Next Friday, June 8th, my parish Saint Anthony's in Schenectady, will begin celebrating its annual Festa. That day also happens to be World Ocean Day, a day in which the UN has picked as a day to remind humanity to celebrate its' beauty, its importance for life on Earth, but also how we must all take care of it.
What better day for St. Anthony's to show the world that we care for mother Earth and are heeding pope Francis call to take good care of our planet!
So, I'm writing to you to let you know that I'm happy about my parish decision to begin recycling and I would hope that you would commend my parish for having decided to heed our beloved pope Francis' call to take care of our planet. And I also would hope and pray that you encourage all of the parishes in the Albany Diocese to do the same!
You see, in May of 2016 I found out by chance that our oceans are in grave danger- plastic is the culprit. So, since then I began teaching my students about the oceans, their beauty, importance in sustaining life on earth, but also how we are destroying it with our single-use plastic trash; plastic bottles, cups, dishes, lids, straws, stirrers, etc. I'm an itinerant ENL- English as a New Language teacher for Capital Reagin BOCES. I also began following the single-stream recycling method; of recycling plastic, metal, glass, paper and cardboard. I did it in my house and the schools where I work. I also began recycling plastic bags, since I found out that plastic bags can be carried by the wind to the ocean, in addition to being carried by creeks and rivers. I learned this through lots of Internet research and by watching the documentary films "A PLASTIC OCEAN, and PLASTIC PARADISE, THE GREAT PACIFIC GARBAGE PATCH, and many other videos on YouTube that show the severity of this problem, but also how we can help reduce the threat of plastic pollution. these wind up in the ocean and cause lots of damage to the marine life and its environment. In June of 2016 I also began recycling bottles/cans at the St. Anthony's Festa. And several months ago I asked Fr. Carlino to start recycling. he said that our church already did recycle paper and cardboard. But I told him that we, our parish, doesn't recycle metals, glass and plastic, because during our annual Festa I always see our volunteers thrown everything in the garbage- even recyclable items- like plastic/glass bottles and soda cans. So, Fr. said that he's support my idea if the parish manager, Mr. Frank Ranucci is on board. So, after also discussing it with Brother Ron Mc Clusky, Mr. Ranucci hesitated because he said he's overwhelmed during the Festa- he has too much on his plate- and that is true! But after brother Ron explained that taking care of the earth is one of the Church's calling, Mr. Ranucci gave us the go-ahead! So, now St. anthony's will be following the single-stream recycling method, in addition to collecting plastic/glass bottles and cans!
Below: Me in St. Peter's Square, the Year I migrated to the USA, 1974.
I have always been a Catholic and an environmentalist, someone who loves and cares for nature since my teenage years- it shows in my artwork too. Yes, I'm a school teacher and also a free lance an artist. I have restored many statues for my parish and for many people in my community, during the early 90's. I'm also and a father of two children (in their 20s), and, like pope Francis and many others, I am also concerned to about mother Earth, and especially of the level of plastic pollution in our oceans.
Last week I went to see A MAN OF HIS WORD, the documentary film about pope Francis. And I want you to know that his film gave me hope and strength in working for the protection of our planet and in particular the health of our oceans- which is been one of my concerns since 2016. The pope is one of my heroes in this field because he cares for our planet, in fact he published the first ever encyclical on the environment. Here are a few statements about his concern/care for our planet. I was glad I saw this film and I liked so much that I plan to see it over and over, especially when i need hope and energy to carry on with my social/environmental causes and to live as better Catholic. Thank you holy father for your kindness, humility and simplicity. You truly are our modern day San Francis of Assisi!
“God always forgives, we men forgive sometimes, but nature never
forgives. If you give her a slap, she will give you one. I believe that
we have exploited nature too much.”—Press conference, flight from Sri Lanka to the Philippines, January 15, 2015
“As stewards of God’s creation, we are called to make the earth a
beautiful garden for the human family. When we destroy our forests,
ravage our soil and pollute our seas, we betray that noble calling.” —Speech, Manila, Philippines, January 18, 2015
“A Christian who doesn’t safeguard creation, who doesn’t make it
flourish, is a Christian who isn’t concerned with God’s work, that work
born of God’s love for us.”—Meditation, Vatican City, February 9, 2015
“May the relationship between man and nature not be driven by greed,
to manipulate and exploit, but may the divine harmony between beings and
creation be conserved in the logic of respect and care.”—General audience, Vatican City, April 22, 2015
“The earth, our home, is beginning to look more and more like an
immense pile of filth. In many parts of the planet, the elderly lament
that once beautiful landscapes are now covered with rubbish.”
—Papal encyclical, Vatican City, May 24, 2015
"We received this world as an inheritance from past generations, but
also as a loan from future generations, to whom we will have to return
it!”—Remarks, meeting with political, business and community leaders, Quito, Ecuador, July 7, 2015
“Our common home is being pillaged, laid waste and harmed with impunity. Cowardice in defending it is a grave sin.”—Speech, Santa Cruz, Bolivia, July 9, 2015
—Papal encyclical, Vatican City, May 24, 2015
Source: Nature Never Forgives: 7 of Pope Francis's Greenest Quotes https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/09/120150920-pope-francis-environment-climate-quotes/
Since 2016 I have been learning about the plight of our oceans- how we are being careless and filling it with our plastic trash. June 8th is World Ocean Day. Why do people celebrate it? This is what the official online site says: "We celebrate World Oceans Day to remind everyone of the major role the oceans have in everyday life. They are the lungs of our planet, providing most of the oxygen we breathe. The purpose of the Day is to inform the public of the impact of human actions on the ocean, develop a worldwide movement of citizens for the ocean, and mobilize and unite the world’s population on a project for the sustainable management of the world's oceans. They are a major source of food and medicines and a critical part of the biosphere. In the end, it is a day to celebrate together the beauty, the wealth and the promise of the ocean. For more information and to register your school for World Ocean day activities, visit/click on the link for the United nations World Ocean Day official site:
http://www.un.org/en/events/oceansday/
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