“Living the Faith” by Sister Margie Lavonis, CSC

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to look around and see how poorly many human beings treat the earth and her many gifts. When I was still living at home, my mother would always tell us not to run the water needlessly or to turn off the lights when we left a room. At that time I thought she was just nagging. Now I see that she was probably the first environmentalist I ever met.

The growing violence in the world is disturbing. Who of us is not saddened when we hear of cold-blooded killings or witness the devastation of so many people because of senseless wars? On the other hand, I wonder how many of us reflect on the violence that humans do to the earth daily? It would be interesting to count how many paper and plastic goods each of us use in just one day or one week? How many people pick up plastic forks and knives in a cafeteria or restaurant when the washable utensils are readily available? How many of us wonder where all the trash we generate goes? I remember hearing several years ago on the news about a barge of garbage that was floating for days on a river unable to find a place that would permit it to dump its cargo.

Do we ever think about the number of trees that have to die to supply us with the reams and reams of paper we use each day? How many of us recycle it, or do we just throw it back into the regular trash that ends up in a landfill? I was amazed at one place I worked. Recycling bins were everywhere yet many people threw paper, cans and bottles into the regular trash. Are we just lazy or don’t we care about future generations and the life of earth?

A friend of mine grew up on a farm in California. She often mentions how much it grieves her to see shopping malls built on some of the most fertile land in the country, if not in the world. It is outrageous, maybe sinful, that millions of people go to bed hungry every day, some in our own country, and many die daily while we erect buildings on farmland that could be used to grow enough food to feed the world.

Our economy today has its problems, but we still have been blessed with much more than many of our brothers and sisters around the world. This abundance is not our entitlement. We have an obligation to share it with those in need around the world.

I taught social studies as a young sister and often used an exercise to get across to the students the reality of the world situation as far as consumption of goods is concerned. I would get some great food and 5 percent of the class would be given 60 percent and the rest would have to share the remaining 40 percent. Of course there would be a lot of griping and cries that it was unfair. The exercise usually made the point. Sadly, many years later we still have this inequity.

Yes, it was and is unfair and unjust that a small part of the world has access to the majority of the earth’s resources while millions live in poverty. We are surrounded with consumerism and materialism while others do not have their basic human needs met. Some of us also live like these resources will never run out. What about future generations? What is our obligation to them?

All of this can be overwhelming and we can be at a loss as to where to start to address the reality of the situation. Most of us are inclined to think, “What could I possibly do about it?” On the contrary, I think we all can do something. Maybe it is as little as not letting the water run while brushing our teeth, remembering the millions of people who have no access to clean water. We can be conscious of the life of trees by using regular instead of paper plates or taking the effort to recycle all our papers and magazines.

We can do our bit to slow down global warming by carpooling and watching our use of electricity. There are many other examples.

We all can do something. This Easter season is a good time to move out of our comfort zones and think of others more, including Mother Earth. Remember that God gave all humans the earth and told us to take care of it. How are you doing on that score? How do you use or abuse God’s many gifts?

And the next time you buy a new cell phone or computer think about what happens to the old one.

Did you enjoy this article? If so, browse our “Living the Faith” archive to read some of Sister Margie’s past reflections.