Dear Friends,
I am writing this letter today from my birth city, where I am looking forward to tonight’s consecration of the new Bishop of Montreal, the Ven. Dr. Victor-David Mbuyi Bipungu. It is a new chapter in the life and ministry of the Diocese of Montreal. Similarly, I awoke this morning to receive the news that the Rt. Rev. and Rt. Hon. Dame Sarah Mullally, Bishop of London, will become the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury. She will be the first woman to hold the office. How awesome! We look forward to her leadership in our global Anglican Communion. It is a season of change.
I am thinking about how, on our trip to Montreal yesterday, Mary and I very much enjoyed looking at the turning trees. Eastern Ontario and western Quebec are further ahead than downtown Toronto, and we marvelled at the beautiful colours that display God’s artistry.
Tomorrow, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, is the last day for the Season of Creation. And it has been wonderful to see participation in the season across our Diocese. At St. John, Ida, parishioners launched a Communion Forest initiative, planting a ginkgo tree after a service and sending home seedlings with parishioners who have space to plant them. St. Hilary, Cooksville has partnered with Credit Valley Conservation and the City of Mississauga to create a rain garden on its property. Five paper birch trees and several serviceberry shrubs have already been planted, and parishioners and neighbours will add native pollinators this weekend. St. Clement, Eglinton has used social media to invite parishioners to reflect on how caring for creation has shaped their faith. St. Paul, Midhurst hosted the second annual diocesan Season of Creation service, creating a “forest web” as a visual expression of the interdependent relationships between us and all living things. And of course, many parishes will be hosting animal blessings this weekend, reminding us that God’s love is not for humanity alone, but for everything God has made.
I was also moved this week to learn of the death of Dr. Jane Goodall, the famous primatologist and conservationist who explored the depth of the connections between human beings and the non-human creation. Her life and work can and should be an inspiration to us all.
As we celebrate the blessings of creation this fall, we must also remember this summer of extreme heat, wildfire and smoke, which resulted in debilitating air quality, crop damage, drought and deforestation. Creation is groaning. Do we hear it? Do we groan with it? Our appreciation for creation goes hand in hand with lament. As we understand our connectedness to all of God’s creation, we see and feel more deeply where it is in distress and understand how our actions affect every part of the web of life.
This year’s Season of Creation may be drawing to a close, but our Cast the Net Call #8 asks us to “intensify advocacy and action in response to the climate crisis.”
Let us not simply rejoice in our furry friends or marvel at the fall colours but commit ourselves more fully to act in ways that – as we promised at our baptism – safeguard the integrity of God’s creation and sustain and renew the face of the earth.
Yours in Christ,
The Right Reverend Andrew Asbil
Bishop of Toronto
