Solidarity Booklet CONTENTS Organizers Guide 2 Symbols of Solidarity 5 Way of the Cross 8 Faith Reflection/Homily 14 Prayers of the Faithful 16 Please give generously Help a just world take root 2012 C-12-E-22
Help a just world take root Tips on Organizing The role of members and volunteers in organizing a successful Share Lent campaign is essential and we deeply appreciate it. When you encourage your parish, school or community to give generously, you are helping a just world take root for the poorest of our sisters and brothers in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. The following tips are meant to help you organize a successful Share Lent campaign in your parish or school. You will also find ideas for broadcasting your good work, and for how to get involved in Share Lent on-line. Get ready, get set > Assemble your team (even if it s just one other person) and set a clear goal for your collection. > Meet with your parish priest and/or parish council, and liturgical committee to bring them up to speed with your plans for Share Lent. > Meet with the leaders of the core groups in your parish (Parish Council, lectors, youth, Catholic Women s League, Knights of Columbus etc.) to explain the campaign and to invite them to participate. > Arrange for spoken announcements from the pulpit each week of Lent. > Get inspired by attending a diocesan Share Lent training workshop. Contact your Development and Peace Animator for details. > Visit the Share Lent website regularly. Share what s there by e-mail, Twitter or Facebook. Ensure success Create excitement around Share Lent by planning all of your major activities before Solidarity Sunday, on the Fifth Sunday of Lent. > Ash Wednesday is a great time to launch your Share Lent campaign. Have a special event such as a Thinkfast! on this day or close to it. > Plan to distribute the Solidarity Calendar in your parish the weekend before Ash Wednesday. > Hand out one or two pieces of Share Lent material every Sunday. This year, you can hand out three different Solidarity Cards in the weeks leading up to Solidarity Sunday. > Invite a guest speaker who has lived in Asia, Africa, Latin America or the Middle East to talk with parishioners about how Development and Peace changes people s lives and communities. Contact your Animator for ideas. > Organize a Solidarity Way of the Cross. Visit our Share Lent website: www.devp.org/sharelent 2
Tips on Organizing > Encourage your priest to speak about Development and Peace during mass in the weeks leading up to Solidarity Sunday. > Visit the Development and Peace website to get involved in some easy online fundraising activities. FOURTH SUNDAY OF LENT (or the Sunday before your celebration and collection) > Have someone read a prayer or reflection from this booklet. Remind parishioners that the collection will take place the following weekend. > Hand out Share Lent collection envelopes, or insert them into the bulletin. > Hold a special event such as a Solidarity Way of the Cross one day this week. > Have extra collection envelopes on hand for the next weekend. One of the best ways to give is through Development and Peace s Share Year-Round program of monthly pre-authorized donations. It s easy and convenient. Visit our website at www. devp.org and click on Donate Today and then Monthly Donations to sign up. Encourage others to do the same! FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT: Solidarity Day This is usually the day to give the homily/faith reflection and encourage parishioners to donate to the Share Lent collection. Be sure to thank them for their generosity! > Prepare a few special Solidarity Day activities such as the Symbols of Solidarity, found on pages 5 to 7. Celebrate your success! > Thank the people who will make this our best Share Lent ever those who give their time and energy to carrying out the campaign as well as those who donate. > Organize a post-easter thank-you event to recognize and thank Share Lent volunteers. > Publish a final thank-you notice in the bulletin, telling everyone how much was raised. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO! We d love to hear about your campaign in order to plan effectively for next year. Contact: Share Lent c/o sharelent@devp.org Siobhan Rowan, 10 St. Mary Street, Suite 420, Toronto, ON M4Y 1P9 3
Tips on Organizing Spread the word! Share Lent activities that you organize in your parish, your school and your group deserve to be known by the entire community. When you re planning your activities, don t forget the news media and social media, especially Facebook and Twitter. Social media is a great way to reach out to youth. > Draw up a list of media that could publish your invitations. The list should include weekly publications, electronic media (radio and television) and church bulletins. Don t forget web sites, including ones belonging to the parish, municipality, or diocese, and social media such as Facebook and Twitter. Invite parish youth to help. > Why not let Development and Peace (your Animator and staff at the National Office) know about your activities? Your event could end up on the Share Lent website or the official Twitter and Facebook profiles of Development and Peace. > The media and other participants in the campaign like to see what you re doing. Here s a suggestion: take a photo of your committee members in front of the Share Lent poster or banner for example and photos of each event. Then send the best photographs to the media. > Was your event a success? Did a lot of people attend? Did you exceed your financial goal? Let the media know. Ask your Animator for Development and Peace media-release forms that you can adapt by adding local information. Send your news and photos to: sharelent@devp.org With participation from coast to coast, THINKfast! mobilizes young people in schools and parishes around Development and Peace s solidarity work while raising funds for the Share Lent campaign. THINKfast! is often the first exposure to Development and Peace for participants and can be the catalyst to becoming a member. THINKfast! is an exciting 25-hour education and fundraising activity for youth and young adults in schools, universities and parishes. THINKfast! brings young people together to explore the causes of poverty and social injustice, and empowers youth to live out their faith while helping those in the Global South to build a better life with Development and Peace. It s a great opportunity to build leadership in youth. Gather a team of young adults to come together and plan and lead your THINKfast! Adapt THINKfast! for young adults or RCIA members with a 12-hour fast and reflection evening. Get creative with Share Lent fundraisers in high schools or parish youth groups. How about a coffee house, a boxed-lunch auction, or a pub night? With the support of our online fundraising tools and our active communities on Facebook and Twitter, it s easier than ever to get your group moving. Visit http://youth.devp.org for more information and a free THINKfast! kit. 4
Help a just world take root Symbols of Solidarity The Symbols of Solidarity are designed as a procession before or during Mass or at other gatherings. The procession of each symbol starts as a narrator or reader begins each section, and ends at the front of the church or room. Allow brief pauses between symbols to create a dramatic effect. What you will need > Solidarity Cards make sure you have ordered them well ahead of your presentation of the symbols, and that you have a plan to distribute them. You can also go to our website, www. devp.org/sharelent, to download and print these cards. > a place to put the symbols after they are processed in. This might be around the altar or on a table decorated for the purpose, or in a special place in the worship space or meeting room. > a large, flat vessel near the narrator to receive the symbols. > a pen, notebook, candle, rice grains and other items as described below. > a green plant or plants. These could be the plants grown from seed by children and families following the Solidarity Calendar. You could invite the children and their families to be part of the procession with their plants. (Please send a photo of this to Development and Peace at sharelent@devp.org). You may also wish to invite youth and new Canadians to be part of the procession. Please modify the text, present the symbols in a different order and/or use only those symbols that suit your situation. NARRATOR Every year, Development and Peace members in Canada participate in special solidarity tours where they visit Development and Peace partners and the communities they work with in Asia, Africa, Latin America or the Middle East. The members learn more about the work of Development and Peace partners, and return to Canada inspired to share the stories of the people and the partners they met. The Symbols of Solidarity help us to reflect on the direct connection between members of Development and Peace and our sisters and brothers in the Global South. This year they are a visible reminder of how the work of our partners is helping a world of justice take root in the Philippines, Cambodia and Lebanon. 5
Symbols of Solidarity The symbols LEARNING FROM PARTNERS Symbol: journal/pen/camera Participants on Development and Peace solidarity tours listen carefully to our partners and the people they work with. They take diligent notes and photos. This pen and notebook (or camera) [raise high so all can see] are the symbols of keen listeners who are committed to helping a just world take root, aware that it is a privilege to visit these villages and partners. THE PHILIPPINES: FLOURISHING TOGETHER Symbol: A green plant, which could be grown by families in the parish who are following the Solidarity Calendar. Or any other green plant (adapt the text below). Also use Solidarity Card 1: The Philippines. Development and Peace partner the National Secretariat for Social Action (NASSA) created by the bishops of the Philippines, has introduced base ecclesial communities in the villages they work with. These communities help to create a sense of family in the parish. A participant on a youth solidarity tour said she learned a new meaning for the word family. The base ecclesial community in one village helped establish a flourishing communal garden. Here everyone works together in the traditional Filipino way known as bayanihan (bye-awn-ee-han). This green plant [hold it up], grown by families [you can name the families or children here] using Development and Peace s annual Solidarity Calendar, is a symbol of the Earth s flourishing, and what can be achieved through working together with a sense of family. [You can also hold up the appropriate Solidarity Card.] SHARING Symbol: candle and one or all three of this year s Solidarity Cards After returning to Canada, solidarity tour participants share their experiences with their parishes and communities. They shine their light [hold up candle] on the partnership and solidarity they have experienced. This year, member reflections from three solidarity tours are presented on three Solidarity Cards like this one [hold up a card]. [Describe how you will distribute the Solidarity Cards. We recommend handing out a different one on each Sunday before Lent.] LEBANON: CREATING JUST INCOMES Symbol: a fair trade handmade product, such as jam, or a copy of the Fair Trade logo enlarged, and Solidarity Card 2: Lebanon. In Lebanon, Development and Peace partner Caritas Lebanon helps small-scale farmers cool the Earth, says a member of the youth solidarity tour that visited projects there in 2011. These projects respect the environment and reduce activities that contribute to climate change. 6
Symbols of Solidarity Caritas Lebanon trains small-scale farmers to transform some of what they grow into high-quality artisanal goods. Through their co-operative, these products earn enough income to keep the farmers on their land. A portion of the co-op s income also supports social projects. This Fair Trade logo [or this fairly traded item] is a symbol of how fairly traded goods create just incomes for small-scale farmers who help to cool the Earth. CAMBODIA: BECOMING SELF-SUFFICIENT Symbol: rice (in a bowl or clear container) and Solidarity Card 3: Cambodia. In 2010 a Saskatchewan solidarity tour visited partners and villages in rural Cambodia. In the village of Tareach one woman said there are no rich and no poor in her village any more. Over 15 years, Development and Peace s Cambodian partner Development and Partnership in Action (DPA) had introduced self-help initiatives such as loan circles, rice banks and animal banks. Now the people of Tareach are continuing the programs alone. NARRATOR The narrator turns to the nearby vessel or table: Here we will display the Symbols of Solidarity that we have presented to you today. We stand in solidarity with the partners of Development and Peace in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East, some of whose stories you have heard today. Their photos and more details are on the Solidarity Cards we have presented. [You can now explain how people can get their own Solidarity Cards, and how you will distribute them.] We leave you with this prayer: Lord, we pray in solidarity with the world s most vulnerable people living in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. May they feel your healing power as they work together to create flourishing communities, abundant gardens and just sources of income to help them stay on their land. Allow us to be faithful witnesses to Christ, walking in solidarity with our sisters and brothers in the Global South. Thy will be done. Tell Development and Peace thank you, they said. We re doing alright now. We see hope and we are becoming our own people. This rice [hold up the rice] is a symbol of the rice bank, one of many self-help and sharing innovations introduced by DPA that helps poor villages like Tareach become self-sufficient. Creator of the stars Creator of the stars, of light and darkness, Out of the darkness of injustice, bring new hope to birth; Out of the labouring and longing of all creation, Teach us to fashion the wholeness and integrity that is your dream For creation. Mary Grey from Live Simply (CAFOD) 7
Help a just world take root Solidarity Way of the Cross In this Solidarity Way of the Cross, the story of the passion of Jesus is cast in a contemporary context. It s a powerful critique of social sins in our own times sins that mirror those of the powers responsible for the crucifixion of Jesus. We, who would be disciples, are called to apply the message of the sacred story in our own lives, times and places. We are eyewitness to the destruction of our Earth. We have stood by as natural resources have been exploited and wasted. Because our planet and all creation are gifts from God, we must care for them and see the beauty of God through them. This Solidarity Way of the Cross is adapted from the Economic and Ecological Way of the Cross produced by the Maryknoll Sisters. 8 FIRST STATION Jesus is condemned to death Leader: Beware of the scribes who like to go around in long robes and accept greetings in the marketplaces, seats of honour in synagogues, and places of honour at banquets. They devour the houses of widows and, as a pretext, recite lengthy prayers. They will receive a severe condemnation. (Mark 12: 38) Speaker 1: By condemning Jesus to death, the powerful believed they could keep their own privilege. They imposed laws that burdened ordinary people and strengthened their own power. Speaker 2: In our society many people no longer participate in the decisions that affect their lives. Responding to special interests, some politicians ignore the needs of people and the planet by failing to heed evidence of climate change. Climate change affects the world s most vulnerable people in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East more than those living in developed countries. Those who are most vulnerable carry a cross of exclusion. The Earth itself carries the deep scars of neglect and abuse. Both are oppressed by the appetites of the wealthy and powerful for resource exploitation. Leader: God, we confess that we are too often disengaged. We fail to support those politicians and agencies who strive to do justice. We pray that our governments will become places of honest debate and servants to the impoverished of the world. SECOND STATION Jesus bears the Cross Leader: For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body Jews or Greeks, slaves or free and all were made to drink of one Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12: 12-13) Speaker 1: We understand that the coffee we drink, the tomato we eat, and the cellphone we use may
Solidarity Way of the Cross be products of unjust exploitation of resources or labour that should benefit poor communities. We ask for the creation and enforcement of international trade policies that guard against exploitation. Leader: God, please forgive us for our ignorance in not seeing how our consumption patterns contribute to the exploitation of others. Please enlighten our politicians to enact laws that put people above profits. Earth community. We believe that another world THIRD STATION Jesus falls for the first time Leader: In the seventh year there shall be a Sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a Sabbath to the Lord; you shall not sow your field or prune your vineyard. (Leviticus 25: 3-5) Speaker 2: Groups of small-scale farmers in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East farm in ways that are sensitive to their local environments. They feed local people nutritious food. Their methods could reduce the amount of carbon Men and women are led to regard the environment as a marvel to be pondered and respected rather than a commodity for mere consumption. It is incumbent upon religious people to demonstrate that it is possible to find joy in living simply and modestly, generously sharing one s surplus with those suffering from want. Pope Benedict XVI, July 2008. in the atmosphere, and help cool down the Earth. Practices like composting and rest for the land are good for the Earth and all who live on it. Leader: O God, we mourn the destruction of the natural world. We pray for support to organized groups of small-scale farmers who contribute to the flourishing of all creation. FOURTH STATION Jesus meets his mother Leader: Woe to you who make iniquitous decrees, who write oppressive statutes, to turn aside the needy from justice and to rob the poor of my people of their right, that widows may be your spoil, and that you may make the orphans your prey! (Isaiah 10:1-2) Speaker 1: Mary s endured much suffering here on Earth, including witnessing the execution of her beloved only son. Mary had also fled to Egypt with her husband, Joseph, and newborn infant Jesus. She could relate to the suffering of the growing number of people in our time who are displaced from their lands by natural disasters. As the climate changes, these calamities occur with greater intensity in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. We ask Mary to pray that God brings us into one new humanity in Christ. Leader: O God, we pray for a new vision of community that recognizes our global humanity in Christ. 9
Solidarity Way of the Cross FIFTH STATION Jesus is helped by Simon Leader: Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. (Matthew 15:13) Speaker 2: Simon helped Jesus to bear the burden of the Cross. Like Simon, our Earth must bear the burden of unsustainable agricultural practices. Corporations have patented some plants so that small-scale farmers cannot save, trade or reuse seeds after harvest. This runs directly contrary to our belief that all life is the creation of God. Leader: O God, we confess our own misguided attempts to change your creation. We pray that international organizations will support the efforts of small-scale farmers in the Global South to grow local food varieties in harmony with the natural environment. SIXTH STATION Veronica wipes the face of Jesus Leader: But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the air, and they will tell you; or the plants of the Earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you In God s hands are the life of every living thing and the breath of every human being. (Job 12:7-8, 10) Speaker 1: We are living through one of the greatest crises of all times, an imminent ecological collapse. We have overwhelmed the carrying and caring capacity of our home, Earth, by relying on a global economic model that puts consumption and profits before a flourishing planet and healthy communities. The majority of people in the world may never have their basic needs met or experience a life of dignity. Leader: O God, help us to follow Veronica in serving you, rather than seeking profit from exploiting the Earth. Help us support sustainable communities where the highest priority is life in abundance for all. SEVENTH STATION Jesus falls a second time Leader: The Lord God then took the man and settled him in the Garden of Eden, to cultivate and care for it. (Genesis 2:15) Speaker 2: Bearing the sin of all humanity, Jesus fell a second time on his way to Calvary. God gave creation to us as a gift, but we also fall and do not care for creation as we should. Some Canadian extractive industries working in the Global South damage the environment and destroy traditional communities living near their projects. Development and Peace members asked the Canadian government to create effective safeguards for such communities, but it has not done this. Leader: O God, we confess that we do not always care for your creation as we should. We exploit natural resources, causing damage to the Earth, destruction of local economies and suffering among the world s most vulnerable people. We pray that our government s policies and our own actions may reflect respect and care for all of your creation. 10
Solidarity Way of the Cross EIGHTH STATION Jesus speaks to the women of Jerusalem Leader: Jesus turned to them and said, Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep rather for yourselves and for your children. (Luke 23:28) Speaker 1: As the number of people living in poverty around the world grows, women carry the cross of inequality. Because of discrimination, women usually bear the greatest part of the burden of poverty. Small-scale women farmers feed their local communities and care for their families, and care for creation. They need access to land and recognition of their work. Leader: O God, we ask forgiveness for not heeding the voices of our sisters around the world. We pray that all may be heard and that justice and mercy shall govern humanity and all of your creation. NINTH STATION Jesus falls for the third time Leader: You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord. (Leviticus 19:18) Speaker 2: Despite the persecution, ridicule and hatred that Christ endured while carrying the cross, he responded with forgiveness. We must live our lives as Christ lived; we must treat everyone as our brothers and sisters. Instead of directing scarce resources to build military might, we should direct them toward the urgent needs of our brothers and sisters in communities throughout the world. Leader: O God, we confess that we too often attempt to enforce our will through the violence of angry words and selfish acts. On a larger scale, violence and injustice are destroying your daughters and sons. We ask that the resources spent on military spending be used to help bring the world an economic order that is just and sustainable without the intervention of violence. TENTH STATION Jesus is stripped of his clothes Leader: Creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. (Romans 8:21) Speaker 1: Jesus was stripped of his clothes. Today we strip the Earth of its natural resources. Global institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have shaped the model of economic development in the Global South. Under this model, poverty has increased in many places, while environmental degradation has worsened. It is time for all international institutions to acknowledge their accountability to the demands of love and justice. The welfare of the poorest person and the integrity of creation should be the standard by which their policies are judged. Leader: O God, we confess our failure to protect the integrity of creation. We pray for a sustainable, people- and Earth-centered development that meets the needs of the impoverished majority of humanity and allows creation to flourish. 11
Solidarity Way of the Cross 12 ELEVENTH STATION Jesus is nailed to the Cross Leader: When human rights are perverted in the presence of the Most High, when one s case is subverted does not the Lord see it? (Lamentations 3:35-6) Speaker 2: Jesus Christ was tortured and killed by the powers and authorities of his day. He identified with all whose human rights are denied. Development and Peace partners in the Global South ask that small-scale farmers in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East be free to develop their own agricultural systems to feed their own people food sovereignty. They ask for freedom from our interference. Canada, with its role in international bodies such as the G20, should speak out for small-scale farmers in the Global South, and for food sovereignty. Leader: We confess that we too try to dominate others and violate their human dignity. We pray for international trade agreements to honour human rights and God s creation by supporting food sovereignty and small-scale farmers. TWELFTH STATION Jesus dies on the Cross Leader: Amen, amen I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. (John 12: 24) Speaker 1: Jesus apostles had imagined that he would establish an earthly kingdom. Knowing he was about to die in a brutal fashion because of his commitment to his mission, Jesus takes a moment to illustrate this. He says that all the beauty and richness of the harvest results from the fact that the grain died; otherwise it would never have germinated. In this teaching Jesus keeps before the apostles the truth that he is to be glorified, but delicately suggests that this will come through his death. At the same time he expresses his appreciation of the gifts of agriculture and the natural world. How might new life flourish if we allowed those parts of our way of life that are wasteful and unjust to die? Leader: O God, we recognize the need to respond with generosity and inclusion to the cry of the Earth and the cry of the poor. Our way of life is profoundly wasteful and unjust. We commit ourselves to change, to live more lightly on Earth and more justly with others. THIRTEENTH STATION Jesus is taken down from the Cross Leader: Listen! The wages of the labourers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. (James 5:4) Speaker 2: Jesus died and was buried in order to end exploitative relationships. He lived as a servant, taught, died and was raised in order to unite people in love and justice. Many small-scale farmers in the Global South work long hours to feed themselves and their neighbours. Yet they face the threat of losing their land to large plantations that will grow inexpensive agricultural products to export for Western consumers. Speaker 1: We may seem to benefit from the exploitation of our sisters and brothers through cheap food or fuel. But injustice harms all of us. Paying
Solidarity Way of the Cross more for fair trade products would support living wages for producers, as well as higher social and environmental standards. Leader: God of justice, revealed in a carpenter s son, we pray today for all who labour in the fields and for all who are charged with protecting their dignity. Forgive us, God, for our own unfair treatment of others and for benefiting from the oppression of others. We seek a renewed commitment to the dignity of all. FOURTEENTH STATION Jesus is placed in the tomb Leader: I consider that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed for us. (Romans 8:18) Speaker 2: Jesus was laid in the tomb after giving his life to free all of creation from bondage to the effects of sin. Today, the future of our only home, Earth, and all creation is threatened by climate change. We in developed countries have contributed disproportionately to greenhouse gas emissions through our lifestyles. Small-scale farmers in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East increasingly must deal with unpredictable weather and smaller yields. Leader: O God, forgive us for our unthinking contributions to this ecological crisis. Help us to have compassion for those no longer able to produce good harvests as a result of our society s overconsumption. Move us with love to reduce our own consumption so that others may live in dignity. FIFTEENTH STATION The resurrection of Jesus Leader: And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying See, the home of God is among human beings. God will dwell with them and be their God; and they will be God s people. (Revelations 21:1-5) Speaker 1: Mindful of our own complicity in the global crises of our times, but claiming the hope that is rooted in the Resurrection, we reflect on our lives and choices. We claim our God-given power as individuals and as a community to effect meaningful change, to name the signs of Resurrection Shalom that we can see, even in our broken world. [Leader, ALL:] To our own greed... open our eyes. To our habits of consumption... open our eyes. To social systems and structures that oppress the most vulnerable... open our eyes. Leader: Let us pray: Loving God, open our eyes to signs of hope in our world. Help us to believe that a better world is possible, and to act on that belief. ALL: Loving God who provides for all people at all times, we are frightened by the signs of ecological crisis, encouraged by signs of hope, and compelled by the urgency of both. Thus, we commit ourselves to the works of repentance to reparation, redress, revaluing. We commit ourselves to an ongoing journey a living faith, a sign of freedom, a mark of discipleship. In the spirit of community, mindful of truth ever exceeding knowledge, we covenant to live in a manner explicitly informed by the Gospel we proclaim. Amen. 13
Help a just world take root Ecological justice can help a just world take root Good morning. My name is and I speak to you this morning as one of our parish representatives of the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace. If you walked into your kitchen and discovered a terrific mess sticky puddles on the floor, food strewn all over the counter, the table and chairs overturned, and a heap of broken dishes in the sink what is the second thing you would think? I want you to imagine the second thing, because the first might not be Sunday Church material. We all would immediately ask, What happened? This is the natural question, because we, by nature, think in terms of cause and effect. Our minds are Goddesigned to look for reasons behind occurrences. We associate ecology with nature. Why? Because ecology is the study that most widely extends our natural disposition to think in cause and effect. At its most basic level, ecology teaches us that all parts of the earth-system are interconnected through causal relations. Ecology tells me that if I clear-cut the trees off the mountain behind my house, I will have floods and mudslides in my backyard. Besides an ecological mind that naturally thinks in cause and effect, God also gave us a heart that naturally turns towards harmony and beauty. We are not satisfied with any old relation between things. Our The Gospel reading for the Fifth Sunday of Lent, Solidarity Sunday, is John 12:20-33. hearts desire symmetry and proportion. If my nose was located behind my left ear, you might not feel it very pleasant to look at me. Our hearts want the right relation, the one well-balanced, not lop-sided. The Bible calls this right relation justice. Justice can only occur in our interrelationships when what benefits me does not do you great harm. When we put mind and heart together, we find that God made us creatures of ecological justice. This is very good news, because Development and Peace has dedicated its next five years of campaigns to promoting ecological justice. In other words, Development and Peace is here to help us do what comes most naturally. We need this help to live according to our nature because the ecological injustice of the world has become enormous. For example, the growing number of increasingly destructive droughts, floods, and extreme weather challenges the security of communities on every continent. These conditions are attributed to rising levels of carbon dioxide put into the atmosphere by our vehicles, industries and factory farms. But those of us most likely to use cars and airplanes, to buy consumer products, and to enjoy the fruits of industrialized agriculture are the least likely to suffer the consequences of our consumption habits. Not only do the global poor live in areas most frequently and violently affected by climate change, but due to their lack of resources and infrastructure, they are also the least able to cope with the side effects of our Western consumer lifestyles. 14
Ecological justice This global situation goes against the grain God gave us. It violates our nature twice over. First, it destroys the natural world, upon which all life, great and small, rich and poor, depends. Second, it denies our natural love for justice that seeks the right relation between cause and effect. We cannot live well so long as our wealth causes the poverty of others. Like forcing a fish to climb trees, it contradicts our nature. Jesus says that if we love our life we will lose it. This sounds paradoxical. But if the life we are living contradicts our nature, of course, it will not last long. Ecological justice is just as vital to the good of our lives here as it is to the lives of the poor everywhere. That is why Development and Peace s promotion of ecological justice is good news for all. In Java, Indonesia, Ignatius Purwanto and other small-scale farmers work together to grow organic rice with the help of Development and Peace partner Cindelaras. To preserve the health of their water and soil they refuse to use chemicals. This takes extra time and effort, but the benefits are far-reaching. I am learning patience through growing organic rice says one of these small-scale farmers. And I am now more patient with my family. Today you can help Development and Peace help all people live in greater harmony with God s creative designs. Please give generously to Development and Peace through this Share Lent campaign. Consider signing up for Share Year-Round, the monthly giving program that is the best way to help a just world take root. This we believe God creates all things, renews all things and celebrates all things. This we believe. Earth is a sanctuary, a sacred planet filled with God s presence A home for us to share with our kin. This we believe. God became flesh and blood, a piece of Earth, A human being called Jesus Christ, who lived and breathed And spoke among us, suffered and died on a cross For all human beings and for all creation. This we believe. The risen Jesus is the Christ at the centre of creation, Reconciling all things to God, Renewing all creation and filling the cosmos. This we believe. The Holy Spirit renews life in creation, Groans in empathy with a suffering creation And waits with us for the rebirth of creation. This we believe. We believe that with Christ we will rise And with Christ we will celebrate a new creation. Norman Habel, from Live Simply (CAFOD) By Greg Kennedy, SJ 15
Help a just world take root Prayers of the Faithful We pray for all organized groups of small-scale farmers in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East, who on their meagre plots of land practice forms of agriculture that respect the environment and help to cool the Earth. Lord, hear us. We pray for the people of Tareach, Cambodia, who say there are no longer rich nor poor people in their village, and for Development Partners in Action, a partner of Development and Peace, who helped the village achieve this state. Lord, hear us. We pray for the people of Camagong Cabusao village in the Philippines, who with the help of Development and Peace partner NASSA have achieved a state of abundance for all villagers to share. Lord, hear us. We pray for the people of Lebanon whom Caritas Lebanon, another Development and Peace partner, has helped to earn better livelihoods from the produce of their fields. Lord, hear us. We pray for the Church throughout the world, that her people may sow seeds of justice and reap a harvest of hope. Lord, hear us. We pray for leaders in every land, that they may seek to nurture a flourishing Earth and share her resources wisely. Lord, hear us. We pray for ourselves and all people of faith and action, that we may live simply and in solidarity with all people who are poor. Lord, hear us. We pray for a flourishing Earth that can nurture future generations and all creation. Lord, hear us. Visit our Share Lent website: www.devp.org/sharelent 2012