Lent Week III

 “Zeal for your house consumes me”

Jesus made a point of calling out the abuses of power in his day, including by the sellers and money changers at the temple.  Today we are called to recognize and act on the abuses we see whether our own or those of others.  

Some of those abuses are our failings in our care for creation. 

Most of us are not accustomed to thinking of environmental or ecological  sin, but Pope Francis in Laudato Si’ made it clear that we also need to weigh our treatment of non-human creation.

People in the rural parish in El Salvador  where I work as a Maryknoll lay missioner were stunned  the first time our pastor said in a Sunday homily that those spraying  chemical herbicide on  their  land  needed to go to confession  for their sin against the Earth. Those  I work  with  raising environmental awareness and promoting sustainable food production were, of course, thrilled with his affirmation of our efforts.

The ten commandments are a good starting point for an examination of conscience, including our care of creation. “You shall have no other gods besides me.” How about the god of the market and consumerism? Are we driven by the notion that bigger is better, that production and profit must continually increase, that we need the latest model of car, technological device or even apparel?

“You shall not kill” the forests, the coral reefs, the insects that pollinate. “You shall not steal” the minerals of the Earth to stockpile as gold bars, the pure waters of springs to sell in bottles, the endangered species to claim as hunting trophies. “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house”: the mangrove coastline  to build  resorts, the wetlands to build more factories or theme parks, the indigenous people’s land to build roads or to dump toxic waste.

Pope Francis, while pleading for structural change and multilateral cooperation among governments, also insists that “efforts by households to reduce pollution and waste, and to consume with prudence, are creating a new culture. The mere fact that personal, family and community habits  are changing is contributing  to greater concern  about the unfulfilled responsibilities of the political sectors and indignation at the lack of interest shown by the powerful.” (Laudate Deum, 71) Like  our  efforts in El Salvador  to reduce,  reuse and recycle, to work  together as a community  to manage  our  watersheds,  and to recover sustainable production practices, individual lifestyle changes and communities working together all across the globe can confront the climate crisis.  

If only we could follow Pope Francis’ example and could all earnestly say, “Zeal for our common home consumes us.”

   - by Peg Vamosy

Fast Consider making a fast from  plastic. Plastics are made from fossil fuels – four percent of the world’s annual petroleum production is converted  directly into making plastics, and another  four percent gets burned to fuel the process. Only approximately seven percent of plastics are recycled. Many municipalities in the United States have stopped recycling plastic bags because they are difficult to process and have little to no resale value. Plastic disposable  bags clog our shorelines and suffocate birds and marine life.

Action Learn  about  the  benefits  of  agroecology  and other farming methods  that prioritize sustainability and the needs of communities over scale and profit: http://bit.ly/agroecologyCIDSE

Canticle of the Sun

Praised be You my Lord with all Your creatures, 

specially Sir Brother Sun,

Who is the day through whom You give us light.

And he is beautiful and radiant with great splendor, 

of you Most High, he bears the likeness.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars,

In the heavens you have made them bright, precious and fair.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Brothers Wind and Air, 

and fair and stormy, all weather’s moods,

by which You cherish all that You have made. 

Praised be You my Lord through Sister Water, 

So useful, humble, precious and pure.

Praised be You my Lord through our Sister, Mother Earth who sustains and

  governs us, producing varied fruits with colored flowers and herbs.

Praise be You my Lord through those who grant pardon for love of You 

and bear sickness and trial.

Blessed are those who endure in peace,  

By You, Most High, they will be crowned.

- St. Francis of Assisi