"Seeds of Peace and Hope" is the theme of Pope Leo XIV's message published on the occasion of the 10th World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation.
This event, established 10 years ago by Pope Francis in conjunction with the publication of the encyclical Laudato Si', opens the "Season of Creation", that is, the period from the 1st September to the 4th October, the Solemnity of St. Francis of Assisi, in which the ecumenical Church from all over the world comes together to care for our Common Home.
The Holy Father takes up the image of the seed, used several times by Jesus, which must die in order to bear fruit: "The seed is given entirely to the earth and there, with the disruptive force of its gift, life sprouts, even in the most unexpected places, in a surprising capacity to generate the future", writes the Pontiff, underlining how we, in Christ, we are seeds of Peace and Hope. Indeed, taking up the words of the prophet Isaiah, he recalls how "a spirit will be infused into us from on high; then the desert will become a garden, and the garden will be considered a forest".
The Season of Creation is therefore that period to highlight the cry of Creation - violated, exploited, plundered, polluted - and respond with prayer and concrete actions. As Pope Francis already wrote, the current Pontiff recalls, the concept of integral ecology relates, unfortunately in a vicious circle, the activities of man and the Earth, and therefore the populations who live in it: "In a world where the most fragile are the first to suffer the devastating effects of climate change, deforestation and pollution, the care of creation becomes a question of faith and humanity", writes Pope Leo, recalling that in Genesis it is God Himself who invites humanity to cultivate and care for - that is, "protect, care, preserve, preserve, watch" - the garden of the world.
Amongst the initiatives of the Church, Leo XIV recalls the Borgo Laudato Si' project, which Pope Francis bequeathed to Castel Gandolfo, as a seed that can bear fruits of justice and peace. It is a project of education in integral ecology that aims to be an example of how one can live, work and build community by applying the principles of the Encyclical Laudato Si'.
Read the full text of the message
Download the Pastoral Kit prepared by the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development
Follow the initiatives on the Season of Creation website
