Pope Francis: Message on World Day of Prayer for
Creation
(Vatican
Radio) Pope Francis has issued a Message to mark the World Day of Prayer for
the Care of Creation. Taken from the Extraordinary Jubilee Year and his
encyclical letter, Laudato si’, the theme of the Holy Father’
Message is:Show mercy to our common home.
Below,
please find the full text
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MESSAGE
OF HIS HOLINESS
POPE FRANCIS
FOR THE CELEBRATION OF THE
WORLD DAY OF PRAYER FOR THE CARE OF CREATION
1 SEPTEMBER 2016
POPE FRANCIS
FOR THE CELEBRATION OF THE
WORLD DAY OF PRAYER FOR THE CARE OF CREATION
1 SEPTEMBER 2016
Show
Mercy to our Common Home
United
with our Orthodox brothers and sisters, and with the support of other Churches
and Christian communities, the Catholic Church today marks the “World Day of
Prayer for the Care of Creation”. This Day offers “individual believers and
communities a fitting opportunity to reaffirm their personal vocation to be
stewards of creation, to thank God for the wonderful handiwork which he has
entrusted to our care, and to implore his help for the protection of creation
as well as his pardon for the sins committed against the world in which we
live.” [1]
It
is most encouraging that concern for the future of our planet is shared by the
Churches and Christian communities, together with other religions. Indeed, in
past decades numerous efforts have been made by religious leaders and
organizations to call public attention to the dangers of an irresponsible
exploitation of our planet. Here I would mention Patriarch Bartholomew of
Constantinople who, like his predecessor Patriarch Dimitrios, has long spoken
out against the sin of harming creation and has drawn attention to the moral
and spiritual crisis at the root of environmental problems. In response to a
growing concern for the integrity of creation, the Third European Ecumenical
Assembly in Sibiu in 2007 proposed celebrating a “Time for Creation” during the
five weeks between 1 September (the Orthodox commemoration of God’s creation)
and 4 October (the commemoration of Francis of Assisi in the Catholic Church
and some other Western traditions). This initiative, supported by the World
Council of Churches, has since inspired many ecumenical activities in different
parts of the world. It is also encouraging that throughout the world similar
initiatives promoting environmental justice, concern for the poor and
responsible social commitment have been bringing together people, especially
young people, from diverse religious backgrounds. Christians or not, as people
of faith and goodwill, we should be united in showing mercy to the earth as our
common home and cherishing the world in which we live as a place for sharing
and communion.
1.
The earth cries out …
With
this Message, I renew my dialogue with “every person living on this planet” (Laudato
Si’, 3) about the sufferings of the poor and the devastation of the
environment. God gave us a bountiful garden, but we have turned it into a
polluted wasteland of “debris, desolation and filth” (ibid., 161). We must not
be indifferent or resigned to the loss of biodiversity and the destruction of
ecosystems, often caused by our irresponsible and selfish behaviour. “Because
of us, thousands of species will no longer give glory to God by their very
existence, nor convey their message to us. We have no such right” (ibid., 33).
Global
warming continues, due in part to human activity: 2015 was the warmest year on
record, and 2016 will likely be warmer still. This is leading to ever more
severe droughts, floods, fires and extreme weather events. Climate change is also
contributing to the heart-rending refugee crisis. The world’s poor, though
least responsible for climate change, are most vulnerable and already suffering
its impact.
As
an integral ecology emphasizes, human beings are deeply connected with all of
creation. When we mistreat nature, we also mistreat human beings. At the same
time, each creature has its own intrinsic value that must be respected. Let us
hear “both the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor”(Laudato Si’,
49), and do our best to ensure an appropriate and timely response.
2.
… for we have sinned
God
gave us the earth “to till and to keep” (Gen 2:15) in a balanced
and respectful way. To till too much, to keep too little, is to sin.
My
brother, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew has courageously and prophetically
continued to point out our sins against creation. “For human beings… to
destroy the biological diversity of God’s creation; for human beings to degrade
the integrity of the earth by causing changes in its climate, by stripping the
earth of its natural forests or destroying its wetlands; for human beings to
contaminate the earth’s waters, its land, its air, and its life – these are
sins.” Further, “to commit a crime against the natural world is a sin against
ourselves and a sin against God.” [2]
In
the light of what is happening to our common home, may the present Jubilee of
Mercy summon the Christian faithful “to profound interior conversion” (Laudato
Si’, 217), sustained particularly by the sacrament of Penance. During this
Jubilee Year, let us learn to implore God’s mercy for those sins against
creation that we have not hitherto acknowledged and confessed. Let us
likewise commit ourselves to taking concrete steps towards ecological
conversion, which requires a clear recognition of our responsibility to
ourselves, our neighbours, creation and the Creator (ibid., 10 and 229).
3.
An examination of conscience and repentance
The
first step in this process is always an examination of conscience, which
involves “gratitude and gratuitousness, a recognition that the world is God’s
loving gift, and that we are called quietly to imitate his generosity in self-sacrifice
and good works… It also entails a loving awareness that we are not disconnected
from the rest of creatures, but joined in a splendid universal communion. As
believers, we do not look at the world from without but from within, conscious
of the bonds with which the Father has linked us to all beings” (Laudato Si’,
220).
Turning
to this bountiful and merciful Father who awaits the return of each of his
children, we can acknowledge our sins against creation, the poor and future
generations. “Inasmuch as we all generate small ecological damage,” we are
called to acknowledge “our contribution, smaller or greater, to the
disfigurement and destruction of creation.”[3] This
is the first step on the path of conversion.
In
2000, also a Jubilee Year, my predecessor Saint John Paul II asked Catholics to
make amends for past and present religious intolerance, as well as for
injustice towards Jews, women, indigenous peoples, immigrants, the poor and the
unborn. In this Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy, I invite everyone to do
likewise. As individuals, we have grown comfortable with certain lifestyles
shaped by a distorted culture of prosperity and a “disordered desire to consume
more than what is really necessary” (Laudato Si’, 123), and we are
participants in a system that “has imposed the mentality of profit at any
price, with no concern for social exclusion or the destruction of nature.”[4] Let
us repent of the harm we are doing to our common home.
After
a serious examination of conscience and moved by sincere repentance, we can
confess our sins against the Creator, against creation, and against our
brothers and sisters. “The Catechism of the Catholic Church presents the
confessional as the place where the truth makes us free.”[5] We
know that “God is greater than our sin,”[6] than
all our sins, including those against the environment. We confess them because
we are penitent and desire to change. The merciful grace of God received in the
sacrament will help us to do so.
4.
Changing course
Examining
our consciences, repentance and confession to our Father who is rich in mercy
lead to a firm purpose of amendment. This in turn must translate
into concrete ways of thinking and acting that are more respectful of
creation. For example: “avoiding the use of plastic and paper, reducing
water consumption, separating refuse, cooking only what can reasonably be
consumed, showing care for other living beings, using public transport or
car-pooling, planting trees, turning off unnecessary lights, or any number of
other practices” (Laudato Si’, 211). We must not think that these efforts
are too small to improve our world. They “call forth a goodness which, albeit
unseen, inevitably tends to spread” and encourage “a prophetic and
contemplative lifestyle, one capable of deep enjoyment free of the obsession
with consumption” (ibid., 212, 222).
In
the same way, the resolve to live differently should affect our various
contributions to shaping the culture and society in which we live. Indeed,
“care for nature is part of a lifestyle which includes the capacity for living
together and communion” (Laudato Si’, 228). Economics and politics,
society and culture cannot be dominated by thinking only of the short-term and
immediate financial or electoral gains. Instead, they urgently need to be
redirected to the common good, which includes sustainability and care for
creation.
One
concrete case is the “ecological debt” between the global north and south (cf. Laudato
Si’, 51-2). Repaying it would require treating the environments of poorer
nations with care and providing the financial resources and technical
assistance needed to help them deal with climate change and promote sustainable
development.
The
protection of our common home requires a growing global political consensus.
Along these lines, I am gratified that in September 2015 the nations of the
world adopted the Sustainable Development Goals, and that, in December 2015,
they approved the Paris Agreement on climate change, which set the demanding
yet fundamental goal of halting the rise of the global temperature. Now
governments are obliged to honour the commitments they made, while businesses
must also responsibly do their part. It is up to citizens to insist that
this happen, and indeed to advocate for even more ambitious goals.
Changing
course thus means “keeping the original commandment to preserve creation from
all harm, both for our sake and for the sake of our fellow human beings.”[7] A
single question can keep our eyes fixed on the goal: “What kind of world do we
want to leave to those who come after us, to children who are now growing up?”
(Laudato Si’, 160).
5.
A new work of mercy
“Nothing
unites us to God more than an act of mercy, for it is by mercy that the Lord
forgives our sins and gives us the grace to practise acts of mercy in his
name.”[8]
To
paraphrase Saint James, “we can say that mercy without works is dead … In our
rapidly changing and increasingly globalized world, many new forms of poverty
are appearing. In response to them, we need to be creative in developing new
and practical forms of charitable outreach as concrete expressions of the way
of mercy.”[9]
The
Christian life involves the practice of the traditional seven corporal and
seven spiritual works of mercy.[10] “We
usually think of the works of mercy individually and in relation to a specific
initiative: hospitals for the sick, soup kitchens for the hungry, shelters for
the homeless, schools for those to be educated, the confessional and spiritual
direction for those needing counsel and forgiveness… But if we look at the
works of mercy as a whole, we see that the object of mercy is human life itself
and everything it embraces.”[11]
Obviously
“human life itself and everything it embraces” includes care for our common
home. So let me propose a complement to the two traditional sets of seven: may
the works of mercy also include care for our common home.
As
a spiritual work of mercy, care for our common home calls for a “grateful
contemplation of God’s world” (Laudato Si, 214) which “allows us to
discover in each thing a teaching which God wishes to hand on to us” (ibid.,
85). As a corporal work of mercy, care for our common home requires “simple
daily gestures which break with the logic of violence, exploitation and
selfishness” and “makes itself felt in every action that seeks to build a
better world” (ibid., 230-31).
6.
In conclusion, let us pray
Despite
our sins and the daunting challenges before us, we never lose heart. “The
Creator does not abandon us; he never forsakes his loving plan or repents of
having created us… for he has united himself definitively to our earth, and his
love constantly impels us to find new ways forward” (Laudato Si, 13;
245). In a particular way, let us pray on 1 September, and indeed throughout
the year:
“O
God of the poor,
help us to rescue the abandoned
and forgotten of this earth,
who are so precious in your eyes…
God of love, show us our place in this world
as channels of your love
for all the creatures of this earth” (ibid., 246),
God of mercy, may we receive your forgiveness
and convey your mercy throughout our common home.
Praise be to you!
Amen.
help us to rescue the abandoned
and forgotten of this earth,
who are so precious in your eyes…
God of love, show us our place in this world
as channels of your love
for all the creatures of this earth” (ibid., 246),
God of mercy, may we receive your forgiveness
and convey your mercy throughout our common home.
Praise be to you!
Amen.
[1] Letter for the Establishment of the “World Day of
Prayer for the Care of Creation” (6 August 2015).
[4] Address to the Second World Meeting of
Popular Movements, Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia (9 July 2015).
[5] Third Meditation, Retreat during the Jubilee
for Priests, Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, Rome (2 June 2016).
[8] First Meditation, Retreat during the Jubilee
for Priests, Basilica of Saint John Lateran, Rome (2 June 2016).
[10] The corporal works
of mercy are feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the
naked, welcoming the stranger, visiting the sick, visiting the imprisoned,
burying the dead. The spiritual works of mercy are counselling the
doubtful, instructing the ignorant, admonishing sinners, consoling the
afflicted, forgiving offenses, bearing patiently those who do us ill, praying
for the living and the dead.
[11] Third
Meditation, Retreat for the Jubilee for Priests, Basilica of Saint Paul
Outside the Walls, Rome (2 June 2016).
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