All the earth proclaim the Lord;
sing your praise to God.
Laudato Si’
Praise be to you!
Climate change is real. And there is a crisis. For eons, Earth has existed with humans in it. For millions of years, it was a verdant and luxuriant paradise, untouched and unspoilt by humans. Humans naively believe the Earth was created for them. So that in the fullness of time, they just came upon the scene. If it were so, it was a grievous assumption on the part of humans considering how they have abused and misused her.
Laudato Si’ is a wake up call for us to face up to our responsibility to take care of our only home – Earth. It proposes a Spirituality of Creation that respects and deeply cares for our Earth. Nature should be a constant source of awe and reverence on our part. Through Nature, we get a glimpse of our true Source and Creator.
Everything that exists is in perpetual motion, dancing to a certain rhythm that is the pulse beat of the universe. A cosmic symphony, if you will. As the cosmic dance continues, planets collide, stars explode and a wild riot of colors is painted across the universe from deep reds and purples to glorious yellows and oranges to subdued blues and greens to blinding whites. Man looks up in the heavens and captures it all in songs, poems and tales about his cosmic roots and origins. And these colors and motions are transformed into a panoply of life and sounds on Earth. The changing of the seasons, the cycle of birth and rebirth. The ebb and flow of rivers, winds and life itself. The ultimate thrill and beauty of all this awesome wonder is that I meet the author of all that beauty and grandeur every morning. In a moment of prayer.
Because of this wonderful creation, there is in every human being an abiding sense of awe and wonder. We are always asking questions, specially why, and forever seeking answers. From my earliest recollections, I have been trying to find out what my life is supposed to be about. Indeed, my life has been a journey of discovery and creations. Sometimes, the journey has been easy and a breeze. There are times, it was difficult and stormy. I have cried in both joy and sorrow. I have laughed often in sheer happiness and sometimes in sheer frustration. There are times I have made of my life what I want it to be. At other times, others helped me fashion out who I am. But always, every step of the way, my steps are led by a Presence – sometimes tentatively, at other times boldly, but always to rhythm and tune of a melody I seem to remember from eternity.
