Earth Week was celebrated from St. Francis’s Feast Day on 4th October to 13th October 2013.
We in the Diocese of Kerry are committed to making the care of creation an integral part of our diocesan and parish life. We recognize that ‘every action taken in favour of a just and more sustainable environment, no matter how small, has an intrinsic value’. (The Cry of the Earth)
In celebrating Earth Week 2013 we were invited to reflect on the importance of Water. Access to water for life is a basic human need and a fundamental human right. Yet in our increasingly prosperous world, nearly a billion people are denied the right to clean water. “It is therefore necessary to cultivate a public conscience that considers food and access to water as universal rights of human beings, without distinction or discrimination”. (Caritas in Veritate. Benedict XVI.)
Water gives life. From the first drops of water that pool together, then tumble through the many waterways that link the globe, it sustains the planet like the blood that keeps us alive. We depend on this constantly renewing source to sustain the ecosystems that provide the food and the substance we need.
Pope Francis recently spoke of the ‘culture of waste’ where we tolerate the waste of precious resources. He asked us “to reflect on this grave ethical problem in a spirit of solidarity grounded in our common responsibility for the earth and for all our brothers and sisters in the human family”. (Pope Francis)
We invite you as a parish, school, or family to see how you use this precious gift . Let Earth Week 2013 remind us that every drop counts!
CLICK HERE to download Poster
CLICK HERE to download Parish Event Template
CLICK HERE to download Earth Week Resource Booklet