Prayers

(The first two prayers are from “Renew the Face of the Earth Environmental Justice Reflection Material” Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand)

Blessed Treasures

Thomas John Carlisle

Help us to harness
the wind,
the water,
the sun,
and all the ready
and renewable sources of power.

Teach us to conserve,
preserve,
use wisely
the blessed treasures
of our wealth-stored Earth.

Help us to share
your bounty,
not to waste it,
or pervert it
into peril
for our children
or our neighbors
in other nations.

You who are life
and energy
and blessing,
Teach us to revere
and respect
your tender world.

Amen

Renew the Face of the Earth

Response: Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the Earth.

Bless the Lord, my soul!
Lord God, how great you are,
How many are your works, O Lord,
The Earth is full of your creatures.

Response: Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the Earth.

You take back your spirit, they die
Returning to the dust from which they came.
You send forth your spirit, they are created
And you renew the face of the Earth.

Response: Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the Earth.

May the glory of the Lord last forever!
May the Lord rejoice in his works!
May my thoughts be pleasing to Him
I find my joy in the Lord.

Response: Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the Earth.

Canticle of Brother Sun and Sister Moon of St. Francis of Assisi

as found at www.catholic.org/clife/prayers/prayer.php?p=183

Most High, all-powerful, all-good Lord, All praise is Yours,
all glory, all honour and all blessings.

To you alone, Most High, do they belong, and no mortal lips
are worthy to pronounce Your Name.

Praised be You my Lord with all Your creatures,
especially Sir Brother Sun,
Who is the day through whom You give us light.
And he is beautiful and radiant with great splendour,
Of You Most High, he bears the likeness.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars,
In the heavens you have made them bright, precious and fair.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Brothers Wind and Air,
And fair and stormy, all weather's moods,
by which You cherish all that You have made.

Praised be You my Lord through Sister Water,
So useful, humble, precious and pure.

Praised be You my Lord through Brother Fire,
through whom You light the night and
he is beautiful and playful and robust and strong.

Praised be You my Lord through our Sister,
Mother Earth
who sustains and governs us,
producing varied fruits with coloured flowers and herbs.
Praise be You my Lord through those who grant pardon
for love of You and bear sickness and trial.

Blessed are those who endure in peace, By You Most High, they will be crowned.

Praised be You, my Lord through Sister Death,
from whom no-one living can escape. Woe to those who die in mortal sin!
Blessed are they She finds doing Your Will.

No second death can do them harm.
Praise and bless my Lord and give Him thanks,
And serve Him with great humility.

The following ten prayers and other prayers can be found at Web of Creation

A Prayer for Gratitude

St. Francis of Assisi

Most High, all powerful, good Lord,
to you all praise, glory and honor and all blessing;
to you alone, Most High, they belong
and no one is worthy of naming you.

Praised by you, my Lord,
with all your creatures,
especially Milord Brother Sun,
who brings day, and by whom you enlighten us;
he is beautiful, he shines with great splendor,
of you, Most High, he is the symbol.

Praised be you, my Lord, for sister Moon and the Stars:
in the heavens you formed them,
clear, precious and beautiful.

Praised by you, my Lord, for Brother Wind
and for the air and for the clouds,
for the azure calm and for all climes
by which you give life to your creatures.

Praised by you, my Lord, for Sister Water,
who is very useful and humble,
precious and chaste.

Praised by you, my Lord, for Brother Fire,
by whom you enlighten the night:
he is beautiful and joyous,
indomitable and strong.

Praised by you, my Lord,
for Sister our mother the Earth
who nourishes us and bears us,
and produces all kinds of fruits,
with the speckled flowers and the herbs.

This prayer was used for Earth Day, 1990
From: Interfaith Declarations and Worship Observance Resources;
The North American Conference on Religion and Ecology;
5 Thomas Circle, NW, Washington, DC 20005

A Call to Prayer

Hildegard of Bingen

The Earth is at the same time mother,
She is mother of all that is natural, mother of all that is human.
She is the mother of all, for contained in her are the seeds of all.
The Earth of humankind contains all moistness, all verdancy, all germinating power.
It is in so many ways fruitful.
All creation comes from it. Yet it forms not only the basic raw material for humankind, but also the substance of the incarnation of God's son.

This prayer was used for Earth Day, 1990
From: Interfaith Declarations and Worship Observance Resources; The North American Conference on Religion and Ecology; 5 Thomas Circle, NW, Washington, DC 20005

A Prayer of Awareness

Hildegard of Bingen

God is the foundation for everything
This God undertakes, God gives.
Such that nothing that is necessary for life is lacking.
Now humankind needs a body that at all times honors and praises God.
This body is supported in every way through the Earth.
Thus the Earth glorifies the power of God.

This prayer was used for Earth Day, 1990
From: Interfaith Declarations and Worship Observance Resources; The North American Conference on Religion and Ecology; 5 Thomas Circle, NW, Washington, DC 20005

A Call to Prayer

We who have lost our sense and our senses--our touch, our smell, our vision of who we are: we who frantically force and press all things, without rest for body or spirit, hurting our Earth and injuring ourselves: we call a halt.

We want to rest. We need to rest and allow the Earth to rest. We need to reflect and to rediscover the mystery that lives in us, that is the ground of every unique expression of life, the source of the fascination that calls all things to communion.

We declare a Sabbath, a space of Quiet; for simply being and letting be; for recovering the great, forgotten truths; for learning how to live again.

Two Prayers by St. Patrick

I.

At Tara today in this fateful hour
I place all heaven with its power,
And the sun with its brightness,
And the snow with it whiteness,
And Fire with all the strength it hath,
And Lightning with its rapid wrath,
And the winds with their swiftness along their path,
And the sea with its deepness,
And the rocks with their steepness
And the Earth with its starkness;
All these I place
By God's almighty help and grace,
Between myself and the powers of Darkness.

II.

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in threeness,
Through confession of the oneness
Of the Creator of Creation.

I arise today
Through the strength of heaven,
Light of sun,
Radiance of moon,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of wind,
Depth of sea,
Stability of Earth,
Firmness of rock.

I arise today
Through a might, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the threeness,
Through confession of the oneness
of the Creator of Creation.

Consider Creation

All people of the Earth, each and every nation
Arise and rejoice at the continued creation
Of beauty, of springtime, the yearly rebirth
Of our protector, our home, our own Mother Earth!

Who despite our apparent lack of care
Creates bountiful splendor for all to share
From mountain tops to the deepest sea
All wonderful Earthly miracles bursting free!

Yet this miracle of renewal requires the helping hand
Of the people to replenish and renew the land
From the largest of cities to the most remote farms
To unite in spirit and with the strongest arms.

Become a midwife to the birth of each flower
A guardian of our resources hour by hour
We must learn to take time to appreciate
The miracles of which we did not create.

For God has given this wonderful treasure
And its preservation will be the measure
Of people who recognize and will celebrate
The birth of each season before it's too late.

In citizenship, in willingness to toil
We must bend our backs and tend to the soil
In stewardship, arise and applaud the worth
Of the wondrous marvel of our Living Earth!

Consider creation. . . . Consider it now.

Source: service from August 1992, "Coming to See"

Psalm of the Cosmos

Loving God, loving God,
all creation calls you blessed,
and so do we, and so do we.

Loving God,
all your creation calls you blessed.
Your spirit imprints the whole universe with life and mystery.
Yes, all creation proclaims your love.
We now join this chorus of praise.

Loving God,
all of nature calls you blessed,
and so do we.

For you have woven an intimate tapestry
and call it life
and called it good.

In love you have formed a universe
so diverse yet so related,
and into its web you call us forth
to walk the land and swim the sea
with all our natural brothers and sisters.

To the stars
we seem no more than blades of grass.
Yet to you, each of us,
as each blade of grass and each star,
is an irreplaceable treasure,
an essential companion on this journey of love.

Loving God, as you lure the whole world into salvation,
guide us with your Spirit
that we might not be only pilgrims on the Earth,
but pilgrims with the Earth,
journeying home to you.

Open our hearts to understand
the intimate relationship that you have with all creation.
Only with this faith can we hope
for tomorrow's children.
Amen. Alleluia!

Loving God, loving God,
all creation calls you blessed,
and so do we, and so do we.

Source unknown

Hymn of the Universe

Teilhard de Chardin

I live at the heart of a single, unique Element, the Center of the universe, and present in each part of it: personal Love and cosmic Power.

To attain to him and become merged into his life I have before me the entire universe with its noble struggles, its impassioned quests, its myriad of souls to be healed and made perfect. I can and I must throw myself into the thick of human endeavor, and with no stopping for breath. For the more I bring my efforts to bear on the whole surface of reality, the more also will I attain to Christ and cling close to him. God who is eternal Being-in-itself, is, one might say, ever in process of formation for us.

And God is also the heart of everything; so much so that the vast setting of the universe might be engulfed or wither away or be creation's dust, which is vitalized by a halo of energy and glory, to be swept away, the substantial Reality wherein every perfection is incorruptibly contained and possessed would remain intact; the rays would be drawn back onto their Source and there I should still hold them all in close embrace.

An Affirmation of Faith.

God creates all things,
renews all things, and celebrates all things.
This we believe.

Earth is a sanctuary,
a sacred planet filled with God’s presence,
a home for us to share with our kin.
This we believe.

God became flesh and blood,
a part of Earth,
a human being called Jesus Christ,
who lived and breathed and spoke among us,
suffered and died on a cross
for all human beings and for all creation.
This we believe.

The risen Jesus
is the Christ at the center of creation,
reconciling all things to God,
renewing all creation and filling the cosmos.
This we believe.

The Holy Spirit renews life in creation,
groans in empathy with a suffering creation,
and waits with us for the rebirth of creation.
This we believe.

We believe that with Christ we will rise and with Christ we will celebrate a new creation.

The following prayers are from The United Nations Environmental Sabbath Service
From “Only One Earth,” a United Nations Environment Program publication for “Environmental Sabbath/Earth Rest Day,” June 1990; UN Environment Program, DC2-803 United Nations, New York, NY 10017. as found at www.Earthministry.org/Congregations/UN_Sabbath.htm

A Prayer of Awareness

Today we know of the energy that moves all things: the oneness of existence, the diversity and uniqueness of every moment of creation, every shape and form, the attraction, the allurement, the fascination that all things have for one another.

Humbled by our knowledge, chastened by surprising revelations, with awe and reverence we come before the mystery of life.

A Prayer of Sorrow

Reader: We have forgotten who we are.

We have forgotten who we are
We have alienated ourselves from the unfolding of the cosmos
We have become estranged from the movements of the Earth
We have turned our backs on the cycles of life.

We have forgotten who we are.

We have sought only our own security
We have exploited simply for our own ends
We have distorted our knowledge
We have abused our power.

We have forgotten who we are.

Now the land is barren
And the waters are poisoned
And the air is polluted.

We have forgotten who we are.

Now the forests are dying
And the creatures are disappearing
And the humans are despairing.

We have forgotten who we are.

We ask forgiveness
We ask for the gift of remembering
We ask for the strength to change.

A Prayer of Healing

Reader: We join with the Earth and with each other.

To bring new life to the land
To restore the waters
To refresh the air

We join with the Earth and with each other.

To renew the forests
To care for the plants
To protect the creatures

We join with the Earth and with each other.

To celebrate the seas
To rejoice the sunlight
To sing the song of the stars

We join with the Earth and with each other.

To recall our destiny
To renew our spirits
To reinvigorate our bodies

We join with the Earth and with each other.

To create the human community
To promote justice and peace
To remember our children

Reader: We join together as many and diverse expressions of one loving mystery: for the healing of the Earth and the renewal of all life.

A Prayer of Gratitude

Reader: We rejoice in all life.

We live in all things
All things live in us

We rejoice in all life.

We live by the sun
We move with the stars

We rejoice in all life.

We eat from the Earth
We drink from the rain
We breathe from the air

We rejoice in all life.

We share with the creatures
We have strength through their gifts

We rejoice in all life.

We depend on the forests
We have knowledge through their secrets

We rejoice in all life.

We have the privilege of seeing and understanding
We have the responsibility of caring
We have the joy of celebrating.

Reader: We are full of the grace of creation

We are graceful
We are grateful
We rejoice in all life.

A Prayer from Chief Seattle

Every part of this Earth is sacred to my people.
Every shining pine needle, every sandy shore, every
mist in the dark woods, every meadow, every humming insect.

All are holy in the memory and experience of my people.
We know the sap which courses through our veins. We are
part of the Earth and its part of us. The perfumed flowers
are our sisters. The bear, the deer, the great eagle,
these are our brothers.

The rocky crests, the juices in the meadow, the body
heat of the pony, and man, all belong to the same family.
The shining water that moves in the streams and rivers is
not just water, but the blood of our ancestors.

Each ghostly reflection in the clear water of the lakes
tells of events and memories in the life of my people. The
water's murmur is the voice of my father's father. The rivers
are our brothers. They quench our thirst. They carry our canoes
and feed our children. So you must give to the rivers the
kindness you would give any children.

So you must give to the rivers the kindness you would give
any brother ... Remember that the air is precious to us, that
the air shares its spirit with all the life it supports. The wind that
gave our grandfather his first breath also receives his last
sigh. The wind also gives our children the spirit of life.

Will you teach your children what we have taught our children?
That the Earth is our mother? What befalls the Earth, befalls all the
sons of the Earth. This we know: the Earth does not belong to man,
man belongs to the Earth.

All things are connected like the blood which unites us all. Man
did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it.
Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself.

Chief Seattle 1855

Prayer of Daniel

Let the Earth bless the Lord;
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
Mountains and hills, bless the Lord;
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
Everything growing from the Earth, bless the Lord;
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
You springs, bless the Lord;
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
Seas and rivers, bless the Lord;
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
You dolphins and all water creatures, bless the Lord;
Praise and exalt him above all forever
All you birds of the air, bless the Lord;
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
All you beasts, wild and tame, bless the Lord;
Praise and exalt him above all forever.

Dn. 3: 74-81

Other Prayers can be found at CAFOD
(Catholic Agency for Overseas Development- England)
www.cafod.org/uk

"God's Grandeur" by Gerard Manley Hopkins

The world is charged with the grandeur of God,
It will flame out, like shining from shook foil;

It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil
Crushed.  Why do men then now not reck his rod?
Generations have trod, have trod, have trod;
And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil;
And wears man's smudge and shared man's smell: the soil
Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod.

And for all this, nature is never spent;
There lives the dearest freshness deep down things;
And though the last lights off the black West went
Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs --
Because the Holy Spirit over the bent
World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.