In Rimouski Canada, Sister Ursule Beaulieu prepared a wonderful hour of prayer for us Daughters of Jesus, in connection with Earth Day on April 22, 2024.

A time of prayer full of reflection and sharing, using symbols that speak to us of creation and remind us of the importance of our commitment to protecting our “common home”.

A song about the beauty of our land begins our prayer and gives meaning to our reflection.

Symbols

As we read Genesis ch.1, some of our sisters bring up symbols illustrating God’s work: a globe, water, plants, flowers, sea and land animals; we ourselves represent human beings. A moment of silence invites us to admire this striking scene and give thanks to God for all the riches created for us.

 Then each of us is invited to place our own symbol and express what it means to us :

For example, Micheline Cormier reminds us that a single dried oak leaf provides the humus the earth needs to bring forth life and strengthen that which is already present in nature. Here, we’re referring to our congregation, which Mother Marie de Saint-Charles compared  to a large oak, nourished by the Word of God and spreading its roots to other parts of the world.

God’s creation

After this reflection, it’s the plants, fruits and vegetables that help us discover the beauty and goodness of God towards us and his creation.

The colors of these elements and their nutritious aspects that strengthen our lives and help us grow reveal God’s greatness.

The books brought remind us of the knowledge that human beings have acquired by developing the creative gifts that God has given them. Let’s take a look at a simple piece of sea wood carved with the figure of one of our ancestors in the faith. What a beautiful creation by our late sister Rose-Emma Lavoie.

As a congregation, we are committed to protecting our earth for the sake of the life of every living being in the world. Lucienne rereads for us our public commitment to work for an integral ecology.

A time of universal prayer

A time of universal prayer reiterates our admiration and gratitude to God for his love of us and his creation.

A special Our Father, composed by Ursule, reminds us of our respect for his work and our commitment to protecting it :  

“Our Father, our God, you who created heaven and earth, you ask us to respect your creation and take great care of it.

We want your name to be blessed by all mankind, and may your kingdom come now in our hearts, in our living environments and everywhere on earth.

So that your will may be done, send us your Spirit to teach us your will for today and tomorrow.

In your great love, give us this day’s bread, the bread of friendship, fraternity and solidarity.

As Jesus taught us to forgive, forgive us for all the wrong we have done to living beings, to the earth, to water, to the atmosphere, to nature…

Keep us from temptation: temptation to power, to over-consumption, to the pride of knowing everything.

Deliver us from all evil, so that we may proclaim your glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

We end our celebration with a beautiful video by Jeannine, illustrating Patrick Richard’s song (Laudato’Si, cf. Pope Francis’ text).

Sister Jeannine D’Amours,

Rimouski, Canada