make the necessary changes to live within our means.

We need a change of heart to recognise our greed and past failures.

We need individuals to act in their homes and communities but also to call on our government and business to align their policies with the reality of our finite planet.

Dates for your diary

A Church Near You

This website enables you to explore all that is happening in your locality as summer turns to autumn.

Harvest Thanksgiving Services

Keep an eye out for services across Sussex that give thanks to God for all that he provides, especially as we enter the autumn.

Sussex Ride & Stride

On Saturday, September 14, the annual Ride & Stride Day is held, enabling exploration of many of Sussex's unique historic buildings, in order to raise money for their vital upkeep and repair.

Please do support this initiative if you are able. More information is available on the website of the Sussex Historic Churches Trust.