September 1: A celebration of God’s decision to create

By Bishop Allwyn D’Silva

The World Day of Prayer for Creation takes place each year on September 1. Inspired by the rich tradition of the Eastern Church, it is both a time to celebrate God’s loving decision to create, and a time to reflect on how we have stewarded the great gift of creation.

This is a cornerstone of our faith. Indeed, Scripture begins with the great mystery of Creation. The Creator fashioned life from a “formless void,” a great nothingness without light or life (Gen 1:2). The Creator’s decision to light a spark in the midst of this darkness is generous beyond our comprehension. Everything around us, from the hand of a loved one to the flowers in a field, flows from this act of creative love. As Pope Francis tells us, “the entire material universe speaks of God’s love” (Praise be to you84).

Creation has not been abandoned to itself. We, who were created in the image of God, have been appointed as its guardians. We are guardians, charged with “cultivating and keeping” the garden (Gen 2:15). As Pope Benedict XVI reminded us, “the Earth is indeed a precious gift from the Creator who, in designing its intrinsic order, has given us landmarks that guide us in our role as guardians of his creation.”

As we mark the World Day of Prayer for Creation, we ask ourselves: have we lived up to the role our Creator has entrusted to us? The answer is clearly and tragically: no. My own home city, Mumbai, provides a good example of the consequences that can result from failing to care for God’s gift of creation.

Mumbai is a megacity of nearly 21 million people, sandwiched between mountains and the sea. It is naturally subject to monsoons, cyclones and extreme heat. In the past, Mumbaikers have had to deal with these challenges. Although it was difficult, they learned to prepare for rain and storms and seek relief from the heat.

But the Earth’s climate is changing, and policymakers are failing to keep pace. The hard-learned lessons of the past no longer serve Mumbai’s residents.

Instead, extreme heat is uprising. Earlier this year, the Mumbai Metropolitan Area recorded several days of heat of 39 to 43 degrees. Even the evening and night hours now give less reliefwhich is particularly difficult for the poor, who do not have access to cooling.

Giant monsoons and uncontrolled growth of informal settlements on mountain slopes lead to deadly disasters. landslidesAt the same time, storms are approaching from the sea, and with the disappearance of the mangroves that slowed and attenuated the power of the storms, coastal residents are vulnerable to lose their homes.

I worked for 21 years in two Mumbai slums, Jerimeri and Dharavi. I can testify that the poor feel these problems much more acutely. Families in these areas already face a lack of access to education, infrastructure and good employment. They simply cannot stay home when the weather is dangerously hot, or move when storms and landslides threaten.

Forcing these families to deal with climate disasters on top of everything else they manage is a moral failure of the highest order. The scientific community keeps reminding us that humanity’s actions are causing climate change. I can’t imagine that this is what our Creator intended us to do as stewards of the garden.

This annual celebration offers us a wonderful opportunity. It is a time for us to reflect on God’s loving decision to create and to reconsider how we fulfill our role as stewards of creation.

This day of prayer opens the month Season of creationToday and throughout the season, let us praise the Creator and act together to care for the sacred gift of creation.