Sacred Stones, Sacred Stories

Snake River in Idaho

Each year, Earth Day — April 22 — marks the anniversary of what most consider the birth of the modern environmental movement which began in 1970.  Thinking back to the 70’s one remembers rock-n-roll, the war in Vietnam and protests.  Some things that one may have forgotten are gas-guzzling big cars, industrial air pollution turning our air to unbreathable and vegetation giving way to concrete and black top.  There was little concern for the environment, the air, water, plants and animals that share the planet with us.

Thanks to the efforts of Gaylord Nelson, Robert McCloskey and Denis Hayes, “environmental safety”, “going green”, and “eco-friendly” are now commonly known terms around the world as well as reduce-reuse-recycle.

Today is Earth Day 2013.  Do something for the environment.  Ride your bike to work or the gym.  Use reusable cloth bags for your groceries.  Pick up the trash you see as you walk down the street.  Make a greater effort to buy items that have eco-friendly packaging or no packaging at all.  Buy local products rather than products that are shipped via tanker across miles of ocean.  Check out how much energy you are using and try to reduce it by 10%.  Plant a tree or some flower bushes in the honor of someone.  Take shorter and cooler showers.  Help renew the ocean fronts, forest lands and grasslands near your home.  There are many ways to help out Mother Earth.  For we know that God made all things and saw that they were good (Genesis 1).

Furry friend stops by the pond at our Clyde monastery

Every day is Earth Day for Benedictines. Taking care of God’s earth, doing our part to preserve its beauty and its resources for future generations, is very important to us.

Over the years, we have been fortunate to engage in many earth-friendly practices at our monasteries, such as….

Restoring several hundreds of acres of prairie grass

Installing solar panels

Using a water tank to collect rainfall

Hosting a wind turbine

In addition, we drive hybrid cars and installed a geothermal heating/cooling system in our Clyde monastery. Our Dayton Sisters endeavor to maintain the beauty of the natural landscape at San Benito, a retreat space with the foothills of the Big Horn Mountains as a peaceful backdrop.

It is our responsibility to take care of all that God gives us, to help others realize the impact they make and how they can work WITH our planet rather than against it.

We pray that all understand their place as good stewards of the earth. Just by starting small – recycling or composting – can make a big difference. So let today be the start of something great for all of us!

Sister Lucia Ann takes a moment to enjoy the new avocado tree recently planted at our Tucson, Arizona, monastery. It was a gift from our dear friend and cook, Rose.

The Sisters spent Day Hour on Earth Day to bless the new tree then walked around the monastic grounds to bless other newly planted trees and plants along with the older trees and shrubs.

Tying our Liturgy of the Hours with this blessing was a special way to honor God’s bounty and treasured friendships.