By Fr Augustine Pereira, Fr Evangelo D’Souza and Fr Leon Cruz Ratinam for BISMumbai

On 4 October 2022, on the occasion of the feast of St Francis of Assisi, various institutions of the Province of Bombay culminated the Season of Creation.

The students of Rasquinha Don Bosco Technical Centre, Chakan, visited a hillock near the institute. On reaching, Fr Xavier Bandya highlighted the concept of God’s creation and how human beings are placed in the centre of God’s plan to take care of the environment. Being the memorial of St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of ecology, the students also reflected upon the saint’s pious figure who cared for the environment and wildlife. The students took their time to reflect and to contemplate, spending precious time to spend with nature. Some sat on the rocks and some laid on the lush meadow to enjoy the gentle breeze. They thanked the creator for the gift of creation, and made a promise to take care of it.

At Don Bosco, Yerwada, Fr Michael Bansode in his talk to the students also highlighted that the ability to observe nature is getting lost as both children and the elderly spend more time indoors and are disconnected from the beauty of the natural world. Hence, the students from Classes 1 to 12 visited the entire school campus and witnessed the awesome creation of God. Students paused for a while and captured those magical moments. Also a special prayer service was conducted on this occasion.

The Season of Creation was celebrated by Don Bosco Youth Services, Mumbai by organising a two-day programme called “Voices of Creation” in the green city of Nashik in Maharashtra. The young participants were both from Mumbai and Nashik. The youth had varied experiences like sessions on eco-spirituality, hands-on work experience in small farms and exciting nature trails. One of the highlights was interaction with a local farmer in his farm which enlightened the youth to many aspects of farming including the struggles of farmers. They also visited other vineyards, farms on the way. This was followed by the traditional Maharashtrian food. The Holy Eucharist in nature gave a rich spiritual experience to the youth.