Earth Day remembrance

On April 22nd, we celebrate the largest secular holiday in the world, Earth Day. As a community of faith, we understand that every day is an earth day in the sense of aligning our decisions and actions for the common good -the good of all creation.

In Laudato Si, Pope Francis gave us the following prayer, which reminds us of our responsibility to all people – especially the poor – and to all creation. It calls us to experience God as revealed to us in the natural world and to understand our connectedness with the whole earth. You may wish to incorporate this prayer into your routine or to use nature contemplation as a form of prayer. Try observing and discovering something new in the out-of-doors as the growing season commences. You may be surprised what is revealed to you!

 

HD Earth WallpaperA prayer for our earth

All-powerful God,

you are present in the whole universe

and in the smallest of your creatures.

You embrace with your tenderness all that exists.

Pour out upon us the power of your love,

that we may protect life and beauty.

Fill us with peace, that we may live

as brothers and sisters, harming no one.

O God of the poor,

help us to rescue the abandoned

and forgotten of this earth,

so precious in your eyes.

Bring healing to our lives,

that we may protect the world and not prey on it,

that we may sow beauty,

not pollution and destruction.

Touch the hearts

of those who look only for gain

at the expense of the poor and the earth.

Teach us to discover the worth of each thing,

to be filled with awe and contemplation,

to recognize that we are profoundly united

with every creature

as we journey towards your infinite light.

We thank you for being with us each day.

Encourage us, we pray, in our struggle

for justice, love and peace.

 

– Pope Francis, Laudato Si’

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