May
Standing on Holy Ground
In this season of picnics, camp-outs, gardens and vacations may we appreciate and enjoy with thankful hearts all that the earth has to offer. Let us commit ourselves to this way of life that honors the earth. The following is part of a speech made by Chief Seattle in 1854 in response to the U.S. government demand that the tribes sell their land and accept life on the reservation.
How can you buy or sell the sky or the warmth of the land?
The idea is strange to us.
If we do not own the freshness of the air and the sparkle of the water,
how can you buy them?
Teach your children that the earth is our mother.
Whatever befalls the earth befalls the children of the earth.
We are part of the earth, and the earth is part of us.
Like the blood which unites one family, all things are connected.
Our God is the same God, whose compassion is equal for all.
For we do not weave the web of life,
we are merely a strand in it.
Whatever we do to the web we do to ourselves.
Let us give thanks for the web and the circle that connects us.
Thanks be to God, the God of all.
~Chief Seattle 1854
How can you buy or sell the sky or the warmth of the land?
The idea is strange to us.
If we do not own the freshness of the air and the sparkle of the water,
how can you buy them?
Teach your children that the earth is our mother.
Whatever befalls the earth befalls the children of the earth.
We are part of the earth, and the earth is part of us.
Like the blood which unites one family, all things are connected.
Our God is the same God, whose compassion is equal for all.
For we do not weave the web of life,
we are merely a strand in it.
Whatever we do to the web we do to ourselves.
Let us give thanks for the web and the circle that connects us.
Thanks be to God, the God of all.
~Chief Seattle 1854
St. Francis Pledge to Care for Creation and the Poor
All across our country, Catholics are taking the St. Francis Pledge to Care for Creation and the Poor and joining the Catholic Climate Covenant. The St. Francis Pledge is a promise and a commitment by Catholic individuals, families, parishes, organizations and institutions to live our faith by protecting God’s Creation and advocating on behalf of people in poverty who face the harshest impacts of global climate change. To join the Covenant, you commit to act on each of the five elements of the St. Francis Pledge.
To learn more... Click here
To learn more... Click here
