September 1: A celebration of God’s decision to create

By Bishop Allwyn D'Silva

The World Day of Prayer for Creation takes place each year on September 1. Motivated by the rich tradition of the Eastern Church, for whom this day commemorates the creation of the world, this is both a moment to celebrate God’s loving decision to create and a moment to reflect on how we have stewarded the great gift of creation.

This is a cornerstone of our faith. In fact, Scripture begins with the great mystery of Creation. The Creator shaped life from a “formless void”, a great nothingness without light or life (Gen 1:2). The Creator’s decision to light a spark in the midst of that darkness is generous beyond our comprehension. Everything around us, from the hand of a loved one to flowers in a field, flows from this loving act of creation. As Pope Francis tells us, the “entire material universe speaks of God’s love” (Laudato si’, 84).

Creation was not left to itself. We, who were created in God’s image, were appointed its caretakers. We are custodians, instructed to “till and keep” the garden (Gen 2:15). As Pope Benedict XVI reminded us, “The Earth is indeed a precious gift of the Creator who, in designing its intrinsic order, has given us bearings that guide us as stewards of his creation”.

As we celebrate the World Day of Prayer for Creation, we ask ourselves: have we lived up to the role we were given by our Creator? The answer is clearly, and tragically: no. My own hometown of Mumbai presents a good example of the consequences of failing to care for the gift of God’s creation.

Mumbai is a megacity of nearly 21 million people, squeezed between mountains and the sea. It naturally experiences monsoons, cyclones, and extreme heat. In the past, the people of Mumbai coped with these challenges. Although it was difficult, they learned to prepare for rain and storms and to seek relief from the heat.

But the Earth’s climate is changing, and policy makers are not keeping up. The hard-won lessons of the past no longer serve the people of Mumbai.

Instead, extreme heat is rising. Earlier this year, the Mumbai metro area recorded several days of 39- to 43-degree heat. Even the evening and night hours now give less relief, which is especially difficult for the poor, who lack access to cooling.

Mega-monsoons and the unchecked growth of informal settlements up the mountainsides are leading to deadly landslides. At the same time, storms approach from the sea, and with the disappearance of mangroves that used to slow and blunt storms’ power, people along the coast are vulnerable to losing their homes. 

I worked in two slums of Mumbai, Jerimeri and Dharavi, for 21 years. I can testify that the poor feel these problems much more intensely. The families in these neighborhoods already face a lack of access to education, infrastructure, and good employment. They are simply unable to stay home from work when the weather is dangerously hot, or to move houses when storms and landslides threaten.

Forcing these families to deal with climate disasters on top of everything else they manage is a moral failure of the highest order. The scientific community keeps reminding us that humanity’s actions have driven the changes to our climate. I cannot imagine that this is what our Creator wanted us to do as keepers of the garden.

The annual celebration offers a big opportunity. This is the moment for us to reflect on God’s loving decision to create and to reconsider how we inhabit our role as stewards of creation.

This day of prayer opens the month-long Season of Creation. Today and throughout the season, let us praise the Creator and take action together to care for the sacred gift of creation.