September 28.  26th Sunday C   GOD SAID “LET THERE BE LIGHT.”    (From BECOMING ECO-FRIENDLY FAMILIES) 

God said, “Let there be light.”   Adam pushed the button on the wall of their cave.   Nothing happened. “No light again” he complained to Eve.  Is it load shedding, load reduction, power outage or what?”  “Ha, ha, it is a matter of connection,” Eve replied. “You know that one thing has to lead to another. This great big sun out there certainly produces plenty of light, but only during what we call day-light hours.  So we have learned to capture it, harness it, store it to use later.  But God also gave us interior light, intelligence, and we have managed to produce light and energy in a lot of different forms and ways, quite apart from the sun, but never out of nothing at all.  Isn’t God great that he created this potential energy source.”  

One of the first statements in Genesis is about the creation of light to dispel the darkness and chaos that reigned. It is true that daylight allows us to see forever, “on a clear day” as per an old popular song and if the air is not polluted by smog.  But electricity as a source of light, warmth and more, was only discovered in the 18th century by a man called Benjamin Franklin, who attached a wire to a kite in a thunderstorm. It is now most often taken for granted, as if it always existed. You push a button & voila!

In the last 2 ½ centuries inventions in the field of science and technology have sky rocketed making this one of the most common work areas, often replacing older jobs.  Latest inventions e.g. AI in particular, are a risk to our human capacity and need for creative work as a particularly human need and value. How far have we got from appreciating that light is a gift from God after all, a gift that is amazingly beautiful as well as powerful and without which life on earth would cease to exist? There is a saying, “If you don’t know where you are going you will probably end up somewhere else.” Who knows what the future holds for our earth or universe in the way we are “progressing.” Where will Adam and Eve or Xuan and Bona be in the 22nd century?

Reflect, share, act. Scripture: O people of God, aim at righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith , take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.   1 Tim 6:11-16.  Pope Francis:  Humanity has entered a new era. Our technical prowess has brought us to a crossroads. We are beneficiaries of 2 centuries of enormous waves of change, from steam engines, to modern medicine, the digital revolution and more. It is right to rejoice in these advances, products of a God-given human creativity. Yet it must be recognized that nuclear energy and all these technologies have given us tremendous power. There is a tendency to believe that every increase in power means an increase of progress, security, usefulness and welfare. The fact is that contemporary man has not been trained to use power well. It has not been accompanied by a development in human responsibility, values and conscience. LS105. We have the freedom needed to limit and direct technology; we can put it at the service of another type of progress, one which is healthier, more human, more social, more integral.LS 112-3.    Eco-tip and prayer.  Let us reflect and pray for human enlightenment especially in the area of technology, AI and social media.  DAILY PRAYER.  God of love show us as families how to be channels of Your love for all Your creatures.  Pour out Your Spirit upon us as we pray and work together to tend the garden and foster peace with creation.