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A "unitive attitude" - Common Home
“I will now call to mind the works of the Lord, and will declare what I have seen.” (Sirach 42:15)
The “care of the Common Home” is so important for the present and future of humanity, that all peoples, scientists and humanity must be involved to contribute to this cause, for it concerns the survival of the entire cosmos and its inhabitants.
This conviction confirms that the spirituality that nourishes the life and mission of the great family of the Sisters of St. Joseph goes beyond the experience of being a religious for it summons us to the “unitive attitude” towards all creation.
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Our roots and essence have their source in the Trinitarian Mysteries, the Incarnation and the Eucharist. It’s a relationship of love that, at times, moves us from within and, at the other times, makes us ascend to the high up in heaven. We can love and be loved, contemplate and glorify the Creator, as " The sun looks down on everything with its light, and the work of the Lord is full of his glory.". (Sirach 42:16).
According to Sacred Scripture, we are the image of God who is Love. We dream and live out of love. When we look around, we see many expressions, faces and stories of this love that are expressed in different ways: in friendship, hug, passion, compassion, faith, food, drink, work and in the eyes, that look at each other and the hands that help each other. Sometimes, this experience of love takes place in acceptance, in knowing how to share life, in asking for help from those we trust, in the action of offering possibilities, so that the other can find comfort for their soul.
Laudato Si tells us that: “each creature has its own purpose. None is superfluous. The entire material universe speaks of God’s love, his boundless affection for us. Soil, water, mountains: everything is, as it were, a caress of God. The history of our friendship with God is always linked to particular places which take on an intensely personal meaning; we all remember places, and revisiting those memories does us much good. Anyone who has grown up in the hills or used to sit by the spring to drink, or played outdoors in the neighbourhood square; going back to these places is a chance to recover something of their true selves” (n. 84). “To sense each creature singing the hymn of its existence is to live joyfully in God’s love and hope” (85).
Thus, the “unitive attitude” implies encounter, presence, even at a distance, because the love that emanates from the Trinity shortens time and space. We live and relate to creation all the time and we wish affection, care, respect and inclusion of all who inhabit this Common Home.
Without a doubt, love is justice, peace, integrity of creation. Our awareness to this commitment brings us ever closer to each other to act in favour of social inclusion and belongingness to this Common Home: the place and space for all.
When we look around and see “the other”, it is an invitation to think that we do not live alone, we are interdependent, because “everything is interconnected as if we were one, everything is interconnected in this Common Home”. In the light of the Trinity, our “unitive attitude” is to unite all things in “itself”, with the “other” and all in “God”.
The Encyclical Letter of Pope Francis Laudato Sí, which completed its sixth anniversary, points out to us “The urgent challenge to protect our common home includes a concern to bring the whole human family together to seek a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change. The Creator does not abandon us; he never forsakes his loving plan or repents of having created us. Humanity still has the ability to work together in building our common home. Here I want to recognize, encourage and thank all those striving in countless ways to guarantee the protection of the home which we share. Particular appreciation is owed to those who tirelessly seek to resolve the tragic effects of environmental degradation on the lives of the world’s poorest. Young people demand change. They wonder how anyone can claim to be building a better future without thinking of the environmental crisis and the sufferings of the excluded”. (No.13)
We live in dark times where our humanity destroyed by the different viruses such as the media, uncompromising political leaders, fragile relationships and words that have lost their meaning and credibility. We need to stay strong in our convictions of belonging, knowing well that everything is intimately intertwined. Therefore, we need to create a culture of care, inclusion and a lifestyle of solidarity. The invitation is extended, to dialogue urgently on the way we are taking care of our Common Home, “The Planet Earth.”
I invite you to taste and contemplate, with all your senses, the lyrics of Fr. Cyreneu Kuhn's song:
Everything is interconnected as if we were one.
Everything is interconnected in this Common Home.
Care for the flowers in the garden,
the forests, rivers and springs.
Care for the air and biomes.
the land and the animals.
Care for the being in gestation.
And children with a special love.
Care for the sick and the elderly
the poor with preferred option.
Who fight for daily bread.
For work, health and education.
It’s a fight to get rid of selfishness.
And against all corruption.
It’s a struggle against the evil of consumerism.
The search for truth and good.
Enjoy your time of rest.
And the beauty of this world and beyond.
Enjoy conversation at school and in the family
among peoples, cultures, religions.
Enjoy the knowledge of science, politics
Faith, and communion.
Care for me and you.
For our integral ecology
St. Francis's Cultivation of Love
Made universal solidarity.
Sr. Elisa Fátima Zuanazzi, CSJ
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