Pope Francis has declared that hereafter 1st September be observed as “World Day of Prayer” for the Care of Creation. The inspiration for this came from two sources. One, the Orthodox Church (an important Christian denomination) already observes this day for the same purpose. And two, because a few months ago, the Pope issued, “Laudato Si” (Praise be to you Lord), an Encyclical, appealing to the people all over the world to care for Earth.
So the Encyclical did not remain just a pious Church document, but is rendered into genuine concern through prayer. The world would pledge to God that rather than being exploiters we become its caretakers.
The Pope considers that “for believers in Jesus Christ, who became man for us, ‘the life of the spirit’ is not dissociated from the body or from nature or from worldly realities, but is lived in and with them, in communion with all that surrounds us”, and that “the ecological crisis therefore calls us to a profound spiritual conversion: We are called to ‘an ecological conversion’ whereby the effects of our encounter with Jesus Christ become evident in our relationship with the world around us.”
The day of prayer for creation is an attempt to further the spiritual sentiments contained in the Encyclical Laudato Si, which holds that we need to be aware that God has entrusted us this creation both to enjoy and care for.
This special day of prayer is to also remind us that by exploiting nature we not only strip nature of its dignity which God gave it, but progressively strip ourselves of our own human dignity because we too are very much part of nature.
St. Francis of Assisi, composer of that profound prayer, Make me a channel of your peace, also prayed daily thus with nature, back in the 13th century: “Praise be to You, my Lord, with all Your creatures, especially Brother Sun, Who is the day and through whom You give us light… Praise be to You, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars… Praise be to You, my Lord, through Brother Wind, and through the air, cloudy and serene, and every kind of weather… Praise… through Sister Water… through Brother Fire… through our Sister Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, and who produces various fruit with colored flowers and herbs…”
Father Dominic Emmanuel, a founder-member of Parliament of Religion, can be contacted at frdominic@gmail.com
