The Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur Ohio Province has responded to Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’ Action Platform by creating the Dorothy Stang Initiative for Laudato Si’ Action. While in the process of gathering data from sisters, associates, staff, donors and others in our circle, we were reminded that all steps we take are important - both big and small. We therefore introduce Your Little Bit of Good, a short weekly one-pager that focuses on some aspect of the environment. It is an attempt to bring forward small things we can do.
Teresa Phillips
Director of Justice, Peace and Care for Creation
Prayer
An Amazing Day
I thank You God for most this amazing day:
for leaping greenly spirits of trees and a blue true dream of sky;
and for everything which is natural which is infinite which is yes.
- E.E. Cummings
Season of Creations
Knowledge
September 1 began the Season of Creation! Each year this celebration runs from September 1, the Day of Prayer for Creation, through October 4, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi. It is an ecumenical season to come together to pray and act on behalf of our planet. It all began in 1989 with the Orthodox Church dedicating September 1, the start of their liturgical year, to creation. From there, the World Council of Churches developed it into a season. Pope Francis and the Roman Catholic Church embraced it in 2015.
The Season of Creation is meant to help us connect with each other and our earth – both spiritually and physically. You can participate through prayer and action. That action can be alone or in a group. You are encouraged to register your events on the Season of Creation website. This includes both prayer and action events. There are resources for many different Christian denominations. You can view Catholic resources here.
For those local to Cincinnati:
- The City of Cincinnati will have a Green Cincinnati Plan Advocacy, Education & Outreach Subcommittee meeting on Thursday, September 8 from 6-7:30 PM at the Civic Garden Center. Anyone is welcome. RSVP.
- Cincinnati’s Recycle and Reuse hub will celebrate “Hubtober Fest” on Saturday, September 18. You can find details here.
Action
A few ideas for you:
Many state and local parks have fall clean-up days. These volunteer days most often involve clearing trails and underbrush, which is most often invasive plants. Clearing this allows better access for native plant growth.
How is recycling in your city? Are their electronic waste drives you could help with? Or, could you plan one for the SOC 2023? Hard to recycle items often go into the landfill. Many cities and towns have drop of recycle centers. Perhaps a publicity campaign would be a good idea!
Could you hold or attend a public prayer service for creation, either in person or on Zoom?