Laudato si week – Day one: 16th May
Over these days we prepare to mark the 5th anniversary of Laudato si – on the care of our common home, a letter from Pope Francis to all the people of the world offering us all an opportunity to reflect on the world around us and to respond to the signs we see around us – the joy of God’s creation and the sadness of the destruction of planet earth. We are called to open our eyes and to see how God is present throughout creation.
Laudato si is written to every person – not just Catholics – as a reminder of our interconnectedness to each other and to all of God’s creation.
Over these days we invite you to reflect with us on the story of Creation as described in Genesis Chapter one and on the six chapters of Laudato si as together we give praise to God for his gifts to us.
Laudato si week – Day two: 17th May
Genesis 1: 1-2
In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters.
“LAUDATO SI’, mi’ Signore” – “Praise be to you, my Lord”.
Laudato si: introduction
Opening the document Pope Francis reflects on the words of Saint Francis of Assisi who invites us to see nature as a magnificent book in which God speaks to us and grants us a glimpse of his infinite beauty and goodness. Our common home, he says, is like a sister with whom we share our life and a mother who opens her arms to embrace us.
“LAUDATO SI’, mi’ Signore” – “Praise be to you, my Lord”.
Laudato si week – Day three: 18th May
Genesis 1:3-5
Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.
“LAUDATO SI’, mi’ Signore” – “Praise be to you, my Lord”.
Laudato si: Chapter one
Pope Francis asks the question: ‘What is happening to our common home?’ How is our behaviour contributing to the destruction of the gift of God? We are living as if our human intervention, often in the service of business interests and consumerism, is of greater importance than our care for this gift of God. We are making our earth less rich and beautiful, ever more limited and grey, even as technological advances and consumer goods continue to abound limitlessly. “We seem to think that we can substitute an irreplaceable and irretrievable beauty with something which we have created ourselves”.
“LAUDATO SI’, mi’ Signore” – “Praise be to you, my Lord”.