"Laudato Si" Sends My Family Into the Wilderness

Pope Francis’s Encyclical “Laudato Si,” urges us to strive for harmony with God, others, and nature, which existed at the beginning of Creation before the fall.  Many times in the encyclical, Pope Francis emphasizes the importance of the family in ecological as well as spiritual education.  He also stresses the need for solidarity with future generations, to whom we will pass on the current environment.  What better way to celebrate the encyclical than with a family trip deep into the wilderness. 

Full disclosure – we have been planning this trip since last summer.  We really are going to the wilderness, specifically, Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.  My wife earned her second Master’s in Montessori education last spring.  She researched the effects of nature on learning.  A woman she met during her studies operates Tuscarora Lodge Outfitters on the east end of the Boundary Waters.  This summer we are going where no motorized vehicle has gone, where cell reception is not available, and where the environment is left in a natural state. 

Jesus was intimate with all of creation.  This Sunday, the Gospel according to Mark records the storm

on the Sea of Galilee.  The Disciples and Jesus are in the boat and a storm comes up.  The Disciples are scared, but Jesus calms the storm.  “They were filled with great awe and said to one another, ‘Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?’” (Mark 4:41) Pope Francis refers to the same story from the Gospel According to Matthew and observes that “Jesus lived in full harmony with creation, and others were amazed.” (Laudato Si, #98)  Jesus, who is fully divine, is also fully human, and is the model for all of us.  We are supposed to live in full harmony with nature.  People were amazed that Jesus was in harmony with nature because many of them, and many of us are not in harmony with nature. 

The harmony and intimacy with all of creation is broken by sin, especially in regard to original sin.  Pope Francis indicates that we too can live in harmony with nature, just as Jesus did, and just as it was in the beginning of Creation.  He holds St. Francis up as an example.  St. Francis was able to obtain a communion with all of creation.  The pope says, “It is significant that the harmony which Saint Francis of Assisi experienced with all creatures was seen as a healing of that rupture. Saint Bonaventure held that, through universal reconciliation with every creature, Saint Francis in some way returned to the state of original innocence.” (Laudato Si #66)  Our connection with nature can be part of our recovery from the sinful nature of the world.  St. Francis knew what we all know instinctively, that being in communion with nature refreshes our mind, body, and soul. 

Nature not only teaches us about God, it enables us to experience something about God.  Pope Francis, following the teachings of St. Bonaventure, points out that, “human beings, before sin, were able to see how each creature ‘testifies that God is three.’ The reflection of the Trinity was there to be recognized in nature….”  The Pope asserts that if we believe that God is a Trinitarian communion, then the Trinity is evident in all creation.  (Laudato Si #239)  Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are a community of love.  The love that is generated is the source of all creation.  The presence of Father, Son, and Spirit are evident as we read the first two chapters of Genesis.  There is creation which the Father has authored, the spirit hovering over the water, and God walking about in the cool of the evening.  We cannot help but see and reflect on the poetic verses of Genesis when we are out in nature, especially when we are in undisturbed wilderness.  It is then that we are humans, in creation, with God. 

A family in the wilderness with God is the ideal setting for developing a sense of God’s presence in creation.  As Pope Francis puts it, “In the family we first learn how to show love and respect for life; we are taught the proper use of things, order and cleanliness, respect for the local ecosystem and care for all creatures.”  (Laudato Si #213)  In our families, we learn how to cooperate with one another, develop virtues for a moral life, and discover our place in the world.  Our place, according to the book of Genesis is in Creation.  Even if it is dinner in the back yard, a hike in a Forest Preserve, or a camping trip to a State Park, being in nature as a family reorients us to how we were created to be. 

It is imperative to pass on the appreciation of creation to the next generation.  Pope Francis says, “Intergenerational solidarity is not optional, but rather a basic question of justice, since the world we have received also belongs to those who will follow us.” (Laudato Si #159)  We only occupy this earth for a brief time.  It was given to us by those who lived before us, and it is handed on to those who live after us.  Not only do we need to care for it, but we need to teach our children to care for it.  Those who learned to appreciate creation as children from their parents, teach their children to appreciate it as well.  Even those who did not grow up with an appreciation for creation can gain an appreciation and give more to the next generation than they received. 

Pope Francis concluded Laudato Si with two prayers.  I plan to take these two prayers with me when I go out with my family to reconnect with creation. 

A prayer for our earth (all faiths / religions)

All-powerful God, you are present in the whole universe
and in the smallest of your creatures.
You embrace with your tenderness all that exists.
Pour out upon us the power of your love,
that we may protect life and beauty.
Fill us with peace, that we may live
as brothers and sisters, harming no one.
O God of the poor,

help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth,
so precious in your eyes.
Bring healing to our lives,
that we may protect the world and not prey on it,
that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction.
Touch the hearts
of those who look only for gain
at the expense of the poor and the earth.
Teach us to discover the worth of each thing,
to be filled with awe and contemplation,
to recognize that we are profoundly united
with every creature
as we journey towards your infinite light.
We thank you for being with us each day.
Encourage us, we pray, in our struggle
for justice, love and peace.

A Christian prayer in union with creation

Father, we praise you with all your creatures.
They came forth from your all-powerful hand;
they are yours, filled with your presence and your tender love.
Praise be to you!

Son of God, Jesus,
through you all things were made.
You were formed in the womb of Mary our Mother,
you became part of this earth,
and you gazed upon this world with human eyes.
Today you are alive in every creature
in your risen glory.
Praise be to you!

Holy Spirit, by your light
you guide this world towards the Father’s love
and accompany creation as it groans in travail.
You also dwell in our hearts
and you inspire us to do what is good.
Praise be to you!

Triune Lord, wondrous community of infinite love,
teach us to contemplate you
in the beauty of the universe,
for all things speak of you.
Awaken our praise and thankfulness
for every being that you have made.
Give us the grace to feel profoundly joined
to everything that is.

God of love, show us our place in this world
as channels of your love
for all the creatures of this earth,
for not one of them is forgotten in your sight.
Enlighten those who possess power and money
that they may avoid the sin of indifference,
that they may love the common good, advance the weak,
and care for this world in which we live.
The poor and the earth are crying out.

O Lord, seize us with your power and light,
help us to protect all life,
to prepare for a better future,
for the coming of your Kingdom
of justice, peace, love and beauty.
Praise be to you!

Amen.