21.6.15 Even the wind and the sea obey him.

12th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Hello again form a little liturgy.  This week I have taken the opportunity to focus on the environment and the papal encyclical "Laudato Si".  Just as Christ calmed the storm for the disciples, Pope Francis is attempting to calm the troubled waters of environmental damage and make us aware of our responsibility as stewards of nature. The name of the encyclical is taken from the start of a canticle written by St Francis in the 13th century.   

Liturgy of the Word

First Reading
Job 38: 1, 8-11
The Lord asks Job who it was that made the sea and created its limits.  

Psalm 106
O give thanks to the Lord, for his love endures for ever.

Second Reading
2 Corinthians 5:14-17
St Paul tells us that Christ's love for us is overwhelming.  Christ makes us see the world differently.

Gospel
Mark 4:35-41
Mark tells us the story of the calming of the storm.  Jesus was asleep in the boat when a storm blew up and the disciples woke him as they were terrified.  Jesus spoke to the wind saying "Quiet now!  Be calm!" and the wind died down.  Afterwards the disciples were filled with awe, saying to each other "Who can this be?  Even the wind and the sea obey him."

Discussion

The sea and the wind are aspects of the natural world that humans find very difficult to control.  They can be very helpful to us but also very harmful and cause great damage.  Today there are many challenges facing us and our relationship with the environment.  
This week the Pope issued a special letter to the whole world (an encyclical).  It asked us to change the way we treat the natural world.  

Here is a passage that he wrote on global warming:

"Climate change is a global problem with grave implications: environmental, social, economic, political and for the distribution of goods. It represents one of the principal challenges facing humanity in our day. Its worst impact will probably be felt by developing countries in coming decades. Many of the poor live in areas particularly affected by phenomena related to warming, and their means of subsistence are largely dependent on natural reserves and ecosystemic services such as agriculture, fishing and forestry."

Activities

Asnwer the questions below and consider our relationship with the sea and the wind.  



Make a list of all the positive ways we use the sea:



Now make a list of what humans do to abuse this resource:



How can the sea be dangerous?



How do humans benefit from the power of the wind?



How can the wind be dangerous?




Extra Resources

There is a good summary of the encyclical below:

5 key points

Or click for a more detailed analysis:

fuller discussion

You can listen to the canticle written by St Francis here:

Canticle of the Sun



Image courtesy of "foto 76" at "freedigitalphotos.net"