Everything about our lives connects us with creation: our food and clothing, our transportation and recreation, the energy sources we use, and the waste we produce. We are connected to this world—and therefore to each other—through our homes, our workplaces, and even through the grounds of our churches.
In Under the Francis Tree, the spirituality inspired by the “patron saint of ecology” St. Francis of Assisi meets modern church congregational life. In an age of ecological crisis, an ancient contemplative path helps us discover geographies of hope in the places we live and love today.
Reviews
Eric Howell is a remarkable pastor and a good human, and here I’ve discovered he’s also a bold writer. It takes chutzpah to weave Baptist ecclesiology with Franciscan spirituality. But the idea of churches, and the few acres we inhabit, being a fulcrum for creation’s healing—that’s ludicrous. Unless it’s true. Eric convinces me it’s true, and he’s offering us all good news.
—Winn Collier
author of Love Big, Be Well and
A Burning in My Bones and Director of the
Eugene Peterson Center for Christian Imagination
Eric Howell has reflected deeply on a Christian congregational response to our ecological crisis, both biblically and theologically. But he has also thought and acted practically, having led a congregation to engage in creation care practices that began on the “holy ground” of their church property and extended into their daily lives in their homes and community. Under the Francis Tree is a blessing to all congregations and their leaders who desire to respond authentically to caring for our common home.
—Robert Creech
Professor of Pastor Leadership (retd),
Truett Seminary at Baylor University
and Secretary-Treasurer of Creech Prairie Restoration
If creation declares the glory of God (and it does) and if creation is currently groaning for its redemption (and it is), then it matters greatly how Christians and the congregations of which they are a part live their creaturely lives in the time between times. Under the Francis Tree combines Franciscan spirituality, biblical and theological reflection, ecological awareness, and congregational rootedness to encourage readers to consider more fully the repercussions of Christ’s incarnation as well as their personal and ecclesial responsibility to the Creator, creation, and other living creatures.
—Todd D. Still
Charles J. and Eleanor McLerran
DeLancey Dean & William M. Hinson Professor of
Christian Scriptures, Truett Seminary at Baylor University
The work it takes to see ourselves rightly and consistently as “creatures in the web of creation” is not easy. Eric Howell does not sugarcoat the task, but offers encouragement paired with a practicality that strike a deeply hopeful note. This is a book you will want to share widely, after you get done feeling grateful you read it yourself.
—Anna Mitchael
author of They Will Tell You the World Is Yours
Eric Howell’s Christ-centered book will make you uncomfortable and hopeful at the same time. He uncovers a neglected area of gospel application in the evangelical world, creation care, which can make us uncomfortable. Yet, he infuses hope by showing us how to resee and redemptively use the very place we gather every Sunday, our church grounds, as a place to worship Christ through gratitude for and devotion to his creation. Over the last two years, I have seen Eric live this book with grace and humility. This has enlarged my understanding of the gospel of reconciliation in Christ which addresses not only our alienation from God, ourselves, and others but also creation. This is a book for all who are seeking a gospel-centered, practical and gracious way to actively participate in spiritual healing and environmental restoration.
—Steve King
Senior Pastor at Cherrydale Baptist Church in Arlington, VA from 1983 to 2019,
Senior Pastor Emeritus from 2019-2022,
author of Beware the Slow Leaks
Howell’s work is a gift to the church and to all who seek a deeper connection with God’s creation. With care and clarity, he offers a vision for Christian spirituality that meets God not only inside our sanctuaries but also in the sacred soil beneath our feet. This is a vision of Christian spirituality awake to the beauty and ache of creation, where we are not stewards above the earth, but kin within it. Howell’s theological wisdom and practical guidance offer the church a lifeline—a way back to the land and to God in this age of ecological unraveling.
—Angela Williams Gorrell,
author of Braving Difficult Decisions,
The Gravity of Joy, and Always On
Login and Registration Form