We have witnessed historic fires in California, burning millions of acres. California itself has seen some of the highest temperatures in the world these past few months. We hear of Antarctic ice shelves melting at alarming rates. Some scientists tell us that the animal population worldwide is decreasing far more rapidly than we thought possible. People suffer, especially the poor when they are directly impacted by the effects of a changing environment.
We cannot simply stand by and wring our hands saying this is so sad. It is time, and past time, to marshal large numbers of people actively fighting against environmental diminishment. As Catholics and other Christians, we cannot simply be content with saying our prayers and reading our Bibles. We too must engage with other people of goodwill in doing what we can to turn the tide of this environmental crisis. We recall that the etymology of the word catholic means “concerned about the whole or universal” – we are open to and concerned about all life.
When we read Luke’s Gospel, we see Jesus reminding us that a disciple is not superior to his teacher; but when fully trained, every disciple will be like his teacher. Jesus goes on to ask us, “remove the wooden beam from your eye first. Then you will see clearly to remove the splinter in your brother’s or sister’s eye. (Luke 6:39 – 42).
Do we have a splinter in our eye when it comes to facing our environmental crisis? Does not the Spirit of Christ present among and within us demand action on our part? How much discernment do we need to recognize the voice of the Spirit calling us to engage together in helping to heal our wounded planet? How are we becoming fully trained disciples of Jesus when facing our global disasters?
We pray in Psalm 81, “How lovely is Your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God. Even the sparrow finds a home and the swallow a nest in which she puts her young … The Lord withholds no good thing from those who walk with sincerity.”
The Earth, our home, is truly a lovely and God-given dwelling place for all God’s creatures, including all people. But we are entrusted with the responsibility of caring for it. I asked myself today, “What specifically am I doing as a Catholic and as a member of the human race to help heal our world?”
We ask ourselves what specifically we are doing to lessen the impact of environmental degradation. It may involve driving our automobile less. It may involve joining with others to plant new trees on burnt hillsides. It might be helping to teach about the Church’s mission to show love and support to rejected humanity. We experience God’s love through the Earth with which we share life. How can we, as individuals and as communities, and like Christ, show love to the suffering Earth and its struggling humanity?