By John Rohlf
The Message assistant editor
St. Benedict Cathedral School participated in a Mass for Creation during the Cathedral’s all-school Mass Sept. 19.
Father Alex Zenthoefer, Diocesan vicar general and rector of St. Benedict Cathedral, celebrated the Mass Sept. 19 at St. Benedict Cathedral. Father Tyler Underhill, parochial vicar at St. Benedict Cathedral, concelebrated Mass.
According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Season of Creation spans five weeks annually. It begins on Sept. 1, which is the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation and concludes on Oct. 4, which is the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi.
The Diocese of Evansville is observing the Season of Creation by encouraging pastors to celebrate a Mass for Creation to thank God for the precious gift and ask His help to be good stewards of our natural resources. Additionally, the Diocesan staff is having an in-service on environmental issues to learn about practical ways to better care for our Common Home, both individually and in the various ministries and programs of the Diocese.
During his homily at the Mass, Father Zenthoefer said the Mass during the Season of Creation is a time to celebrate the gift of creation. Father Zenthoefer said that while there are many lessons they can learn from creation, he focused his homily on three specific lessons.
Father Zenthoefer said the first lesson was that trees bear fruit that can either feed or it can hurt. He said a sick tree breeds sickness, while a good tree bears fruit that can feed us.
“If we’re always doing things that are evil, things that are bad, things that hurt other people, that sickness makes others sick,” Father Zenthoefer said. “Our lives can make other people sick. But if our lives are full of virtue, if we’re always doing good things, if we’re bringing out the good in other people, if we’re highlighting the beauty of the things that we’ve been given, then we can nourish others by our presence.”
Father Zenthoefer also noted the need for clean air in creation. If they were to constantly pollute the air, the world in which we live would be unlivable, he said. He cited the need for clean air and a clean environment to fully be themselves.
“It’s also true for us in the air that we breathe in our school and here in our parish and in our community,” Father Zenthoefer said. “If we are always polluting the air by the things that we say about other people, if we’re calling people names, if we’re using bad language, if the way that we live harms other people, then we’re creating an environment where people can’t breathe.”
Father Zenthoefer’s other main lesson was that they had to recognize that any good fruit takes work and they need to sacrifice for what is good.
“We want to be people who are working on ourselves,” Father Zenthoefer said. “Recognizing that God has given us gifts. And that if those gifts are going to grow and be useful to others, then we have to work on them and develop them. And so creation teaches us that any good thing requires sacrifice in order to grow.”
Father Zenthoefer closed his homily by encouraging everyone that as they prayed during Mass, they be aware of the impact they have on the climate and the environment in which they live.
“And let’s pray God can help us to care for the larger gift of creation so that it can continue to teach us and help us to grow closer to our Creator,” Father Zenthoefer said.