Thinking Green

Prayer, reflection and action, among resources in online Lenten retreat

Holy Cross is offering an innovative — and timely — way to reflect and prepare for Easter this year.

Beginning on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 21, and concluding on Easter Sunday, April 9, the “Making the Parts Whole” Web site will host an online Lenten retreat, titled “An Invitation to Care for the Earth.” The guided retreat gives participants the opportunity to reflect upon environmental themes during the 40 days of Lent through readings, prayers, journaling, and more. Since “finding God in all things” is a key element of Ignatian teaching, and environmental alarms are being sounded by scientists and religious leaders alike, the theme and timing are particularly appropriate.

“The season of Lent is a time when Christians are called to conversion, to reconsider how it is that we live our lives in light of the Gospel,” says Marybeth Kearns-Barrett, associate Chaplain. The Office of the College Chaplains launched the “Making the Parts Whole” Web site in fall of 2005. “This online retreat is an opportunity for Christians to consider how our relationship with the environment is in need of conversion and how that conversion is tied to our faith. The retreat draws on Catholic social teaching and statements by our bishops to help us understand the connection between faith and climate change.”

Among the topics for reflection: access to clean water, food availability, humans’ abusive consumption habits, available intervention methods and commitment to the poor.

“An Invitation to Care for the Earth” will consist of postings that can be followed week-by-week, each beginning with an opening prayer, a reflection on the theme, considerations of self, reflection questions, opportunities for action and the closing prayer, Canticle of the Sun, adapted from St. Francis of Assisi.

The reflections on the theme vary according to the week. Some reflections will encourage examining one’s actions and lifestyle, others will tell the story of various inspirational leaders, such as 2004 Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Wangari Matthai and Sister Dorothy Mae Stang.

Dr. Matthai, who spoke on campus late last year, is founder of the Greenbelt Movement. She has been a leader in the restoration of the environment and the promotion of human rights in Africa. Sr. Dorothy Mae Stang was among five members of her religious community who went to Brazil to work for women’s health care, agriculture and education. On her way to meet with farmers and landowners to discuss ways in which to alleviate hostility between the two groups, she was murdered by two gunmen who have yet to be brought to justice.

New concerns about the environment are being expressed by the scientific and religious communities. A February report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change states that the world’s scientists are now more than 90 percent certain that humans are the leading cause for the world’s recent temperature rise. Research shows that by 2100, there will be a temperature increase of 3.6 to 8.1 degrees Fahrenheit, compared to the 1 degree increase in the past century. Heat waves and rainstorms are expected to become more frequent by the year 2100.

Catholic bishops as well as Pope Benedict XVI and, in the past, Pope John Paul II have highlighted the need to evaluate humans’ relationship with God’s creation of nature and to end harmful human impact on the climate. Pope Benedict XVI stated in his Angelus address on Aug. 27, 2006 that God’s creation is “exposed to serious risks by life choices and lifestyles that can degrade it.”

Not only does the site offer modes of reflection, it is also a means for action and journaling. Within each section dealing with methods of action, participants can read more about ways to become involved, such as Operation Rice Bowl and World Sustainable Energy Day (Feb. 28).

“Making the Parts Whole” has as its mission enriching the lives of members in the Holy Cross community, near and far. Katherine McElaney ’76, director of the Office of the College Chaplains, introduced the Web site after hearing from alumni that what they missed most about Holy Cross was the spiritual life. It is funded by the Lilly Endowment, a private family foundation that follows its founder’s wishes by supporting religious, community development and educational causes.

By Alexis Coyle ’07