All Creation is Shouting for Joy
Editor’s Note: Lay missioner Ralph Anderson, OFS shares how he witnesses Creation singing in praise of God and the ways that it yearns for justice.
The little green parrots
Every morning, I wake at 5:00 and open the drapes, have coffee, and start my morning prayer. It is pitch black outside, and I can only see the reflection of the light in my room on the window pane. I know the scene will change soon. The shape of the buildings across the street begin to appear. As the dawn gives way to the morning sun, I can start to see the treetops in Plaza Colon two blocks away. Then, there it is, and I stop my morning prayer. The same as the day before and the day before that for how many centuries? The sound of maybe a hundred little green parrots singing and flying high to greet the sun before it peeks over the mountain. My heart fills with the Canticle of the Sun written by Saint Francis. The original music is lost, however Michelle Sherlisa put it to music and the refrain is stuck in my head.
The heavens are telling the Glory of God and all creation is shouting for joy. Come dance in the forest, come play in the field and sing –sing to the glory of the lord.
The trash can full of lemonade
The little creatures bring me joy with their song as my day begins. I finish morning prayer and head downstairs to the kitchen. I open up before anyone else arrives and I enjoy the peace in the kitchen because soon it will be filled with activity to prepare meals for more than a hundred people. I begin to transfer the fifty liters of water that was boiled the day before to a large plastic trash can. The water is still warm, but I know it will cool enough by lunch time. I add whatever fruit I prepared the day before. Today it is pulverized and strained lemons. I measure twenty cups of sugar and I start putting some of it in plastic bags to serve the street vendors who are unable to come to the center. Everyone who comes to the center receives a four-ounce glass of the drink.
The pila at the center
People are arriving now, waiting for lunch. They begin to line up at the pila. (a pila is a large tile outdoor wash basin) They are washing out their bottles in hope that there will be some left-over liquid. One man washes his feet and then drinks from the pila. Everyone knows the water is contaminated, and taking a drink is like Russian roulette. I am saddened at the fact that we have polluted our world to the point where there are no pristine streams for the poor to drink from as there were in Francis’ time.
Most people in Cochabamba are able to afford purified bottled water. Twenty liters costs 12 bolivianos, or five gallons for $1.73. You can’t carry a five-gallon bottle around all day and a half liter will cost you 6 bolivianos. The poor would have to pay 240 bolivianos to purchase the same twenty liters of clean drinking water. There is hope. The first order and third order Franciscan have begun looking into ways to provide clean drinking water at the center 6 days a week. Next weekend I have been invited to attend the Franciscan movement for Justice and Peace national conference in Tarata at a retreat center. Clean drinking water is an issue all over Bolivia. How will we find justice for the poor?
And sing – sing to the glory of the Lord.
Questions for Reflection: Where do you notice Creation singing for the glory of God? How can you work for peace and justice to help Creation shout for joy?
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