CJC Sabah with Bishop Cornelius Piong (7th from left) and Fr Joseph Ding from Miri (6th from right) at Nulu Sosopon Keningau
By Catherine Wan
Sep 13 2022
IN view of the ecological crisis faced by the global world, we need to slow down to look at reality in a different way, to appropriate the positive and sustainable progress and to recover values and goals swept away by our unrestrained delusions of technocratic paradigm (LS 114) seeing nature as an object of utility …human beings fail to find their true place in this world ..and end up acting against themselves … (LS 115)
About forty members and friends of CJC (Creation Justice Commission) from various dioceses of Malaysia embarked on a spiritual and ecological journey on a four-day program after the launching Mass of PROTEC Year 3 and Season of Creation at Sacred Heart Cathedral on 31 August 2022, also Malaysia’s Independence Day.
When human being declares independence from reality and behaves with absolute dominion, the very foundation of his life begins to crumble, instead of carrying out his role as cooperator with God in the work of creation, man sets himself up in the place of God and thus ends up provoking a rebellion on the part of nature. (LS 116)
After some rest on arriving at Pace Bene Centre in Purak, Papar, some participants shared their experiences how they started their journey of ecological conversion:
Representative from Melaka-Johor Diocese, Dr Maria Lin, is a medical doctor who embraces care of Mother Earth as her mission after her retirement from work a few years back. She will never stop talking to people about the importance of protecting Mother Earth whenever she has a chance. She and her team have initiated a hydroponic project in the parish during the MCO period to introduce the idea of sustainable living with growing and harvesting vegetables in the environment of limited land.
Representative from KL Archdiocese, Ronald Hor, 62, who shared that his conversion journey started last year when he was appointed by his parish priest to join programs initiated by the Archdiocese, such as weekly formation sessions on Laudato Si by Fr Andrew Manickam (CJC chief for KL Archdiocese), nature walk and visits to various recycling centers. He admitted that his awareness is growing but the commitment level is still lacking. However, he has started doing composting in his condominium home, which is a challenging start in a small way.
Dr Susan Pudin from CJC SHC KK, who has a doctorate degree in Environmental Education, works in the government sector and got herself engaged with the church upon invitation by Sr Calista. Through her involvement, she hopes that a better collaboration can be forged between the Church and the government.
Darius Mariusius (pic), is CJC head at St Paul Church, Dondozidon. He got himself involved when he responded to the invitation of Sr Calista to join an intensive 10-day ecological course by Dr Zimbo a few years back. He learned a lot from the course and decided to commit himself for the good cause of ecological advocacy.
Dr Ramesh Boonratana, or better known as Dr Zimbo, is an expert in biodiversity conservation and ecosystem protection. He helped the audience to see the reality of climate crisis, which is the increase of global climate temperature that will endanger the existence of species in the ecosystem during his talk after the sharing of the participants. He is the master mind in setting the Youth Eco Team in the Archdiocese of KK as pointed out by Sr Calista, the head of Creation Justice of KK Archdiocese.
Numerous cultural performances by the popular Era Budaya Papar were presented to entertain guests from outside Sabah after dinner. All guests and participants took their turn to present their performances and had much fun in dancing together at the end of the day before dismissal for the night.
Next morning, on 1 September, the universal Church celebrated the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation. Bishop Joseph Hii presided the morning Mass at Pace Bene and all recited the Prayer of Season of Creation 2022 after the homily.
During his homily, he pointed out Peter who had expertise in fishing but obediently listened to the instruction of Jesus to put out his net on the right side of the boat into deeper water. To his surprise, he had a plentiful catch of fish till help was needed from the other boat. Later, Jesus called Peter to become a fisher of men. He exhorted the audience to emulate the humility of Peter as our pride or ego will hinder us from listening to the whole Truth and take things for granted (partial truth) Mother Earth. God calls us just as He called Peter to play our role as steward of God‘s creation in caring for Mother Earth.
After breakfast, the participants headed to the Keningau pilgrimage centre at Nulu Sosopon for a day of recollection beginning in the afternoon till the following day, facilitated by Fr Jojo Fung SJ.
The Sandakan CJC representatives, headed by Fr Stephen Esguerra from St Martin Church, Telupid (in the middle), who shared that people need to be informed of the reason of any activities to be carried out in order to get their response. By listening to the cries of creation helps us in understanding the urgency of the climate crisis which calls for joint efforts of all sectors. It is related to synodality – do we listen to the nature and each other.
Fr Jojo Fung, who was ordained on 12 December 1986 in Kota Kinabalu, recalled his experience of listening to the voice of his mom as God’s voice to assure him during his recent travel from the Philippines to KK. Last Dec 12, he felt so much loved by God as he saw a vision of Mother Mary with his mom, offering him to God as he offered his priesthood as a gift of love to his mom.
Participants were led through guided meditation with God‘s Word, going from false self to true self within one’s inner being and hence recognizing the indwelling of God‘s Spirit within oneself.
Participants were asked to express their ecological conversion or mission journey with obstacles in the form of drawing. He expounded on ecological spirituality (LS no. 216,220), which invites us to be aware of God’s presence in the nature. Failure to do so will lead one to fall into tyrannical anthropocentrism, unconcern for other creatures. (LS no. 68)
He pointed out that Christ is the only one example who is connected to nature, and Pope Francis with the heart of Christ had listened to the cries of the aborigines who lost their ancestral land due to predatory economic interest of the developer and responded with the writings of Laudato Si (encyclical for Care of the common home) .
He further explained God molds us for His mission and participants were asked to keep silent throughout the recollection and to gaze upon the nature and reflect. He also taught participants to embrace the darkness in oneself and to find God there.
On 2 September, the recollection ended with recommitment of the participants to be the light of the Lord in the darkness of the world.
Some spontaneous sharing of the participants after the recollection are captured as below:
Sr Calista shared about her feeling when participants were asked to touch the ground with bare feet. She felt reconnected to the Mother Earth again. She recalled her earlier experience of struggle when Archbishop John Wong appointed her to head the commission. She asked for a priest but was given Deacon Russell Lawrine, and now she is grateful to God for all the providences and resources received in the process of forming the Commission.
Edna, 20, found it difficult to be silent during recollection, but she is learning to pause and to listen to the nature as her father is showing by example to appreciate nature. She recognized the importance of silence in order to listen to nature and to let the nature heal and calm her.
Hillary Henry Ripan, 37, from Sandakan diocese shared that the recollection was helpful to him in recalling the Salt program he joined during his tertiary studies, which actually opened his mind to respect other faiths. God shows him the way and he knows now the next step to take when he returns to St Mary Cathedral, Sandakan after the recollection.
After the recollection, all broke out into jubilation of joy to be reconnected to nature and reconciled to God.
Before Mass, the team of Komisi Keharmonian Alam Ciptaan Tuhan (KKACT) of Keningau Diocese posed for a group photo with their spiritual adviser, Bishop Cornelius Piong.
The recollection on ecological journey ended with a Mass celebrated by Bishop Cornelius Piong, who reminded the participants that God is forgiving but nature will retaliate when men fail to respect the inherent laws of nature.
The extreme climate change and the catastrophic floods are caused by the irresponsible behaviour of human kind as highlighted by the prelate. In fact, the awareness of environment protection has started in Keningau when the vision and mission of Keningau had been drafted in 1994, but his concern was whether it had been fulfilled at the smaller communities level.
After the homily, all participants (pic) lined up to offer their mission journey to God before the altar and asked for His guidance to commit in caring for Mother Earth.
Fr Russell Lawrine and other priests also pledged their commitment to care for the environment.
Group photo taken after Mass in Nulu Sosopon
The KK CJC team posed for a group photo with Fr Russell Lawrine, spiritual adviser for KK CJC, Sr Carista, head of KK CJC and Bishop Cornelius Piong, spiritual adviser for Keningau’s Komisi Keharmonian Alam Ciptaan Tuhan. After a quick lunch at the pilgrimage centre, all set off to Bundu Tuhan Retreat Centre in Ranau in a few private vehicles and two vans. All arrived safely in Bundu Tuhan in the evening for dinner.
Philip Lasimbang (right) shared that the spiritual recollection was a reconciling and healing process for him, helping him to feel closer to God and stay closer to nature.
All experienced joy being close to Mount Kinabalu at Bundu Tuhan Retreat Centre, while enjoying their fellowship during dinner. Christy Chan (opposite to Sr Calista), 23, who is still doing her tertiary studies, shared that faith without action is dead (James 2:16), and her response to Creation Justice is a witness of her faith.
Morning Mass on 3 September was celebrated by Fr Joseph Ding, a Kenyah priest, 42, from Miri diocese, and concelebrated by Fr Russell from KK Archdiocese. Fr Joseph is a parish priest of Holy Family Church in Labok, Miri. He spoke about how he learned to embrace the darkness or low point of his mission journey during his reflection when he met with resistance from his parishioners in protecting the Mother Earth, and how he found God even in the darkness and felt affirmed and motivated in his mission after the recollection.
Salva Sibaton, 49 (pic), CJC representative from Sandakan Diocese, working full time in Holy Trinity Church Tawau, joined Laudato Si workshop held in Tawau in 2018, and started serving CJC at diocesan level since 2019 as assistant secretary. Her son, Raezal Isaiah Romacho, 19 ( on left of the picture), studying Form 6, influenced by his mom, also an enthusiast in ecological protection.
The group posed for a photo before setting off to Kinabalu Park for a guided nature walk at the Mt Kinabalu Botanical Garden.
Before the nature walk, a briefing was given by the park ranger. At the end of the presentation, the audience was reminded that nature can survive without human beings but human beings rely on nature for their needs.
After the walk, the group was brought to the Kinabalu Geopark Gallery where exhibits of plants, animals and insects of the mountain rainforest are displayed. Besides the traditional use of plants for medicine, tools and utensils are displayed too. It shows how much God loves human kinds by providing us the Earth with plentiful fauna and flora for our survival needs.
Overall, the whole trip was refreshing, enriching our faith in God‘s care for all creatures and renewing our commitment in being God ‘s good steward of the environment.
Enrique Emerson, 23, from St Joseph parish Papar, joined the program upon invitation by his friend. The program has increased his awareness of the importance of nature and increased his sense of responsibility towards the care of nature.
