The 50th Anniversary of Earth Day is an occasion that warrants reflection and deserves celebration. Above all, it honors and inspires community: both the community of people, past and present, that have cared for our earth and the community of living beings that our earth supports everyday.

For years, we have hosted an Earth Day Vigil in Asheville, bringing folks together to honor the natural beauty around us and the lessons it had taught us. This year we were unable to gather in person, which seemed like a challenge to vigil’s purpose. In many vigils, their power comes from the feeling of others worshiping alongside you, deeply connecting over a shared love and experience. To our surprise, we found that hosting the vigil virtually allowed us draw strength from this feeling of togetherness. We were able to expand our community by hearing from voices of faith leaders from throughout WNC and by allowing friends and family to join from near and far. The speakers were

Rev. Kevin Bates, United Methodist Church in Black Mountain, NC
Rev. Tamara Franks, High Country United Church of Christ in Vilas, NC
Rev. Scott Hardin-Nieri, Director of the Creation Care Alliance
Jenna Lindbo, Land of the Sky United Church of Christ
Rev. Naomi Tutu, Cathedral of All Souls
Rev. Wil Posey, First United Methodist Church in Murphy, NC
Rabbi Phil Bentley, Hendersonville
Rev. Laura Collins, Asheville, NC

If you were unable to join us for the event, we hope that you can take a moment to watch the recording and draw strength from the voices that gathered to celebrate our earth.