Burning Bush – Winchester Cathedral

‘Rally for the Earth’ at Winchester Cathedral and harvest gifts for those in need.

A burning bush will form the centrepiece for Winchester Cathedral’s ‘Cry for Creation: Rally for the Earth’ event this Sunday (Oct 2) – marking its Harvest celebrations and the culmination of Winchester Green Week.

Participants in the rally will be invited to gather around a dramatic ‘Burning Bush’ art installation where the exhibit will be set alight and those present will make pledges and prayers to protect God’s creation.

The event will feature guest speaker Professor Robert Beckford, Academic, Broadcaster, Activist, and Director of the Institute of Climate and Social Justice at Winchester University.

The interactive installation will be in place in the Cathedral throughout Winchester Green Week, the city’s annual festival to celebrate and promote sustainable living, which opened  on Monday.

The ‘Burning Bush’ tells the story from Exodus and has become a poignant symbol of CreationTide (1st September – 4th October).

The rally and the service will be live-streamed and the full programme of events and initiatives in support of Winchester Green Week 2022 can be found here.

On Sunday Winchester Cathedral too will host its traditional Harvest Festival Eucharist Service and people are invited to bring food donations to be shared with the Winchester Basics Bank.

The Very Revd Catherine Ogle, the Dean of Winchester. said:

 “Harvest Festival is an occasion deeply rooted in the life of the nation and in local traditions. Since biblical times, celebrating harvest has highlighted our basic human need for food, God’s generous provision in creation, and the human responsibility for caring for the poor and for the environment.

The Cathedral’s Harvest Festival this year includes a new awareness of the need for action on climate change.  During the afternoon Rally, we will be making a commitment to take action to avert climate change, already impacting upon the lives of hundreds of millions of people around the world. 

We do hope that many people will want to join us in celebrating the Harvest and committing to care for God’s creation.”

Ripon Cathedral too will hold its Harvest Service this Sunday with harvest offerings shared between the food banks at Ripon Community House and the local Salvation Army.

The Dean of Ripon, the Very Rev John Dobson said:

“In our celebrations at Ripon Cathedral not only have we got a strong environmental theme but we also express gratitude to our bountiful God for his faithful providence and care of us. 

“A significant part of this is expressing gratitude through support for people in need, who otherwise might justifiably question that God is good and cares for them,’ he added.