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Dear Friars,
�
This past June,
I joined Bill Linhares and Pat Foley at an eco-spirituality
conference in San Antonio, Texas.� Having the patron saint of
ecology as our founder has inspired me to want to know more about
how to love and protect our planet.� Plus, Pat would be speaking to
the crowd about the �Covenant of Creation� he has written.
Brian Swimme, a
cosmologist, was the featured speaker of the three-day gathering and
shared awesome pictures and stories of our universe.� How amazing
that in the 1920s when some of you were born, our scientists thought
there might be one more galaxy than our own.� Now they know there
are hundreds of billions and more are still being created.� The
immense universe and tiny earth are witnesses to God�s continual act
of creation.
There were
other speakers and small group discussions that were
informative and Pat made me
proud of our Franciscan heritage in this arena.� What a vital
opportunity
for us to follow Francis in
our own way of loving and respecting Br. Sun, Sister Earth and the
entire family.
Back at the
friary, we�ve talked about how we can do our part.� Maybe it is a
small part to change the trend of global warming but it is a start.�
For one thing, we have started using compact fluorescent light bulbs
(CFLs).� Not only are these a huge energy saver, they last five to
10 times longer than a regular incandescent bulb, saving you at
least four times the cost in the long run.� Scientists say if every
house in the U.S. used just one of these bulbs, the savings in
pollution would amount to removing one million cars from our roads.
We are also
trying to reduce our use of paper and paper products.� It is claimed
that 20% of our landfills are made of paper.� This adds to massive
garbage dumps which often ultimately make their way into our lakes
and oceans.� At least paper decomposes after awhile.� Plastic
bottles take 1,000 years to do so. Consequently, we rarely buy
bottled water anymore�it has sometimes been discovered to be mere
tap water anyways�and always recycle our plastics.
Additionally,
we�ve opted to drink juices and other beverages that come in
recyclable containers.� We also try to buy foods with less
packaging, which again ends up in our landfills and waterways.�
Sandwich meats and cheeses, for example, can be bought from the deli
section instead of the packaged containers.�
Are there ways
your friary practices saving energy and being kinder to Mother
Earth?� I would be grateful if you shared your practices and new
ideas.� It seems that our father Francis would desire a life for us
that respect all of creation.
Your brother in
Christ and Francis,
�
John�������������������������������������������������������������������������������
�
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