Saturday, April 08, 2006

For a Greener Palm Sunday Celebration

For a Greener Palm Sunday Celebration:
"Combining ecology and theology, hundreds of churches are choosing "eco-palms" for their Palm Sunday services this year.

The idea is resonating with congregations that had not given much thought to where palms come from. But many of them have taken an interest in similar causes, such as fair trade coffee, which benefits Third World coffee growers...."
Here's a couple things I did not know about the palms the kids wave on Palm Sunday.
Personally, when given a choice between "anonymous" coffee and fair-trade coffee, I go for the fair-trade, so it would not offend me if the palm frond industry in Mexico and Guatemala went the same direction.

The curmudgeon in me asks why we are importing tons o' palm fronds for a display of dubious theological value, but the mission committee chair in me wonders if our purchasing practices could be serving people a little better, especially in areas where fair trade can really make a difference.

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2 comments:

Jody Harrington said...

We don't have to buy palm fronds down here--there are enough palms of various types in the yards of congregation members to go around!

Unknown said...

Well, Missouri is not exactly a tropical paradise. I think my parents may have a palm or two in their yard in Houston.