{"id":5041,"date":"2019-10-05T08:25:57","date_gmt":"2019-10-05T08:25:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ofmjpic.org\/?p=5041"},"modified":"2019-10-10T08:37:00","modified_gmt":"2019-10-10T08:37:00","slug":"pope-francis-emphasizes-solidarity-with-indigenous-leaders-ahead-of-amazon-synod","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ofmjpic.org\/en\/pope-francis-emphasizes-solidarity-with-indigenous-leaders-ahead-of-amazon-synod\/","title":{"rendered":"Pope Francis emphasizes solidarity with indigenous leaders ahead of Amazon Synod"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Special event dedicates synod to St. Francis and closes Season of Creation<\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Today, at a powerfully symbolic\nevent held in the Vatican Gardens, Pope Francis planted a tree alongside\nAmazonian leaders from Brazil and dedicated the upcoming Synod on the Amazon to\nSt. Francis of Assisi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Amazon Synod, which begins\nSunday, is a gathering of bishops from around the world who will meet in Rome\nfor three weeks of discussions on how to better care for the Amazon and\naccompany its people. Long-held concerns about the Amazon\u2019s deep social and\nenvironmental challenges were recently made evident in the catastrophic\nwildfires that destroyed forests and indigenous communities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tree-planting is Pope Francis’\nfirst gesture to mark the Season of Creation, building on a message<\/a> he issued last month that invited\nthe world\u2019s 1.2 billion Catholics to celebrate the season. The Season of Creation<\/a> is an annual celebration of prayer and action for the\nenvironment that is observed by many Christian churches. It begins on September\n1, the World Day of Prayer for Creation, and concludes today, the Feast of St.\nFrancis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consecrating the synod to St. Francis\nis a powerful symbolic gesture with strong resonance in Amazonian countries,\nwhere Catholics constitute a majority of the population. In the words of Pope\nFrancis, “St. Francis is the example par excellence of care for the\nvulnerable and of an integral ecology lived out joyfully and\nauthentically.” Dedicating the synod to St. Francis signifies the Church\u2019s\nstrong commitment to protecting indigenous peoples and the Amazon rainforest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ednamar de Oliveira Viana, the\nindigenous leader from the Mau\u00e9s region, Brazil, who planted the tree alongside\nthe Pope,said, \u201cTo plant is to have hope. Planting in the Vatican\nGarden is a symbol that invites the Church to be even more committed to the\nforest peoples and all of humanity.  But\nalso, it is the denunciation of those who destroy our common home by greed in\nsearch of their own profit.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The vulnerability and knowledge of\nindigenous peoples will be a special focus of the Synod. In the words of the\nSynod working document, officially called the Instrumentum Laboris<\/a>,\nthe goal is \u201cto listen to the voice of the Amazon and to respond as a prophetic\nand Samaritan Church.\u201d The indigenous Amazonian concept of \u201cgood living,\u201d which\nincludes living in harmony with nature, is a guiding principle of the synod\u2019s\nworking document. The also contains first-hand accounts and quotations taken\nfrom the hundreds of Amazonian community workshops that served as preparation\nfor the synod. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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