by Leela Ramdeen, Chair, CCSJ and Director, CREDI
“Let us be protectors of Creation, protectors of God’s plan inscribed in nature, protectors of one another and of the environment” – Pope Francis, Earth Day 2013.
On April 22 the world will observe the 45th anniversary of Earth Day. All that we have is gift from God. Stewardship of God’s Creation/Reconciliation with Creation is a key social justice principle and forms a vital component of the Archdiocese’s Mission Statement since Scripture tells us to “cultivate and care for” God’s creation (Gen 2:15). In 1989 St Pope John Paul II highlighted the fact that: “The ecological crisis is a moral issue” (The Ecological Crisis: A Common Responsibility).
On January 31, Pope Francis told members of Italy’s National Federation of Farmers that it was important to remember that humankind is called not only to cultivate the land, but also to preserve it. He said it is vital that nations work together to protect creation.
And on February 9, in addressing a business expo group, he stated that politicians need to make economic policies based upon the dignity of persons and the common good; that economic policies must involve respect for the Earth; and that the resources and environment should not be used and abused.
“The earth, which is the mother for all, asks for our respect and not violence, or worse still the arrogance from masters. We have to pass it on to our children improved, guarded, because it was a loan that they have given to us. This attitude of safeguarding the earth is not an exclusive commitment of Christians, it concerns everyone.”
Pope Emeritus Benedict had warned in July 2007: “Our earth speaks to us, and we must listen if we want to survive.” He later urged us “to respect the ecology of nature, if we are not to cause serious harm to the world which future generations will receive from us”.
Read his World Day of Peace message on January 1, 2010 to understand more about the relationship between God, humanity and creation. It is entitled: “If you want to cultivate peace, protect creation.”
In 2010, the CCSJ produced a Draft framework towards an Environmental Policy for the Archdiocese. It was launched by the then Archbishop Gilbert. A four-page Executive Summary, a six-page Reference Section to the draft framework, and a more detailed supporting document are available on CCSJ’s website.
The document outlines some useful ways of protecting our environment. Two important documents are referred to in this draft Framework. The first is the 2005 Pastoral Letter by our AEC Bishops, Caring for the earth – Our responsibility: An invitation to reflection, in which they called for a “conversion towards a different lifestyle, a different way of thinking and behaving” to protect our planet.
The second is the US Bishops’ 1991 document, “Renewing the Earth: An Invitation to Reflection and Action on the Environment in Light of Catholic Social Teaching” in which they reminded us: “An ordered love for creation… is ecological without being ecocentric. We can and must care for the earth without mistaking it for the ultimate object of our devotion. A Christian love of the natural world, as St Francis showed us, can restrain grasping and wanton human behaviour and help mightily to preserve and nurture all that God has made. We believe that faith in a good and loving God is a compelling source of passionate and enduring care for all creation.”
Archbishop Gilbert stated in the Foreword to CCSJ’s draft Framework: “The theology of the Catholic Church on the Environment is voluminous… The division of theology on Creation is an ethical or moral category in Church teaching. While the Church accepts in principle the established data of science on creation, the Church approaches the interrelated issues of creation, environment and ecology primarily from the viewpoint of theology – Sacred Scripture, Tradition and the Magisterium…Unless people are properly motivated, there is little hope they will persevere in the long-term process of protecting and sustaining the environment.”
The challenge for us in T&T is to be motivated enough to play our part to arrest the unsustainable exploitation of the earth’s resources. The UN rightly reminds us that: “International Mother Earth Day is celebrated to remind each of us that the Earth and its ecosystems provide us with life and sustenance. It also recognises a collective responsibility, as called for in the 1992 Rio Declaration, to promote harmony with nature and the Earth to achieve a just balance among the economic, social and environmental needs of present and future generations of humanity.”
