Below you will find three groups of resources. The group on Creation Care are not Lent specific, but we're highlighting them as part of our journey towards becoming an Eco-Diocese, and part of our ongoing response to the Climate Crisis.
For Individuals
Dust and Glory - Lent reflections from the Church of England.
The Archbishops say "This Lent we are all invited to explore how we can live well with the mess of everyday life.
Dust and Glory encourages us to take a fresh look at the frustrations and failings that every day brings and, rather than pretending we can always avoid them, seek to learn from them and grow closer to God through them."
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Dust and Glory - Lent reflections
Group Courses for Lent 2023
Growing Good for Lent 2023
Growing Good is a free course for churches, offering six sessions to help your congregation grow in faith and make a difference in your community.
During Lent and throughout the year, Growing Good helps churches reach out through loving service and social action, grow spiritually through discipleship and invite everyone to be part of God’s work transforming work.
Sign up today to access all the resources including session guides, case study films, tips for group leaders and more. We will send you regular updates about Growing Good and the Church Urban Fund, including how you can get involved and the difference your support is making. https://growing-good.org.uk/lent-2023
Who is our neighbour?
‘Who is our neighbour?’ This is a key question that is at the heart of the Parables in Saint Luke’s Gospel. The parable of the Good Samaritan challenges us not to ask but to answer the question, ‘Who is our neighbour?’ My neighbour is not just the focus of my compassion and concern; my neighbour also teaches me what it means to serve. To be a good neighbour, I need to both give and receive, as Christ both gives and receives.
The Church is both the giver and the receiver in mission. In identifying and serving the needs of others, we find not only who our neighbours are, but they too welcome us as neighbours. We become Christ-like, as we should, for as the Church we are the Body of Christ.
There are six studies in this USPG study guide – from Jerusalem and the Middle East, the Caribbean, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, and the Diocese of Europe. Our theme for this guide is informed by the Parable of the Good Samaritan, but you are invited to draw on other readings too, offering shared experiences in the Church, in all its diversity, of what it is to be a good neighbour today.
Download the PDF course booklet here: Who is our neighbour?
Churches Together
CTBI have not yet published their 2023 course. Previous years’ Lent courses from Churches Together are all listed on this page https://ctbi.org.uk/category/spirituality-and-reflection/lent-courses/)
From Liturgy to Life
Although not designed specifically for Lent, the diocesan course, "From Liturgy to Life" has been used by some parishes as a Lent course. which can be delivered online as well as in person. It is a four week course, and each week has a PowerPoint and leaders' notes. This course is all about connecting what we do when we gather together as a church for the Eucharist, and what we do when we’re at work, among friends and family, and engaged in our communities throughout the week.
Find out more and download the materials from this page.
On Creation Care and the Climate Crisis
Environment
This four-week course by Ruth Valerio suitable for Lent, although not written specifically for it. This Bible study is written for small group study or personal use. Each of the four sessions is a combination of the biblical and the practical and finishes with a practical response. In each session I take one of the four main issues our world faces (climate change, deforestation, species loss and water) and four main areas in which we can make a difference: food, travel, energy and waste. Ruth Valerio was the author of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s 2020 Lent Book on similar themes.
https://ruthvalerio.net/publications/environment/
The Plenty! Course – Joy in Enough
From Green Christian, this six-session course comes with both a facilitator’s guide and participant packs. They say “Imagine a society where every person can flourish and everyone has enough. Where local communities thrive. Where the climate is stabilising and animals and plants have a home. What is your role in creating this society? What could your church do?“
https://joyinenough.org/resources/plenty/
Ecocell
Also from Green Christian, this is less a course (though it does have six units that can be covered over six weeks) and more a demanding journey for committed people wanting to explore how to change their lifestyle in response to the climate crisis. In their own words: “ecocell is for those of us who are willing to take on the very demanding commitment of completing the journey to sustainability. We will commit ourselves to getting our carbon footprints down to the level required for sustainability. We will also ensure that we respect the laws of nature (in which we see the hand of our Creator) and the needs of the natural world, in all aspects of our lives.”
https://greenchristian.org.uk/ecocell/