“God of all creation, we enter with joy into the season of Advent, anticipating your coming in the humbleness of a child, your Son Jesus. We thank you for the great gift of the Incarnation, as Jesus joined in our human nature, sharing the material being of all creation.Each day, let us ponder their goodness as signs of your love. Amen” Advent is a time of hope and period of preparation. A time for creating space in our hearts as we await for the Christ Jesus. It’s also an opportunity to gain a new perspective on what is important in our lives. We invite you to live Laudato Si! by preparing for Christ!s coming and living reconciled with each other and all creation. Below is a Sustainable New Years Guide with helpful links. We hope you take this time to read and joyfully discover what small positive changes you can make. We don’t have to move mountains or travel “90 miles” as Mary, Mother of God, had to. All we need to have is courage and a desire to make a small difference.
 

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Creation Care and the Rosary 

Salvete, omnes!  Greetings to all and praise be to God.   As we conclude our month celebration of the Season of Creation, Pope Francis encyclical, Laudato Si, and his sustainability platform is still germane. Love and care for creation are an essential dimension of our faith. On Care for our Common Home “invites people to protect God's creation for future generations, to embrace a lifestyle change for their own good, and to take care of people who are poor and more vulnerable”; an ecological conversion.

Prayer is a very important part of our faith. The month of October we join Father Vincent’s rosary challenge.  We invite you to meditate on Mary as the mother of all God’s creations. Why not add “Care of our Common Home” to your meditation.

Below are just a few examples from Care 4Creation that focus on the relationship of God in the form of Jesus, the Earth that God created and us as children of God.

Joyful Ministries:
Help us Mary.  Pray that your Son grant us the grace to make him present in the world through our lives, our choices and our loving care for all people, creation and Earth. Help us to listen to and be with those in need. Help us to protect all life. Help us to share what little we have so that God may make of us keepers of our sisters and brothers, as well as stewards of the good and ordered garden here on Earth.

Sorrowful Ministries:
Help us Mary.  Pray that your Son  grants us the grace to respect all creation and the truth He brought into the world.  Help us to always see the dignity of our fellow human being and to make choices that protect and honor all people and all of creation and Earth. Help us to change our ways from selfish consumption to selfless sacrifice and self-restraint. Mother Mary, help the Church bring to international and local communities the desire to care for the indigenous, the emigrants, and the ecosystems that allow all life to flourish.

Glorious Ministries:
Help us Mary.  Pray that your Son grants us the grace to see a connection between our efforts in the world and the presence of Christ. May your example lead us for the protection of all people and all creation for the benefit of all that God made very good in the beginning.

Luminous Ministries:
Help us Mary.  Pray that your Son grants us the grace so that we may share our best to all we come in contact with.  Help us to see beyond our immediate needs and rather discern the greater needs of all life, creation and the Earth. Help us to offer our lives to God - to remain close to Him in Word and Sacrament—so that He, through us, may enter human history and all creation to elevate, protect, and transform it.

For more information on guided rosary meditations and Laudato Si please see the following:

https://www.zitlaudatosi.cz/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/C4C-Guided-Rosary.pdf
https://ourcommonhome.org/media/docs/Rosary-Meditations-Care4Creation-Month.pdf
https://brentwoodcsj.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/EN-Rosary_-May-24th.pdf
 

Laudato Si' – United for the Same Concern

“Bring the whole human family together...for we know that things can change”.  “We human beings are united as brothers and sisters on a wonderful pilgrimage”(LS 92).  This, my dear brothers and sisters, is Pope Francis' message in LAUDATO SI'.

But what is Laudato Si' and how can we we join our Pontiff's in this care for creation.
 
Laudato si’ (Praise Be to You) “on care for our common home” is the second encyclical of Pope Francis. June 18, 2021 marks the sixth year of this documents release date to the world.

The title “care of our common home” is an Umbrian phrase from St. Francis 13th-century “Canticle of the Sun”; a prayer in which God is praised for the creation of the different creatures and aspects of the Earth.  He reminds us that our common home is “like a sister with whom we share our life and a beautiful mother who opens her arms to embrace us”.

Pope Francis points out that “living our vocation to be protectors of God's handiwork is essential to a life of virtue: it is not an optional or secondary aspect of our Christian experience.”  The encyclical speaks to irresponsible development and exploitation of our natural resources, environmental degradation and global warming, and calls all people of the world to take "swift and unified global action."

On May 2021, Pope Francis launched the Laudato Si' Seven Year platform. This “road map” ( Season-of-Creation-Brochure-Digital.pdf (catholicbishops.ie) provides Catholics with 7 goals to try to achieve: “Adoption of Sustainable Lifestyles, Response to the Cry of the Poor, Ecological Economics, Ecological Education, Ecological Spirituality, Community Engagement and Participation Action and Response to the Cry of the Earth”  Please take a moment to read this brochure and share it with your loved ones, schools and community.

September 1 through October 4, Catholics around the world will be celebrating the “Season of Creation” by renewing our  “Oikos” (which means our home, our family”) of God. 

Psalm 84 reminds us that in God's house (oikos) , even the sparrow finds a home to build a nest and lay her eggs. In the Gospel of John 1:14, we read that the “Word became flesh and pitched his tent among us.”   So too as Abraham and Sarah opened their tent as a home for three strangers, who turned out to be God's angels (Genesis 18). 

Creating and respecting a common home for all creatures of the Earth is a source of great blessing and faith.  Begin your journey by becoming more aware of Pope Francis encyclical and how you can do your part in protecting our environment. Please stop by Abraham's tent baskets in the gathering space and write your intention. Whether it's turning off your faucet when you brush your teeth or recycling that can you just used; everything matters. Paper and colored pencils will be provided.   For those who need more time, we welcome your poem, prayer, song small note any time during this Season of Creation... Abraham's basket is open for all.

The Social Justice and Peace Ministry will provide you with monthly information on Laudato Si'.   It is our hope that, as a Parish community, we will gain a relateable understanding of the encyclical and come together to promote and support change.  We invite you to pray, take action, and advocate for our common home.

Please check the weekly bulletin and website (urolm.org) for upcoming activities and more information on Laudato Si and the Season of Creation.