At a Mass for the Feast of Creation, Adelaide Archbishop Patrick O’Regan said it was time to recognise the “beauty, fragility and sacredness of the world entrusted to our care”. Source: The Southern Cross.
The Mass, an initiative of Adelaide Archdiocese’s Council for Integral Ecology, was held at Adelaide’s Stockade Botanical Park on September 6.
Archbishop O’Regan referred to the algal bloom spreading across South Australia’s coastal waters and said while it might at first seem part of the “natural order”, it was a sign of what Pope Leo XIV called “the wounds of sin” written into creation.
“When blooms grow unchecked – often fuelled by pollution and warming seas – they suffocate marine life, disrupt ecosystems and threaten the livelihoods of fishing communities,” he said.
“What should be waters of life become waters of death.”
He said the algal bloom outbreak was not an isolated incident but part of a larger pattern: rising temperatures, extreme weather, species loss and fragile ecosystems pushed to the brink.
“These wounds are not evenly shared,” Archbishop O’Regan said.
“The poor, the marginalised and indigenous communities are the first to suffer.
“Creation itself, entrusted to our care, becomes collateral damage in humanity’s pursuit of short-term gain.
“And yet, amid this sobering reality, the Gospel calls us not to despair but to sow seeds of hope.
“The algal bloom may seem like a story of destruction, but it can also be a summons to responsibility. It invites us to ask: What small seeds can we plant today— in our families, our parishes, our communities — that will bear fruit for tomorrow?
“Can we live with greater simplicity, reduce waste, care for our waterways and support those who defend the land and sea?”
Archbishop O’Regan said small decisions, such as choosing to smile, pray, recycle, walk instead of driving, will not change the world overnight.
“But together they form an ecosystem of care, grounded in fidelity and nourished by love. Like wildflowers breaking through the tarmac, they announce that God’s Spirit is alive, renewing the face of the earth.”
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Creating an ecosystem of care (By Jenny Brinkworth, The Southern Cross)
