Planting the Seeds of Hope - Responding to the Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Poor
This is what we are about
We plant the seeds that one day will grow,
We water seeds already planted knowing that they hold future promise
We lay foundations that will need further development
We provide yeast that produces effects far beyond our capabilities.
We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realising that
This enables us to do something, and do it very well.
It may be incomplete, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord’s grace to enter and do the rest.
We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.
We are the workers, not master builders, ministers not messiahs.
We are prophets of a future not our own.
Oscar Romero
This passage calls us to recognise that we are leaders who have been called to guide the work of God in responding to the Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Poor.
Knowing that we don’t have all the answers is part of also acknowledging that as parents and leaders in our homes and communities, we don’t have all the answers, we seek the answers through others’, through their stories, through a unique process of listening and responding to the cries.
As we move through this process of discernment and sharing our thoughts and ideas, we think of our work as if we are planting the seeds of hope for the people we represent, the parents of children in our school communities. Without hope, life can become more challenging - it is the seeds of hope and an optimistic mindset that families, especially children, need to see the possibilities for a better world, now that they have seen how quickly that can change through the pandemic.
We are prophets of a future not our own - this passage tells us that we are stewards in this work - Pope Francis is calling us to be relationships-based - less on duty and more on love - this passage and this calling is saying that when we plant seeds, they will grow and leave a legacy for others.
In a sense, planting seeds is giving back what has been taken from nature - replanting, nourishing, regeneration of the land are all things that give back.
Over the past weekend at our final meeting for the year, CSPV explored the opportunity to make a difference as parent leaders in Catholic education to explore the 7 goals for taking action to authentically respond as Christians to The Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Poor.
The 7 Goals are:
- Response to the cry of the earth;
- Response to the cry of the poor;
- Ecological economics;
- Sustainable lifestyles;
- Ecological spirituality;
- Ecological education;
- Community engagement and participatory action
We began by exploring the cry of the earth and cry of the poor and what each actually means in our Catholic learning communities and for families. We discovered that sustainability and learning about the environment is alive and well in our schools, with students very conscious of their responsibilities in caring for the Earth. There seems to be an optimism amongst students in how they can make a difference, but perhaps this learning isn't shared enough with families, therefore the learning may not be transferred into the way students live out this learning at home.
The cry of the poor included a discussion about who are the poor in our communities? Has the definition of poor changed over the past two years as more people are seeking support and are in need of help in various ways including financially, spiritually, mentally and physically.
We discussed the CSPV role in gathering stories and empowering families with knowledge and understanding of what their children are learning at school and how to make a difference in the home and create a culture of connection, to respond as a whole Catholic community to the cry of the earth and cry of the poor.
Following the discussion at the CSPV meeting, Executive Officer Rachel Saliba attended a webinar hosted by EarthCare Families which provided insight into one of the ways families can become more engaged by developing a vision and plan of action to respond to the call to care for each other and the earth.
The EarthCare Families program:
- Accompanies the Laudato Si action platform
- Allows families to engage in the process
- Acknowledges the hard work that families do caring for our common home
- Encourages an intergenerational response to the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor
- Helps families to take real action and make real change
- Is a spiritual program as much as it is about an action program
The program includes 4 phases and at the completion of each phase families will receive a certificate of achievement.
This program is a great opportunity for schools to engage families in learning that is happening at school in relation to social justice and environmental and sustainability studies and to apply their learning to a vision and plan of action.
If you would like to learn more about how families can begin exploring how to respond to this calling, to plant the seeds of hope for the future, click on the link below to watch the webinar from EarthCare Families and visit their website at
https://catholicearthcare.org.au/laudato-si-families/
This is just one way families can engage and make a difference. We encourage you to take some time to have conversations with your children to share what they learn at school and create a plan for your family.
CSPV will continue to explore ways to engage Catholic school families in the 7 goals to enable this work to be integrated across Catholic school communities as part of our unique culture of promoting social justice, care for humanity and the earth, inspired by Catholic mission and Pope Francis' Laudato Si Action Platform.