Cyclical Inspiration

 There were oohs and ahhs as the river of justice (now appx. 1500+ drops strong) was unveiled to the high school students. They added their own water drops to a river I have committed to keep growing until all school boards in my region are bottled water free zones. Each drop contains reflections on why Water is God-Given Gift.

The river grows

I am in Kingston at the diocesan center where 45 students gathered together from the ALCDSB's five high schools for a Development and Peace workshop.  They have come from Belleville, Trenton and Kingston.  ALCDSB is one of the few school boards in the province that has a policy on single-use plastic water bottles, making it a bottled water free zone.  Because this policy passed two years ago, many of the students were aware their schools did not sell bottled water, but not necessarily aware of the issues surrounding it.  We talked about the issues.  I shared with them how teachers and students from their schools had inspired teachers and students in other schools to work to make their schools bottled water free.  They saw the pictures from the bottled water free day rally last March held by TCDSB students. These students can now take inspiration from what TCDSB students did and can build on the bottled water free culture in their own schools.  Cyclical inspiration - ALCDSB inspires TCDSB inspires ALCDSB. It's a pretty thing. 

ill-fated farm.

Following lunch we did a session on our new campaign on ecological justice.  Our basic message this year is that by supporting small-scale farmers, especially in the Global South, we can help to reduce climate change.  I used stories from my trip to Paraguay to show students how sustainable small-scale farming can help the earth.  I gave them some farm animals, some crayons and a piece of land (i.e. bristol board) so they could make their own farm using these principles.  Then I surrounded all their lands with tape, marking my new soya plantation. I informed them that the land legally belonged to me and chased them off with a large super-soaker.  This is the fate of many campesinos - not just in Paraguay but all over Latin America.

oink!

These students will now go back to their schools and collect postcards of solidarity with these small-scale farmers.  Our time together ended in prayer.  They stood on the edge of the taped line and held hands.  In God's powerful silence we sent a pulse through the circle - each student squeezing the hand of their neighbour in turn.  Then they raised their hands in the air and jumped back onto their land with a large amen.



St. Paul C.S.S., St. Theresa C.S.S., Regi, Nicholson C.C., and Holy Cross C.S.S.:  thanks for the great day and good luck on your journey of Solidarity with us! 

'Bottled Water-Free Zone' Cake.

Saturday and I was on the road again - this time to Peterborough.  On tap for the day: a morning campaign workshop at St. Anne's with local D&P members, followed by a retreat on Caritas in Veritate.  I posted the drops from the Barrie workshop on the wall.  As you can see, the stream grew a bit more as participants added their own drops. It was a creative morning. 

This time round we chose a pregnant mother to handle the water gun.  Needless to say Amanda encountered less resistance than fair-trade Bob did in Barrie. 

To celebrate the start of the campaign, Karen Staunton baked a beautiful 'bottled water free-zone' cake.  What delicious artistry! Karen is an amazing D&P member who leads the group at St. Anne's and knows how to get things done.

Now I have done a lot of workshops but when it comes to retreats I'm a definite newbie.  Leading a retreat on Caritas in Veritate was new territory for me.  However, the group warmed up to me from the moment I began singing that Hal David classic, "What the World Needs Now is Love."  This essentially is the message of Pope Benedict's encyclical.  It is so simple as to be dismissed as cliche, however the implications are deep and far reaching.  Love must be the force behind our efforts as a global human family - neither the market nor government institutions are sufficient to bring about the development we need.  What is needed is a mobilization of the heart.  According to Catholic Social Teaching, to develop is not just to do more, know more and have more.  To develop is to be more. We believe in integral human development, the development of the whole person and every person (no short order).  But what is it to 'be more'? This is where the Truth comes in.  Rather than the truth being a set of doctrines or rules, truth is found when we open ourselves to listening to the other and finding the laws written by God on our human hearts.  Indeed it is here that we find the very splendour and glory of God.  For us as Catholics, Love in Truth is a powerful force that opens us to what it is to be more.  Throughout the afternoon we explored those depths as a group.

After the retreat we celebrated mass together.  How lovely it was to have Fr. Bill ask us to stand and be acknowledged by everyone gathered for mass that evening at St. Anne's.  It was as precious an applause as I have ever received. After dinner we ate cake -  'bottled water-free zone' cake.