Day 6: 21st May – Developing a new kind of lifestyle:

From Laudato Si:

‘Nobody  is  suggesting  a  return  to  the  Stone Age,  but we do need to slow down and look at reality in a different way, to appropriate the positive and sustainable progress which has been made, but also to recover the values and the great goals swept away by our unrestrained delusions of grandeur’ # 114

If we acknowledge the value and the fragility of nature and, at the same time, our God-given abilities, we can finally leave behind the modern myth of unlimited material progress. A fragile world, entrusted by God to human care, challenges us to devise intelligent ways of directing, developing and limiting our power. #78

‘Moderation and the capacity to be happy with little…a return to simplicity which allows us to stop and appreciate the small things…not to succumb to sadness for what we lack’ #222

‘What kind of world do we want to leave to those who come after us, to the children who are now growing up?’ #160

Reflection:
Life-style change is never easy. We all, to some degree, recoil from it. Yet when we engage with such change – like the kind suggested in Laudato Si – as a way of bringing about a more wholesome and just future, we often find it personally fulfilling.  The little things we might do – like reducing our heating by a degree or two and wearing an extra layer instead, or choosing the fair trade product and paying a bit more but buying a bit less – can give us that sense of satisfaction and purpose.

But of course more than just individual change is required. Societal and system changes must happen. Unlimited progress must be seen for what it is: an illusion, a modern myth that has led to huge inequality in the human community and enormous devastation of the planet.

Laudato Si is asking us and now COVID-19 is providing an opportunity to, in the famous words of Martin Luther King, ‘bend the arc of history towards justice.’ The justice here required is, of course, Climate Justice. Cardinal Turkson President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace and a great advocate of Laudato Si, has pointed out that the aim of our rethinking and of the justice now required must be ‘“People and Planet First” – not one or the other, not one at the expense of the other.’ Mary Robinson has spoken of Pathways we can take, and the Pathway now needed is one less known but safer – one that ‘can result in greater equality and dignity for all.’

Prayer:
Let us be ever mindful that care towards one part of our planet will have a positive influence on the others parts. As we consider the lilies of the field, the birds of the air, the whisper of the wind, may we also act so that the whole human community is enhanced. May we never knowingly engage in actions that would lead to wounding the planet or its myriad life-forms, including human life.

All of the previous Laudato Si’ daily reflections can be found in our Resources Section under Social Issues.

Margaret Twomey rsm