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When we hear that we must care for God’s Creation, we may think of many different ways to do it: recycling, reusing, composting, reforesting, and educating people. But there is one more basic and powerful thing that we can add to this list: praying. On September 1, the Catholic Church celebrates the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation. This important day kicks off the Season of Creation, a time of sustained prayer and action that extends until October 4, the Memorial of Saint Francis of Assisi. The theme and invitation of this year’s celebration is “Listen to the voice of creation.”
On his message on this occasion, Pope Francis tells us that “If we learn how to listen, we can hear in the voice of creation a kind of dissonance. On the one hand, we can hear a sweet song in praise of our beloved Creator; on the other, an anguished plea, lamenting our mistreatment of this our common home.” Francis warns us to “modify our lifestyles and destructive systems” and to have “a different relationship with others and with creation.”
Let us join Saint Francis of Assisi in singing: “Praise be to you, my Lord, for all your creatures.” Let us sing with the psalmist: “Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!” Amen.
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