Dear friends,
Earth Day is celebrated on the 22nd of April each year.
It is a reminder to us of the importance of taking care of this beautiful blue planet,
Floating in the immensity of space.
But before we go on to reflect on the wonder of this place and the duty of care which we have to it,
We must bring ourselves into a quiet space for reflection.
So take an opportunity to come into an awareness of this present moment.
Just quietly sitting and letting things be.
You might find it helpful to close your eyes,
But you don't have to.
Notice you're breathing in and you're breathing out.
We take our breathing for granted,
But it's helpful to stop and just notice this everyday miracle.
And to notice how the air is shared by all of us.
There could be someone that you strongly disagree with and you could be breathing in some of the molecules of air that have been exhaled by that person.
When you think about it,
That is very likely the case.
Now while still paying attention to our relaxed breathing,
Can we relax our bodies as well?
Relax your feet.
Wriggle your toes.
Relax your legs,
Your knees,
Your thighs.
Notice how you are supported by the chair or the cushion.
Relax your belly and your back.
Relax your shoulders,
Let them drop.
Relax your arms,
Your elbows.
Wriggle your fingers and now let your hands relax.
Relax your neck,
Your jaw,
Your face,
Your eyes.
Relax now in the peace of this present moment.
Welcome back.
Earth Day didn't start off as a grand global movement.
It came about as a response to a growing sense that something was going wrong with our planet.
In the 1960s,
People were becoming more aware of pollution and environmental damage.
It was beginning to dawn on people that there are limits to growth.
Rivers were badly polluted.
Air quality in cities was poor.
Wildlife under pressure.
Even so,
At that time,
There wasn't much public conversation about protecting the environment.
It seems that a key moment came about with the publication of a book called Silent Spring by Rachel Carson.
Rachel brought to our notice the fact that chemicals didn't simply disappear after their use.
They entered the soil,
The water,
The food chain.
They accumulated in the bodies of animals and eventually in human bodies as well.
We were reminded of the dangers attached to chemicals.
Chemicals were once considered necessary for progress.
But what about Earth Day itself?
The idea for such a day came from Gaylord Nelson,
A US senator who was very concerned about environmental issues.
And so,
On the 22nd of April 1970,
The first Earth Day was held.
Within a few years,
The importance of that message took hold.
Environmental laws were passed in the US.
Agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency were established.
And following the US example,
Agencies like this were set up all over the world.
My wife,
Fran,
Has been working on environmental issues for almost 50 years,
Even before we had our own Department of the Environment in this country.
From that simple beginning in the 1970s,
Earth Day has become a major global day of concerted action.
I read that something like one billion people now take part in it.
That's one person in eight in the whole world.
Let's have a one minute pause for reflection now.
I'm sure we can all remember Earthrise,
That wonderful photograph of the Earth.
It was taken from lunar orbit by the astronaut William Anders.
That was on Christmas Eve,
Back in 1968,
During the Apollo 8 mission.
That photograph had a huge impact,
And it still has.
And remember,
It was taken less than two years before the first Earth Day.
Earthrise allowed us to see this amazing planet,
Floating in the darkness of space.
It probably helped us to notice our interconnectedness,
And our vulnerability.
Seeing the Earth in that way shows us clearly that any damage we do to any part of the Earth will affect all of it,
Just in the same way that any small infection anywhere in the human body upsets the whole body.
In recent weeks,
We have seen even more amazing quality photographs of the Earth,
From the latest Moon mission.
The old image was called Earthrise.
Its successor is a video called Earthset,
Taken as the Artemis module made its way behind the Moon.
When we see images of the Earth from space,
We are vividly reminded we realise that this is our common home.
Everyone we have ever heard of lived on this fragile planet.
I often think of how wonderful it would be if our leaders had the opportunity of seeing for themselves the wonder of this planet from space.
Looking at the Earth from space,
We don't see any political boundaries.
A reminder that we all need to work together on Spaceship Earth.
A reminder that on this spaceship,
There is a limit to growth.
By reducing our demands on the planet,
By coming to realise that enough is enough,
We can all help to preserve the Earth for our children and grandchildren,
And for the creatures that share the Earth with us.
We have to stop the habit of constantly looking for more,
And the habit of discarding what we have grown tired of.
We need to practice the well-known mantra to reduce,
Reuse and recycle.
Reduce by buying only what we really need.
Reusing things to the end of their working life,
And recycling things with care,
And only when we have to dispose of them.
Probably the most important step of all is to refuse.
To ask the question,
Do I really need this?
Let's have another pause for reflection now,
Before I go on to let you have some encouraging quotes.
Welcome back.
I have found some quotes for you,
And I hope you'll find them helpful.
The first is from Chief Seattle.
The Earth does not belong to us.
We belong to the Earth.
Whatever befalls the Earth,
Befalls the sons and daughters of the Earth.
All things are connected,
Like the blood which unites one family.
Whatever we do to the web of life,
We do to ourselves.
Words from Chief Seattle.
And from Mahatma Gandhi,
We have this.
The Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need,
But not every man's greed.
Our greatness lies not in being able to remake the world,
But in being able to remake ourselves.
Let us choose wisely and tread gently on this Earth.
Mahatma Gandhi.
And from Pope John Paul II,
We have these words,
Prepared for the World Day of Peace 1990.
The Earth will not continue to offer its harvest,
Except with fateful stewardship.
We cannot say we love the land,
And then take steps to destroy it for use by future generations.
Respect for life,
And above all for the dignity of the human person,
Extends also to the rest of creation.
Pope John Paul II.
I'd like to end this meditation by reading for you a prayer for our Earth.
This was written by Pope Francis.
And it comes from the environmental encyclical Laudato Si' on the care of our common home.
This encyclical was published on the 24th of May 2015.
This prayer is directed to God,
Whatever we conceive God to be,
And hopefully what it expresses will be of benefit to people of all faiths and none.
All-powerful God,
You are present in the whole universe,
And in the smallest of your creatures.
You embrace with your tenderness all that exists,
Pour out upon us the power of your love,
That we may protect life and beauty.
Fill us with peace,
That we may live as brothers and sisters,
Harming no one.
O God of the poor,
Help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this Earth,
So precious in your eyes.
Bring healing to our lives,
That we may protect the world and not prey on it,
That we may sow beauty,
Not pollution and destruction.
Touch the hearts of those who look only for gain,
At the expense of the poor and the Earth.
Teach us to discover the worth of each thing,
To be filled with awe and contemplation,
To recognise that we are profoundly united with every creature,
As we journey towards your infinite light.
We thank you for being with us each day.
Encourage us,
We pray,
In our struggle for justice,
Love and peace.
Words from Pope Francis Let each Earth Day be to us a reminder of the possibilities open to us when we work together.
Let us give thanks for the many people working to monitor the Earth's climate,
For their dedication,
Their painstaking research,
And the reports to us,
Helping to keep us aware of the steps we need to take to ensure the prosperity of life on Earth.
So in conclusion,
Let's all do our best to do one kind deed for the Earth,
Every day in the weeks,
Months and years ahead.
Namaste
