Eucharistic Celebration during the “Walk for Creation” - Photo:John Din
The day before 1 September 2017, I found myself along with other volunteers installing tents in Burnham Green, Luneta Park, Ermita, Manila, for a Walk with Creation scheduled for dawn on the following day.
The weather forecast was not promising. Because we were near the coast, the wind was powerful and we had to find sacks of sand to support our tents, as well as tie them to the ground. The sky was clear, and we could see stars, a good sign promising a dry day after days of torrential rain.
Just before 3:00am on September 1, the rain started to pour and showed no sign of stopping. We were all wondering what would happen to the event, would it be postponed. Just before the Mass was due to begin, the rain stopped. We rushed to prepare the altar and sound system.
What was thought to be a “walk for creation” became a “walk with creation,” a creation that is ever present. Crisscrossing the fields and sloshing through the water and mud, memories of my childhood came back. It was a memory of being at home with the natural world.
The rain had disrupted our plans, but we had worked together to get the event off the ground. People began gathering in the middle of the uneven and grassy field, walking through water and mud.
We celebrated the Eucharist, listening carefully to Luis Cardinal Tagle’s meaningful message of the culture of care we need to nurture in every generation. The Eucharist was celebrated on an altar in an open field. The sacrament became the word of the scriptures meeting with the word revealed through all the created elements surrounding us. The Eucharist took place as the dark of night and hanging clouds gave way to the rising sun.
After the Eucharist, we embarked on a reflective walk. We meditated on the different moments of creation as informed by the current scientific understanding of our evolutionary universe - from the birth of the atom to the call to live the “Ecozoic era”, a term coined by the eco-geologist, Thomas Berry, to describe a mutually enhancing relationship between humans and the natural world.
We walked beside the fields, sometimes through the mud and at other times picking our way around rain-soaked areas. The sun accompanied us on our walk through the different moments of creation.
Columbans participating in the “Walk for Creation.” - Photo:John Din
The Walk for Creation was indeed a time of experiencing creation at its fullest manifestation, from the buffeting of the wind, the blessing of the rain, the stability and support of the earth, to the fire of the rising sun.
What was thought to be a “walk for creation” became a “walk with creation,” a creation that is ever present. Crisscrossing the fields and sloshing through the water and mud, memories of my childhood came back. It was a memory of being at home with the natural world.
What happened before and during the event brought back good memories to those who participated in the walk—memories of being at home with the natural world.
However, creation in our time of uncontrolled commercialism has become a more endangered memory, a strained relationship with the earth, separating ourselves from our real identity that is related and interconnected with all creation.
John Din is a Columban lay missionary and the Regional Coordinator of the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation office in the Philippines.
