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When Mother Earth Cries For Help: An Illustration Of Ogoni Environmental Tragedy

In an era when there were no premonitions about the degradation of nature (environment), a certain Saint Francis of Asisi made unusual proclamations that have found indisputable significance to- day in the face of global warming. In a prayer that may sound bizarre, the Saint of Asisi declared: “Most High, all-powerful, good Lord, Yours are the praises, the glory, and the honour, and all blessing, To You alone, Most High, do they belong, and no human is worthy to mention Your name. Praise be You, my Lord, with all Your creatures, especially Brother Sun, Who is the day and through whom You give us light. And he is beautiful and radiant with great splendour; and bears a likeness of You, Most High One. Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars, in heaven You formed them clear and precious and beautiful. Praised be You, my Lord, through Brother Wind, and through the air, cloudy and serene, and every kind of weather, through whom You give sustenance to Your creatures. Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Water, who is very useful and humble and precious and chaste. Praised be You, my Lord, through Brother Fire, through whom You light the night, and he is beautiful and playful and robust and strong. Praise be You, my Lord, through our Sister Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, and who produces various fruits with coloured flowers and herbs…” We have often used the expression “mother earth,” without recourse to the source, Saint Francis of Asisi, who thoughtfully assigned such personages to creatures, considering them as co- existents that deserve to be treated with dignity. In 2015, Pope Francis would come up with an encyclical entitled: “Laudato SI’ mi’ Signore,” which means: “Praise be to you, my Lord.” This encyclical which has its title derived from the same Saint Francis of Asisi’s prayer, calls on humanity to “care for our common home,” which is “Mother Earth. It states, among others, that:“…Saint Francis of Assisi reminds us that our common home is like a sister with whom we share our life and a beautiful mother who opens her arms to embrace us. “Praise be to you, my Lord, through our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, and who produces various fruits with coloured flowers and herbs”. 1. This sister now cries out to us because of the harm we have inflicted on her by our irresponsible use and abuse of the goods with which God has endowed her. We have come to see ourselves as her lords and masters, entitled to plunder her at will. The vio- lence present in our hearts, wounded by sin, is also reflected in the symptoms of sickness evident in the soil, in the water, in the air and in all forms of life. This is why the earth herself, burdened and laid waste, is among the most abandoned and maltreated of our poor; she “groans in travail”. (Rom 8:22). We have forgotten that we ourselves are dust of the earth (cf. Gen 2:7); our very bodies are made up of her elements, we breathe her air and we receive life and refreshment from her waters….” The richly thought-provoking contents of the encyclical inspired the Laudato Si’ Movement which has become the big- gest Catholic Climate Change Movement around the world. The movement has te- naciously and prayerfully brought lots of awareness and training across the world to lots of people who willingly accept to key into the recovery efforts aimed at the resto- ration of the dignity of nature. Looking at the era that Saint Francis of Asisi made his declarations, it is not out of place to say that the late Ken Saro-Wiwa was only a prophet who imbibed the tenets of Saint Francis of Asisi even without study- ing or even coming across the writings of the great saint. Saro-Wiwa, several years ago, saw the environmental degradation that has caused the unbearable global warming that has become a scourge today. He was truly a champion of environmental restoration. Engaging the military government of his day, Ken Saro-Wiwa took the message of Saint Francis of Asisi about the destruction of Mother Earth as reflected in the Ogoni environment to the front burners.

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