In the Light of the World column of the Catholic Times, the priest writer gives us his thoughts on humanity's interaction with all of creation. We are all connected.
Love for life: There is an anecdote about a prickly cactus. Cacti that live in dry deserts contain a lot of water, which makes them good food for herbivores. That's why it is said that the cactus's thorns become a tool of defense.
It is said that someone put all their devotion and love into raising a cactus plant at home. After a year or so, something amazing happened. The cactus started dropping thorns. Was it because the cactus was moved by the sincerity of the person who raised it? Or was it just evolution to recognize the danger-free environment and to throw away its thorns on its own? However, there are often similar stories. Are you saying that growing plants requires love and attention in addition to nutrients and water? Have you ever had a pet? The same is true. What about humans, let alone animals?
Beloved, how sweet and warm are you? We love and encourage each other, so we laugh, we get stronger, and we live with that power, and this is how we live together. But there is something that must be included in that love. It is responsibility and sacrifice.
We know that Jesus commanded us to take care of our neighbors as ourselves Emphasizes that it is not a vague and superficial sympathy for sacrifice, but a determination to practice goodness and the social virtues, prepared to lose oneself.
The new relationships of interdependence between individuals and peoples, which are de facto forms of solidarity, have to be transformed into relationships tending towards genuine ethical-social solidarity. This is a moral requirement inherent within all human relationships. Solidarity is seen therefore under two complementary aspects: that of a social principle and that of a moral virtue.
Solidarity
must be seen above all in its value as a moral virtue that determines
the order of institutions. On the basis of this principle the 'structures of sin' that dominate relationships between individuals
and peoples must be overcome. They must be purified and transformed
into structures of solidarity through the creation or appropriate
modification of laws, market regulations, and juridical systems.( Social Doctrine No. 193).
Even non-believers describe true compassion as "a heart that shares pain with patience and endures it together." We need our healthy consciousness and community atmosphere where that sacrifice and love can be built.
We must exist for each other There is also something we must remember. That is, we all live on the responsibility and sacrifice of our neighbors and others. Who I am today is thanks to someone's dedication and sacrifice, and the mutual sacrifice that occurs within the family, community, and with people supports me and society. We must extend that perspective to everything from God's creations, from tiny insects to animals and plants and nature.
All living things were created by God, there is nothing without value, all exist for each other. A gift to each other, and needs to be treated with respect. Those hearts that love, respect, and want to be together make our hearts, souls, and communities healthy.
"All life depends on other life. We live by the self sacrifice of others. Is there anything I enjoy that is not supported by life of the other? Whose self sacrifice did you enjoy today?" (from Martin Schleske’s Song of the Spruce)
