To mark Creationtide, the Arnhem Nijmegen chaplaincy decided to offer individual pledges in a special service.  

‘In a dispersed community, with no buildings of our own, it is difficult to have a common project, but this is something we can do together’ Curate, Revd Dorienke explained.  

They shared suggested pledges and encouraged their congregation to commit to one or more, and then brought the pledges together to offer in prayer at a Creationtide service today this weekend.  

Pledges (which it is hoped will then become habits) included focus on increasing meat-free diets, reducing reliance on cars, buying clothes second-hand and investigating environmental activism.  

‘people brought their pledges forwards at the offertory, which was an important part of the service, and we will support each other to keep these up in the coming months.  

Before the intercessions there was an opportunity to write down individual prayers which we then brought to the altar and put on a map of the world (see pictures). We literally covered the world with prayer! The pebbles are a symbol for those things that are weighing heavily on our hearts. Some people also brought the list of pledges that had been handed out a few weeks before; and we committed to making changes in our lifestyle. All the pledges were brought to the altar during the Offertory hymn ('Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to thee') and put in a basket, in which a wooden cross reminded us of the need to take up our own cross and follow Jesus.’