By Herald Malaysia
IPOH — Running water became the centrepiece of an evening that invited young people to reflect on their relationship with creation as the St Michael’s Church Youth and Creation Justice Ministry gathered on September 4 to celebrate the Season of Creation.
Held in conjunction with the Day of Prayer for the Malaysian Pastoral Convention, the gathering centred on the theme Living Waters. Originally planned as an outdoor celebration, the programme was moved indoors due to the haze. The space was transformed to evoke the sights and sounds of nature, with a miniature fountain of running water placed at the base of the altar amidst floral décor, symbolising the abundance of nature and teeming life, inspired by Ezekiel 47:1-12.
A globe placed beneath an image of St Padre Pio represented the Earth, a home entrusted to us for all generations. It challenged participants to consider how the choices we make today will shape the world of tomorrow.
The bilingual Laudato Si’ Rosary was recited by the youth, followed by the celebration presided over by Fr Patrick Massang, CSsR, who shared a personal reflection drawn from his years of ministry in Sarawak. He recalled the rivers he encountered there as pristine waterways teeming with life, sustaining countless forms of flora and fauna along their banks, as well as communities that depended on them for fresh drinking water.
However, he also witnessed their gradual degradation as development upstream brought soil erosion, debris, chemicals and human waste that polluted the waterways.
His sharing about the rivers of Sarawak offered a lens through which participants could reflect on their own actions. Urbanisation has led humanity to redirect waterways, reshape rivers and harness their energy in the name of development.
Our throwaway culture adds another burden to waterways. Household wastewater, chemicals and harsh detergents pass through drainage and plumbing systems, eventually entering the natural environment. What disappears from our sight does not disappear from nature. Its consequences return to us: polluted water becomes the water we drink; damaged rivers weaken the ecosystems that sustain us; and the destruction of natural systems ultimately threatens human life itself.
Water connects forests, rivers, soil, crops, the sea and human life. To care for water is to care for life itself. The Season of Creation therefore invites us not only to admire the beauty of creation, but also to be converted in the way we live, consume and relate to the Earth.
For the youth, this call is especially significant. They are called to be present and active in breaking the vicious cycle of harm to creation. It is the world in which they will live, work, raise families and build communities.
The celebration was more than an evening programme. It also served as a prelude to the youth camp over the following two days, as planned by parish priest, Fr Aloysius Tan, before his medical leave. The fellowship that followed, over a shared banana-leaf vegetarian meal, became a simple expression of the evening’s message: a call to ecological restoration, responsible stewardship and the healing of our common home, because there is no Planet B.
