Today's Marists 2024 Volume 8, Issue 2

Pouono Vea (3rd year seminarian at Marist College, Suva, Fiji) planting cabbages
on raised beds
to enflesh the reconciliation and communion between God and
creation that we experienced at the altar. After every celebration
of the Eucharist, we depart with the goal of restoring broken
relationships and directing our relationships (with God, other
people, and creation) back to God.
Reconciliation Ecology:
Restoring Relationship with Creation
The mission of reconciliation is not with creation that resides “out
there” someplace. No, this vision emphasizes that we are part of
creation - our bodies, our buildings, our cars, our yards, et cetera,
are part of creation. We are challenged to live in ecologically
affirming ways that enhance biodiversity and restore ecological
functionality in our world. This is an environmental stewardship
that faithfully reflects God’s love in the world and is to be done “in
accordance with the rhythm and the logic of creation.” (Joseph
Ratzinger, In the Beginning: A Catholic Understanding of the Story
of Creation and the Fall) Pope Benedict speaks of the natural world
as endowed with a “grammar” which, when properly grasped, “sets
forth ends and criteria for its wise use, not its reckless exploitation.”
(Caritas in Veritate) Becoming literate again in the language of
God’s earth is essential to any quest that would seek to preserve
and cherish the gift of creation.
Such a vision and way of life would also explore questions about
the future of biodiversity and the environmental integrity of
our planet: How do we construct buildings that generate more
energy than they use? How do we change the way we grow food
so that our agricultural systems accumulate, rather than erode,
healthy topsoil? How do we change the way we live so that native
biodiversity is attracted back to our urban and suburban areas? The
concrete exploration of such questions is part of our reconciliation
with creation. Reconciliation whether it is with God, other people
or creation is always hard work and challenging. The living out
of the mission of reconciliation with creation has to begin at
home. It starts by cultivating a constant sense of awareness of the
sustainability of our lifestyle. In my community at Marist College
in Fiji, the focus is on food, waste, water use, vegetable gardening,
landscaping and power. For food, we have incorporated a couple
of plant-based meals and decreased our meat consumption. In
waste management, we have increased the quantity of waste
Three raised beds made using earthbag technology (earth or soil mixed with
cement) in front of the dining room at Marist College, Suva, Fiji
bins to accommodate different categories of waste materials. In
water use we have erected water tanks to collect rainwater which
supplement our water supply. We have a compost bin which has
been providing nutrition for our garden the past four years. In our
vegetable garden we practice permaculture, a land management
approach that follows principles that factor in whole-systems
thinking. On landscaping, we use earthbag technology for making
raised beds and beautifying our landscape. Finally, on power, we
have lowered our energy footprints by changing all our lights to
LED. These projects have given us a sense of urgency in recognizing
our responsibility to care for the Earth and the poor of the Earth in
the way we live.
Reconciliation:
The Heart of Marist Mission
Our mission as Marists shares in the mission of Christ. By our
baptism we participate in the ongoing mission of Christ to reconcile
all creation and “bring all things in heaven and on earth together
in Christ.” (Eph. 1:10) As we live in this era of massive ecological
degradation, Pope Francis calls us to ecological conversion. Our
relationship with Christ should be evident in all our relationships:
with God, with others, and with all of creation. To truly exemplify
that reconciliation is at the heart of our Marist mission means
that we will grow new attitudes and be educated and aware of
the ecological and human stress suffered by those affected by
ecological degradation. We will be people who care for the weak,
both for the vulnerable earth and the poorest brothers and sisters
in society; we will have hearts open to true friendship based on the
natural and social world in which we live; we will be deeply aware
of inequality and injustice that results from both a corrupt social
system and a utilitarian approach to creation, and seek a more
just distribution of resources; and we will live simply and be aware
of our impact on creation. In doing so we become instruments of
reconciliation.
As Marists, we participate in the healing of a broken and
fragmented people and creation. However, it is a healing that will
only be perfected at the end of time when finally, “creation itself
will be set free from its enslavement to decay and will obtain the
freedom of the glory of the children of God.” (Rom. 8:19-21)
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