It’s all about the season
September 7, 2022 at 2:48 p.m.
We are a people governed by season. Whether it relates to the weather, the holidays, the Church year or the organization of our cultural customs, the idea of a season is something we understand and typically respond to … often with consistency and sometimes even enthusiasm.
It sounds simple enough, but, as we all know, it can get quite complicated. There are often multiple seasons underway at the same time, making life extremely challenging. Many of us bemoan what seems to be the advancing of the seasons, with Back-to-School now reaching into early August and the Christmas holiday gearing up in September.
And sometimes, new seasons are identified and proclaimed, such as the Season of Creation. The internationally recognized observance was proclaimed in 1989 for Eastern Orthodox Christians by the late Ecumenical Patriarch Dimitrios I of Constantinople. But in 2015, the Season of Creation took on new momentum when Pope Francis encouraged Catholics to welcome it, in concert with the Pope’s encyclical on faith and the environment, “Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home.”
In his encyclical, Pope Francis calls on people to address pollution, waste and misuse of natural resources. He promotes “integral ecology,” that is, a realization that all things in the natural world are connected, and everyone has a responsibility to promote a healthful planet.
The season starts Sept. 1 with the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation and closes with the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, Oct. 4.
This September issue of the Monitor Magazine reports on one of the year’s busiest seasons, especially in the Church. Our young people are returning to schools, to catechetical studies, to parish youth groups. Parish life in general swings into action after the relative quiet of the summer. And we have tried to bring our readers a sampling of the many events and activities underway.
But with all the busyness of this season, we urge everyone to be mindful of the Season of Creation. We hope you will read and reflect on the messages in this issue from Pope Francis and Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., about the moral imperative we face to take positive action to preserve our “Common Home.” The evidence is all around us that this is an uphill battle, but one that we must take on for our children and their children.
With the transitioning seasons upon us, we wish for all of our readers the stamina and good humor to embrace those busy schedules, and the ability to find quiet and respite when it is most needed.
God bless!
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We are a people governed by season. Whether it relates to the weather, the holidays, the Church year or the organization of our cultural customs, the idea of a season is something we understand and typically respond to … often with consistency and sometimes even enthusiasm.
It sounds simple enough, but, as we all know, it can get quite complicated. There are often multiple seasons underway at the same time, making life extremely challenging. Many of us bemoan what seems to be the advancing of the seasons, with Back-to-School now reaching into early August and the Christmas holiday gearing up in September.
And sometimes, new seasons are identified and proclaimed, such as the Season of Creation. The internationally recognized observance was proclaimed in 1989 for Eastern Orthodox Christians by the late Ecumenical Patriarch Dimitrios I of Constantinople. But in 2015, the Season of Creation took on new momentum when Pope Francis encouraged Catholics to welcome it, in concert with the Pope’s encyclical on faith and the environment, “Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home.”
In his encyclical, Pope Francis calls on people to address pollution, waste and misuse of natural resources. He promotes “integral ecology,” that is, a realization that all things in the natural world are connected, and everyone has a responsibility to promote a healthful planet.
The season starts Sept. 1 with the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation and closes with the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, Oct. 4.
This September issue of the Monitor Magazine reports on one of the year’s busiest seasons, especially in the Church. Our young people are returning to schools, to catechetical studies, to parish youth groups. Parish life in general swings into action after the relative quiet of the summer. And we have tried to bring our readers a sampling of the many events and activities underway.
But with all the busyness of this season, we urge everyone to be mindful of the Season of Creation. We hope you will read and reflect on the messages in this issue from Pope Francis and Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., about the moral imperative we face to take positive action to preserve our “Common Home.” The evidence is all around us that this is an uphill battle, but one that we must take on for our children and their children.
With the transitioning seasons upon us, we wish for all of our readers the stamina and good humor to embrace those busy schedules, and the ability to find quiet and respite when it is most needed.
God bless!