• Respond to the cry of creation, human and non-human;
•  Engage in the effort to make the ‘90s the ‘turnaround decade’ for the environment; and
• Draw upon the resources of Biblical faith and the Reformed tradition for empowerment and guidance.
   

Ultimately, the 1990 document encouraged restoring creation as a central concern of the church, and asked that the concern be infused into theological work, evangelism, justice, peacemaking, worship, liturgy, public witness, global mission and congregational action. It also urged Presbyterian congregations, members and related institutions to adopt lifestyles reflecting stewardship of resources.
 
“On the 20th anniversary of the General Assembly’s adoption of this comprehensive policy, it is fitting to reaffirm its findings, celebrate what it has spawned in the life of the church, and recommit ourselves to the calling that remains as valid and necessary today as it was in 1990,” the rationale states.
 
The “Call to Restore the Creation” document from 1990 focuses on issues such as population growth, the use of nonrenewable natural resources, wealth gaps’ effect on the environment and the threat of global warming. The overture does not mention recent evidence on global warming, such as Al Gore’s 2006 Oscar-winning documentary “An Inconvenient Truth” or claims that global warming theories were exaggerated.
 

Saving the wetlands

The Presbytery of South Louisiana, which experienced one of the country’s worst natural disasters nearly five years ago when Hurricane Katrina stormed ashore, will ask the PCUSA to lend its support to an effort to educate Presbyterians on wetland issues.
 
Citing environmental impacts on the region due to the loss of wetlands, South Louisiana will overture the GA this summer to establish financial support for a “theological wetlands education center” in the presbytery, develop educational materials on coastal land loss, lobby Congress through the PCUSA Washington Office to restore the deltaic regions of Louisiana and examine the role of corporations and institutions in the destruction of wetlands.
 
The overture asks the Committee on Mission Responsibility to report back to the 220th General Assembly on the issue and lifts up the 1990 GA’s support of the environment through the “Restoring Creation” action.
“Coastal erosion is happening in south Louisiana at a faster rate than anywhere else on earth, and the massive coastal loss has negative spiritual, cultural, environmental, and economic implications,” the overture’s rationale states. 
 
Both overtures will be considered when the PCUSA GA meets July 3-10 in Minneapolis, Minn.