by Cleric Octopaul and Father Leon Rodrigues for BISMumbai

It was at around 3:30 pm that the Salesians in Nashik, and the youth gathered round Abraham’s Tent, pitched at Don Bosco Parish-Nashik to celebrate our oneness with Mother Earth.

We started the proceedings with some ice-breakers conducted by the scholastics at Divyadaan: Institute of Philosophy, to help us get acquainted with one another. After a short while, we were introduced to the main program of the day by Father Leon Rodrigues. A short address, introducing the theme of the day, was read by a youngster Vivek Monti. We then took a pledge to honour our Mother Earth and placed a few plants and a globe in Abraham’s Tent, symbolizing our intent to work on our broken relationship with the earth.

We then proceeded to the Salesian Training Institute [STI] Novitiate, for a 'Forest Bathing' experience which was conducted by FMA nun Sister Jaya Pedthala and Father Rodrigues – a meditation meant to renew our bond with Mother Earth. It was an enriching and memorable experience. We were asked to come into the presence of Nature and to lock ourselves away from the noisy ambience of city life. We were invited to use all our senses to deepen our oneness with nature. We concluded our mediation with a commitment led by Father Clarence Martis. We committed ourselves to work on the personal level as well as on the societal level to take care of the environment.

This was followed by the Holy Eucharist. MumbaiSalesians' ViceProvincial-Father Ashley Miranda, was the main celebrant and spoke on the absence of a good relationship that exists between humanity and nature. He made us conscious of the ugliness of such disconnections that would lead us to doom and destruction.

We ended our programme with an enjoyable session of creation games which aimed at increasing our love for nature. The games were conducted on the Don Bosco Parish turf by FMA nuns Vaneeta Khristi and Jesmine Fernandes along with the Salesian scholastics. Father Roshan Gonsalves and Father Mavron Fernandes then offered some refreshments.