Love Your World

Spring is finally and fully here, after our ususal number of false starts. Things are blooming, birds are building nests, and some days feel almost like summer. It's time to shake off the cobwebs, get outside, and reconnect with the earth at our feet.

Bishop Gray has asked that this Sunday, which closely follows Earth Day, be marked with renewed attention to our stewardship of God's creation.

Traditionally, the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday after the Sixth Sunday of Easter are Rogation Days. These days were once marked in rural England by processions marking the boundaries of farmer's fields and prayers of blessing for the crops. It's then a very appropriate time to remember that God has entrusted us with the care of creation on the behalf of all living things.

There are many ways to be attentive to this responsibility. We recycle at St. Alexis, and I encourage you to do that simple work at home. We can be careful about the products we buy and the food we eat. We can grow vegetables and buy produce and other foods locally. The Farmer's Market on High Street and the Belhaven Market feature the products of local, organic farms. We also do God's work, I think, when we restore and beautify our little piece of creation. We're working to turn an old warehouse into a holy and beautiful worship space. The little flowerbed we created last spring is flourishing, bringing new life to a commercial strip that has probably been vacant for fifty years or more.

So get out, get going, get to work. The world you save may be your own.

"We give you thanks, most gracious God, for the beauty of earth and sky and sea; for the richness of mountains, plains, and rivers; for the songs of birds and the loveliness of flowers. We praise you for these good gifts, and pray that we may safeguard them for our posterity. Grant that we may continue to grow in our grateful enjoyment of your abundant creation, to the honor and glory of your Name, now and forever. AMEN"