From a young age, I was blessed with a close connection to God’s beautiful creation. Tagging along on my brother’s Cub Scout hikes grew into leading scouts on backpacking trips in the New Mexico Sangre de Cristo mountains. These experiences formed some of the most amazing moments of my life. When we sing “How Great Thou Art,” I am struck by the imagery of the second verse:
When through the woods, and forest glades I wander
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees
When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur
And see the brook, and feel the gentle breeze
I am always transported to the top of Little Castillo, above the tree line, a mountain goat not far away and miles and miles of land within my sight. Goosebumps cover my arms and my eyes begin to water as I am filled with wonder and awe at God’s Creation. What a blessing we have, to exist in and experience such beauty!
Unfortunately, as Pope Francis said on the 2018 World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, “we have not succeeded in responsibly protecting creation.” Our environment is suffering at the hands of human greed and negligence. In 2015, Pope Francis wrote A Prayer for Our Earth, which has now been adapted into the song “Litany for the Earth,” number 514 in our Breaking Bread hymnals. This Sunday, throughout this fall, we at St. Edward’s will sing (and through singing pray twice!) the hymn. With our voices together, we will ask our Lord to help us to “heal our common home.”
If you’re interested in learning more about how to help the environment, I recommend you contact our Justice and Service ministry. Information can be found on the church website under “Ministries.”