September 27.  Feast of St Vincent de Paul, patron of those who work for the poor.  The family had spent some weeks on an eco-safari, observing and absorbing the world around them.  The relaxed  atmosphere they had achieved had given them a different view of life. “Today people rush into everything, want the latest gadgets. You know it seems that people used to be much more patient than they are today.” “ But still there are times when action is important, like when we challenge governments and big corporations about climate change and pollution they’re very slow to act.   Is there still time……. “   

This time has given me hope for the future, conscious that there are no simple answers but that there is a time for everything is the Bible says. For everything there is a season and a time for every matter under heaven:

A time to be born and a time to die

A time to plant and a time to pluck up what is planted

At time to kill and a time to heal

A time to break down and a time to build up

A time to wee and a time to laugh

A time to mourn and a time to dance

A time to case away stones and a time to gather stones together

A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing

A time to seek and a time to lose

A time to keep and a time to cast away

A time to men and a time to sew

A time to keep silence and a time to speak

A time to love and a time to hate

A time for war and a time for peace.  Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Pope Francis: But we should be particularly indignant at the enormous inequalities in our midst, whereby we continue to tolerate some considering themselves more worthy than others. We fail to see that some are mired in desperate and degrading poverty, with no way out, while others have not the faintest idea of what to do with their possessions, vainly showing off their supposed superiority and leaving behind them so much waste which, if it were the case everywhere, would destroy the planet. In practice, we continue to tolerate that some consider themselves more human than others, as if they had been born with greater rights. LS 90.  Eco-tip and prayer.  The passage from Ecclesiastes is a powerful resource to reflect deeply and possibly identify where our family stands in the journey to become eco-friendly. Pray for wisdom in discerning the way forward.