Should Eastern Oregon churches take a public stance on wind energy development, or is that overstepping the church's spiritual mission?

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  Marco _x3d ago

  Born and raised in Boardman. My grandfather farmed that land. These turbines aren't just an abstract policy debate — they're literally next to where we buried him. If the church can't speak up when creation is being carved up for profit, what exactly ARE we here for? Stewardship of the earth is Genesis 1 stuff, not some progressive add-on.

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• MB

  Marco B.3d ago

  I'll be honest — the churches that stayed silent when coal plants were being built in poor communities for decades suddenly want to speak up now that wind farms are near farms owned by wealthier landowners. I'm just saying. Our prophetic voice should be consistent or it means nothing.

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  Feli 212d ago

  I challenge any Boardman-area pastor reading this to just name ONE sermon you've preached on creation care in the last five years. ONE. We talk about sexual ethics, we talk about politics, we talk about religious liberty — but somehow caring for the actual physical land God gave us is off limits? The inconsistency is glaring and I say that as someone who's been in evangelical churches my whole life.

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• TL

  Taylor L.3d ago

  Fun fact for anyone who needs it: wind turbines do NOT cause cancer, they do NOT poison groundwater, and the infrasound studies everyone keeps forwarding on Facebook have been thoroughly debunked by peer-reviewed research. I love my brothers and sisters in Christ but churches spreading misinformation about turbine health effects as if it's stewardship theology is embarrassing and we need to stop.

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  Liam3d ago

  My church actually did this. Pastor Dave held a four-week series on creation care last spring and we had a panel with a wildlife biologist, a local rancher who leases turbine land, and a county planner. No resolution passed, no political endorsement made, just informed Christians talking. Attendance went UP. People are hungry for this. It can be done right.

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  Kofi2d ago

  The tax incentives behind most of these wind projects go to massive out-of-state corporations while local families deal with the noise complaints, the shadow flicker, the pressure to sign lease agreements they barely understand. If the church wont stand with the vulnerable neighbor against concentrated corporate power, what Bible are we even reading? This isnt left or right. This is basic justice.

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• OL

  Omar L.3d ago

  The Columbia River Gorge is literally one of the most beautiful stretches of landscape on planet earth and we are absolutely HONORING God by protecting it. These industrial wind projects industrialize ridgelines that took millions of years to form. If that isnt a stewardship issue I dont know what is. Churches in Morrow County should absolutely be speaking into this.

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• A

  Alex2d ago

  With respect to everyone here, I think we're conflating two different questions. Whether a church should teach biblical principles about creation care — yes, absolutely, that's discipleship. Whether a church should issue a formal public statement lobbying for or against a specific wind project permit — that's a different thing entirely and starts pulling the institution into partisan territory. I've seen churches in other communities tear apart over exactly this kind of thing. Tread carefully.

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  Ravi3d ago

  okay so i just moved here from Portland about eight months ago and honestly i was surprised how intense this wind farm thing is locally. like i thought wind energy was just... good? but then i drove out past the Hat Rock area and talked to some ranchers at our church potluck and i get it now. its complicated. i think the church should at least HOST the conversation even if they dont take an official stance

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  Quinn2d ago

  Used to live in Boardman before moving to Pendleton and I remember when the first turbines went up on the ridge and half the congregation thought it was fine and the other half thought it was an eyesore. Honestly the church never really dealt with it, just quietly avoided it. Looking back that was a missed opportunity. These are real moral and ethical questions about community, land, and neighbor love. We shouldn't be afraid of them.

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  Riley3d ago

  Nope. Hard disagree. The moment my pastor starts giving sermons about megawatts and setback distances I'm finding a new church. Preach the gospel, administer the sacraments, disciple your people. That's it. The rest is noise — pun intended.

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  Drew2d ago

  anyone who thinks wind farms are destroying the gorge has clearly never driven through the Powder River Basin. just saying we could have much worse problems here lol

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