By Christina Gray
Nearly two dozen Catholics from local and distant parishes gathered under the shade of a large tree in Washington Square Park on May 9 to pray St. Francis of Assisi’s Canticle of the Creatures together with the rector of the National Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi in San Francisco.
The communal prayer led by Capuchin Franciscan Father Bobby Barbato was the preamble to a Care for Creation pilgrimage, talk and Mass that immediately followed in the shrine church less than a half mile away. The day was promoted by the Shrine of St. Francis as part of the special Year of St. Francis which began on Jan. 10. The 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis will be commemorated on Oct. 3.
“Now more than ever, we need the message of hope and peace found in Pope Francis’ Encyclical Laudato si’ on Care for Our Common Home,” said Father Barbato in his invitation to parishes to “gather in the spirit of St. Francis” and “renew our commitment to be in right relationship with our God, each other, and all creation.”
Parishioners of St. Dominic’s Parish, Notre Dame des Victories, St. Ignatius Parish, and Sts. Peter and Paul Parish were among those who participated, as well as a pilgrim from St. John the Baptist Parish in Healdsburg.
The Shrine of St. Francis partnered with the California-based Laudate Deum Prayer Network for Climate Healing, (laudatedeumsolidarity.org), and the Pilgrimage of Hope for Creation, to sponsor the event. The mission was to connect St. Francis of Assisi to Pope Francis’ 2015 papal encyclical letter, “Laudato si” (On Care for Our Common Home).
The words, Laudato si, translate essentially to “Praise be to You, my Lord.” Praise is the pervading theme of St. Francis’ Canticle of the Creatures and was the focus of the event. The poem, sometimes referred to as the Canticle of the Sun, was written by St. Francis on his deathbed as a prayer of gratitude to God.
Pope Francis’ landmark encyclical took its name and spirit from the fundamental Franciscan poem. It calls all people to cherish creation and to live in kinship with God, one another, and the natural world.
In his welcome to the prayer service in the park, Father Barbato said that St. Francis showed that caring for “all of creation” is a natural manifestation of praise and thanksgiving.
“One of Francis’ great visions that we will talk and pray about was that we are all a family,” he said. “His bottom line was gratitude. Out of gratitude we learn how to cherish and use and share and take care of the gifts God has given us.”
Scriptural passages and messages for reflection and action were woven into the reading of passages of St. Francis’ Canticle.
“Oh, you’re making nature into God,” said Father Barbato, voicing a misinterpretation of the messages of Laudato si’, like the tendency to reduce St. Francis to a “birdbath statue in the garden.”
“No, he was saying, God made everything, and He is calling us to Him through these great gifts,” Father Barbato said.
Mark Rutkowski is a former physician who made membership in the Laudate Deum Prayer Network for Climate Healing his mission in retirement. The national organization was formed following Pope Francis’ 2023 Apostolic Exhoration “Laudate Deum”- To All People of Goodwill on the Climate Crisis. Pope Francis said the climate crisis is “intimately related to the dignity of human life” and will disproportionately affect the most vulnerable. He called upon Catholics to address the crisis personally and collectively in ways consistent with the principles of their faith.
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Neither St. Francis’ Canticle nor Pope Francis’ Laudato sí are a “superficial appreciation of nature,” said Rutkowski. They actually take us deep into the core Gospel message.
“The integrated spiritual ecology of St. Francis and of the Laudato sí encyclical of Pope Francis means since humanity is part of nature it has a key role to play,” he said.”
Father Barbato used as an example the cloistered life of St. Clare of Assisi, one of the first followers of Francis of Assisi, and her monastic religious order, the Order of Poor Ladies.
“The world is kind of like a cloister,” he said. “We have to learn how to live together, take care of one another, listen to everybody, cooperate, and use our common resources well.”
On the pilgrimage walk to the Shrine church before the noontime Mass, pilgrims shared their reasons for attending that day.
“We need to be good stewards of what God created for us,” said Sts. Peter and Paul parishioners Eugene and Grace.
St. Dominic’s parishioner Karen Irwin said she was happy to see a Catholic event in support for the messages of Laudato sí. “It needs to be more prominent in the Catholic community,” she said. Diane Valenti, a regular Mass attendee at the Shrine of St. Francis agreed and expressed gratitude for the vision of “our popes, particularly Francis.”
After processing to the Shrine church, Father Barbato shared a talk, after which pilgrims prayed before the exposed Blessed Sacrament.
In his homily for the midday Mass, Father Barbato said
stewardship of the natural world is an act of gratitude to God.
“What Francis is trying to tell the world is that the beauty of all of God’s creation is not just what it does for us, but because it is there,” a gift from God.
A gospel choir from St. Columba Parish traveled from Oakland to lend their soaring voices to the Mass and a reception sponsored by the Knights of St. Francis was held after it.
For more information on the National Shrine of St. Francis visit shrinesf.org.
