St. Francis, the Most Admired and Least Followed Saint

“Lord, make us instruments of you peace…”

So begins the prayer of St. Francis.  God’s peace encompasses health and wholeness, the Hebrew word “Shalom”.  To be instruments of peace, includes stewardship of this “fragile earth, our island home”.  We can all participate in this stewardship through gardening.  The flower garden on Market Street this year , planted by John and Pat Nace, not only looked great, it provided nourishment to countless bees.  We can all participate by recycling those plastic grocery bags or using reusable sacks.  We can all participate by recycling our newspapers and mail.  As we finally shift from air conditioning to heating, we can all participate by lowering our home thermostats and wearing sweaters and putting an extra blanket on the bed at night.

Stewardship of the earth is a spiritual discipline and we can all participate.  St. Francis is our guide.