Embracing the Sanctity of Creation
Catholicism is a very fleshy, earthy religion. It’s in the nature of our faith to be connected to the rest of creation. We are called to care for our bodies, because they hold the spirit of Christ. Pope John Paul II teaches this in Theology of the Body - how we treat our bodies is an outward reflection of how we treat our spirit. So why is this any different from our treatment of our own planet?
“We have forgotten that we ourselves are dust of the earth (cf. Gen 2:7); our bodies are made up of her elements, we breathe her air and we receive life and refreshment from her waters. Nothing in the world is indifferent to us.” (Pope Francis, Laudato Si).
We have been given this gift, this breath of God, of meaning, of purpose, of this thirst for sanctity. But when we use this to figure out how to manipulate our environment for our own profits or convenience, we are shaken out of harmony with the nature of creation.
I’m not here to tell you to skip the straw at Starbucks or stop using plastic wrap or become a zero-waste household (but if you do, that’s awesome). But I am here to tell you that our treatment of our enviornment is just as important as the treatment of our own bodies. We are not separate. Everything is connected.
Just like Natural Family Planning works with the nature of our bodies without artificial intervention for the good of our own health and spirit, we must work with nature to live in harmony with our planet for the health of humanity as a whole.
We aren’t immune to the chemical reactions of our poor decisions. BPA in plastics. Endocrine disrupters in our cosmetics and personal care products. All of this correlates with a rise in cancer, hormonal imbalances, infertility - the list goes on and on. It isn’t just about killing the earth. We’re killing ourselves.
It’s hard. It’s not convenient. But we’re Catholic. We always do the harder thing. Even when it’s inconvenient or annoying.
But no matter how many clean products we use or how much we try to avoid toxins and chemicals in our food and personal care products, our world is full of them. It’s easy to throw our hands up and say, “Whatever! There’s no hope!” But there’s always hope. There is always hope in Christ. Because it isn’t just about you, and it isn’t just about me. We’re all in this darn thing together.
So this month, as we ponder Pope Francis’s intention for living an environmentally sustainable lifestyle, let us pray to embrace the sanctity of creation and strive to live in harmony with our natural home. Let us feel protective of it and defend it as stewards of God’s creation and gardeners of Christ’s Eden.