Several parishes in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington are observing this year’s Season of Creation with activities open to participation by Catholics from all parishes across the archdiocese. The Season of Creation is a month-long period of prayer, reflection, and action for the environment, that began on Sept. 1 (the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation) and ends on Oct. 4 (the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi).
This year marks the 10th anniversary of Pope Francis’s call to Catholics to participate in the observance of this ecumenical initiative. Pope Leo has encouraged Catholics to sow “seeds of peace and hope” during this year’s Season of Creation, and to “follow words with deeds” to address environmental injustice.
A wide range of celebration opportunities are being pursued by creation care teams and ministries around the archdiocese. There are also some notable global events that will be livestreamed free on the Internet.
The following are some of the activities that are open to participation by Catholics, regardless of their home parish.
Sept. 1 – Oct. 4: For the entirety of the Season of Creation, Holy Trinity Church in Washington, D.C. will be offering a self-guided pilgrimage of reflection for individuals on its parish grounds, starting in its East Chapel Garden. Pilgrims can start and proceed at their convenience. Displays will provide information and prayerful reflections on the many environmental crises facing our planet and our call to respond, as outlined in Laudato Si’. The parish grounds are open from dawn to dusk. (3513 N Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.)
Sept. 6: Saint Camillus Church offers an opportunity to care for and improve the gardens and grounds on parish property, including maintenance of its pollinator gardens, from 8:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. This is a popular event for students seeking service hours. For more information and to sign up, contact Tom Melo at melotc@gmail.com. (1600 St. Camillus Drive, Silver Spring, Maryland)
Sept. 7: Holy Trinity Church in Washington will celebrate a special Mass for the Care of Creation at its 9:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. Masses. Afterwards, there will be a talk by Marisa Vertrees from the Union of Concerned Scientists. (36th Street, N.W., between N and O Streets, Washington, D.C.)
Sept. 7: As part of the Unity Walk being organized by the InterFaith Council of Metropolitan Washington, creation care teams from the Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle and Holy Trinity Church will be providing a Catholic environmental presence. The event begins at the Washington Hebrew Congregation, at 12:30 p.m. (3935 Macomb Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.).
Sept. 14 and Sept. 21: Holy Trinity Church will be sponsoring presentations and exhibits by environmental groups, such as the Catholic Climate Covenant, Interfaith Power and Light D.C..Maryland.NoVA, and Interfaith Partners for the Chesapeake as well as it’s Green Team during the Coffee Hour after its 9:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. Masses on these Sundays. (McKenna Hall – O Street, NW, between 35th and 36th Streets, N.W., Washington, D.C.)
Sept. 18: The Care for Creation Green Team at the Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle will host a virtual meeting on Zoom to discuss The Ten Green Commandments of Laudato Si’, a book by Father Joshtrom Isaac Kureethadam, former coordinator of ecology and creation at the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, and Chair of Philosophy of Science at the Salesian Pontifical University in Rome. Father Joshtrom was a key official in the Dicastery with responsibility for implementing Laudato Si’, and the Zoom discussion will focus on the crisis affecting our common home, Pope Francis’s new language of integral ecology, and Pope Leo’s determination to press forward with the vision articulated by Pope Francis. The one-hour virtual meeting will start at 6 p.m. Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8618...; Zoom Meeting ID: 861 8157 4570; dial-in at 301-715-8592.
Sept. 21: The Care for Creation Green Team at the Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle will host a “Cathedral to Cathedral” Pilgrimage, starting with Mass at the Cathedral of Saint Matthew at 9:00 a.m. The pilgrimage walk will then proceed to the National Cathedral, with short Laudato Si’ meditations outside the Islamic Center, the Vatican Nunciature, and Saint Sophia Greek Orthodox Cathedral. After arriving at the National Cathedral, participants will take a mediative tour of the Bishop’s Garden. After a break for refreshment at a local restaurant, there will be a tour of the National Cathedral, starting at the West Facade. The day will end with Evensong at the National Cathedral at 4: p.m. Rides back to the Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle can be arranged. For more information, contact Simone Seym at simone.seym@gmail.com.
Sept. 27: The Care for Creation Green Team at the Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle will be participating in an Anacostia River Canoe Tour hosted by the Anacostia Watershed Society, from 10 a.m. to noon. The tour is open to all. The tour will leave from the boat ramp at Bladensburg Waterfront Park at 4601 Annapolis Road, Bladensburg, Maryland. Additional information and a registration are available at https://anacostiaws.salsalabs....;
Sept. 28: Holy Trinity Church will be holding an “Eco-Examen” (a meditation and reflection, using the principles of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, focused on our duty to care for our common home), at 10:15 a.m. in the Saint Ignatius Chapel (3513 N Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.). For more information call the parish center at 202-337-2840.
Sept. 28: The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington is organizing a Reflection Procession and Mass for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, starting at the Shrine of the Sacred Heart (3211 Sacred Heart Way, N.W., Washington, D.C.) and ending at the Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle. At 5:30 p.m., Cardinal Robert McElroy will be the principal celebrant at a Mass at the cathedral to mark this occasion and recognize the courage and faith of those who have left everything behind in search of a better future. Pope Francis wrote in Laudato Si’ that “There has been a tragic rise in the number of migrants seeking to flee from the growing poverty caused by environmental degradation.” For more information, contact the archdiocesan Secretariat of Evangelization and Synodal Renewal at culturaldiversity@adw.org.
Oct. 1: From Rome, Pope Leo will lead a celebration of hope for our common home, which will be livestreamed from 9:30 a.m. to 11a.m. (Washington time). This event is part of a multiday event celebrating the tenth anniversary of Laudato Si’. Registration for the livestream and more information on the multiday conference is available at https://raisinghope.earth/conf....
Oct. 4: The Season of Creation Ecumenical Youth Committee is sponsoring an online event from Rome celebrating Saint Francis and the month-long Season of Creation, 9 a.m. to 10a.m. (Washington time). More information is available at https://seasonofcreation.org/e....
Oct. 5: The Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle will celebrate the new Mass for the Care of Creation at 11 a.m., to mark the conclusion of, and in thanksgiving for, the Season of Creation. The Schola Cantorum, the cathedral’s choir, will enhance the celebration with music specially chosen to inspire and motivate. (1725 Rhode Island Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C.)
(Robert M. Simon is a parishioner at St. Camillus Church in Silver Spring, Maryland and a member of the coordinating group for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington’s Care for Creation Committee.)
