Bangalore (India), 09/09/20, Sr. Jacintha Gracy Miranda, Coordinator de JPIC.- Since the publication of the Encyclical ‘Laudato Si’ by Pope Francis on May 24, 2015, the Ecumenical family is celebrating September 1, as the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation and the beginning of the Season of Creation which concludes on the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi on October 4. During this period, Christians renew their faith in the God of creation in prayer and work for the Care of our Common Home.
The theme taken by the ecumenical family is for the celebration of the Season of Creation 2020 is “Jubilee for the Earth” marking the 50th anniversary of International Day for Mother Earth. Pope Francis in his message for World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation on September 1, 2020, has referred to the Holy Scriptures (Lev 25:10). It speaks of Jubilee as a time to:
- Remember original vocation of creation to exist and flourish as a community of love.
- Return and turn back to God in repentance.
- Rest and find just and sustainable ways of living that can give the earth the rest it requires.
- Restore the original harmony of creation and to heal strained human relationships.
- Rejoice as the Holy Spirit inspires individuals and communities around the world to come together to rebuild our common home and to defend the most vulnerable in our midst.
Pope Francis’s profound reflection on care and respect for the earth and its resources, is a call to work for peace with Creator and harmony with creation. It invites the whole world for a remedial and a corrective action towards our common home in order to achieve the restorative justice.
He stresses on the point that the pandemic has brought us to a crossroads and it is a decisive moment to end our superfluous and destructive goals and activities and to cultivate values, connections and activities that are life-giving; to review our position at the face of a consumer society and care for creation, for an ecological examination on our habits of energy usage, consumption, transportation and diet.
Jubilee for the Earth is to be at peace with the Creator who is the source and origin of all things. It is a time to think and listen to the voice of creation and fellow human beings, especially the poor and the most vulnerable. It is to share the common heritage of creation in joyful fellowship, supporting and protecting one another.
Pope stresses that this is a time for “restorative justice” through debt cancellation of vulnerable countries, in recognition of the severe impacts of the medical, social and economic crises they face due to Covid-19. Policy, legislation and investment must be focused on the common good and guarantee that global social and environmental goals are met.
The climate emergency warns us that we are running out of time and unless we take action, it will prove catastrophic, especially for poor communities around the world. He invites all nations to reduce emissions and to restore the right of indigenous communities to regain control of the usage of their land. They are to be protected from multinational companies that operate in less developed countries through the destructive extraction of fossil fuels, minerals, timber and agro industrial products among others.
The Clarion call is to hear the cry of the earth and the poor and to join hands to rebuild our common home and defend the vulnerable. The anniversary year of Laudato Si, is the opportunity to launch initiatives at the local and global levels, responding to this call.
Let us then come together as we are all inter-connected, to create a more just, peaceful and sustainable world, and make the ‘Season of Creation’ truly an ecumenical initiative.