2016 World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation

Wednesday, August 31, 2016

In 2015, Pope Francis instituted the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, which is annually celebrated on September 1. It coincides with a similar celebration previously established by Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. It is therefore also a day of ecumenical prayer. On September 1, 2016, the Holy See will release the Message of the Holy Father to mark the second World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation. It will be possible to follow the news conference through the website of the Vatican Information Service at www.news.va. 

The website of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace provides a Prayer Service that can be used for Vespers, Holy Hour or Benediction. It is suggested to organize this celebration between September 1 and October 4, “Time for Creation”. There are also some other resources in connection with the Pope’s Encyclical, Laudato Si’ (Praise Be To You), On the Care of Our Common Home. Chapter Six of Laudato Si’ is dedicated to the theme “Ecological education and spirituality”.

Link to the website of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace

Link to the Encyclical Laudato Si’

Other resources:

–St John Paul II: Peace with God the Creator, Peace with All of Creation (1990)

–Benedict XVI: If You Want to Cultivate Peace, Protect Creation (2010)

Image from Salt and Light Catholic Media Foundation’s Creation Series. Learn more at http://saltandlighttv.org/creation