Declaring it was not for the adults, but for the children, Pastor William Bordonaro dedicated and blessed a maple tree placed on the front lawn of the Bethany Chicago United Church of Christ in Ravenswood Sunday.
Pastor William Bordonaro declared " "The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The second best time is now." He credited the saying to an African proverb. Credit: Jane Rickard.
The service was held to memorialize the loss of a maple on a spot the congregation used for many years for outdoor worship. Amid wild rabbits and spring flowers, the congregation moved into a crisp morning from the warmth of the interior service. Each member of the congregation taking turns in turning the earth and nourishing the newly planted tree.
Pastor Bordonaro directed the entire service around the concept of trees on a weekend filled with Earth Day activities. “If you love trees, this is a service for you,” he told the congregation at the start of the 10:30 Sunday service.
Pastor William Bordonaro blesses a tree outside the Bethany United Church of Christ. Credit: Jane Rickard
“Twenty years into the future, we’ll see a large tree on our front lawn,” Bordonaro said in his sermon. “It is a nice size now, but will fill with birds. In the summer we’ll sit under its shade and worship.”
“What we’re doing today is a holy thing,” he declared. “It is for the children to enjoy and the birds and the rabbits… Pastors will look out their window and declare it is good.”
The service had a reading from Genesis 1, followed by “Joyful, Joyful We Adore You.” The congregation read statements ranging from quotes from Aldo Leopold about trees to Joni Mitchell’s “Tbig Yellow Taxi.” It took advice from trees and finished the service with “Morning Has Broken.”
Bethany United Church of Christ is located at 4250 N Paulina Ave., Chicago. The Welles Park Bulldog featured a pictorial on the church.
