Amazon Synod October 2019 reflection

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LAUDATO SI' REFLECTION - OCTOBER 2019 / Resource for personal or group reflection in Laudato Si' Circles.  

MONTHLY INTENTION:

Amazon Synod on the Environment 

We invite you to pray for the Synod on the Amazon which is happening now from October 6 to 27. The Synod is three weeks of discussion about the needs of the Amazon and its people. This is a unique moment for our Church as it applies integral ecology to a specific region for the first time. 

We encourage you to pray for the Synod each day, that in this kairos moment for the Church, God's wisdom might truly manifest in this special gathering. 

PERMANENT PETITION FOR THE AMAZONIAN SYNOD AT THE BEGINNING OF EACH DAY: 

"May the God of life and beauty, the Holy Spirit who drives us towards more fraternity, unity and dignity, and the Incarnate Christ of the Good News, and of inculturation and interculturality give us serenity, discernment and courage to find new paths for the Church and for an integral ecology in this Amazonian Synod. All of this for the good and life of their people and communities, and to walk more together for the Kingdom." 

MONTHLY SCRIPTURAL REFLECTION   

Reflection for the month: Luke 12:54-59, Gospel for October 25. 

Luke 12:54-59 Jesus says "When you see a cloud rising in the west, you immediately say, 'It is going to rain'; and so it happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, 'There will be scorching heat'; and it happens. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?" 

Jesus calls us to be attentive to the signs of the times and how He is calling us to act through the events that are happening around us. Often times, we are more inclined to just go on with our lives without taking notice of what is going on around us. We do not think beyond the present and refuse to acknowledge the injustices happening around us.

When Jesus called us hypocrites, His loneliness and frustration is evident. He can see the dangers ahead and yet, the people around him refuse to see the obvious and take action. 

Jesus also asks us to judge for ourselves what is right and to solve the issues here and now when he said "And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right?" He asks us to allow the Holy Spirit to speak to us in our conscience so that we can judge what is right and to resolve the crisis that we are in. He also stresses the importance of having a dialogue. 

The Synod of the Amazon is the Church's response to the signs of the times.

In preparing for the Synod, the Church went through a very thorough process of consultation and dialogue with 80,000 members of communities various Amazonian communities, including indigenous peoples. As a result of those interviews in dialogue with Catholic teaching, an instrumentum laboris, or working document, was written. 

The Synod will confront the difficult realities being faced in the Amazonia including the "extractivist mentality that views Amazonia as inexhaustible resource for other countries, without concern for its inhabitants and to the environment"The Synod will tackle the plight of the indigenous peoples of the Amazon, who are often excluded in the decision making processes on issues which affect their lives as well as the importance of protecting the Amazon for the sake of the whole world and the present and future generations.

It would have been easy for the Church to rest easy and not challenge the status quo in the Amazon and to turn a blind eye to the social injustices happening there. However, Pope Francis refuses to do just that. Through the Synod, the Church is stimulating discussions to find ways to act "here and now'. Through the Synod, the Church walks in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in the indigeneous tribes so that their voices will be heard by the whole world, as they also discuss about how to bring the Gospel to them according to their cultural reality and indigeneous practices. The synod will be a call for action to fight for social justice and reflect on our consumerist ways which drive the businesses to plunder the Amazon despite the adverse effect in the climate, in biodiversity, and in the environment as a whole. 

During the time of the Synod, we ask you to listen to the signs of the times, to recognize what is greedy and evil, to hear the cry of both the earth and the poor, and to take sides for justice and mercy.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS: 

Pope Francis said that special care for indigenous communities is needed because their lives, communities and cultural traditions are gravely endangered. Are there indigenous people in your area or country? What kind of challenges are they facing? How can the Christian community respond to these challenges? What can you learn from them in terms of relating to the environment? 

ACTION OF THE MONTH: HOST A "LIVING THE CHANGE" EVENT 

The Synod is a great opportunity to stop and reflect on how each of us lives in a way which respects and protects our common home. In Laudato Si the Pope asks us to really think hard about over-consumption: "Humanity is called to recognize the need for changes of lifestyle, production and consumption, in order to combat this warming or at least the human causes which produce or aggravate it." (LS, 5) 

Global Catholic Climat Mouvement supports a programme called Living the Change an international multi-faith initiative focused on changing personal consumption habits as one response to the climate emergency. At the moment the partnership is driving activity during a focused 'Time for Living the Change'. The program focuses on three priority areas for more climate-friendly living; using less energy, being more considerate in our transportation choices and eating a more plant based diet.

As a Laudato Si' Circle, we encourage you to host a Living the Change supper to share a simple meal and reflect on your lifestyle choices. There are some great resources for hosting a meal and reflection on the website.