In Carlow’s values statement the value of sacredness of creation is
described in this way:
This value leads us to a respect for each person and for all of creation. In gratitude for the beauty and variety of our world and its inhabitants, we commit to a culture of sustainability and to the preservation of a world where all are reverenced and all may thrive.
Since Carlow is a Catholic, Mercy institution, this value can
be seen as a clear theme drawn from the Catholic Intellectual Tradition and
underlying Catholic Social Teaching. As such, it is really an outgrowth of the biblical
understanding that this world is God’s world. Psalm 24 begins with this
declaration: “The earth is the LORD's and all that is in it, the
world, and those who live in it.” Careful reflection on this
annunciation alone would allow us to make a strong claim for the value of all
that is in this world, and of all who live in it. Rooted in the Hebrew Bible and affirmed in the New Testament, the sacredness of all creation is arguably a central affirmation of both Jewish and Christian faith traditions.
As a starting point, this value is a clear call to living thoughtfully
upon the earth in ways that respect and preserve the beautiful world that we
live in. As important as that is, especially today, it also seems to me the
sacredness of creations has implications far beyond environmental
responsibility.
I see this value making a claim upon our work in the College
of Learning and Innovation in two important ways. First, on the largest
possible scale, because everything that exists does so by God’s creative will,
everything in this world is inherently valuable. This orientation to seeing the
world as sacred undergirds the importance of a liberal arts education. Every
field of academic study has value for its own sake, if we embrace the value of
the sacredness of creation. Fr. Michael Himes of Boston College uses a
wonderful expression to speak about what he calls the sacramental principle. He
says, “To see things as they are is to see them ‘engraced.’ Everything that is,
exists by being held in love by ‘engracement.’” If the earth is the Lord’s,
then everything is “engraced”—what is needed is for us to be able to perceive
this. This leads to a second implication.
Second, on a more personal scale, the sacredness of creation
reflects back on the value, worth, and dignity of every person. This value certainly
necessitates that we treat all people with the dignity they deserve. But this
value places an additional claim on us: if we hold this value then we are
called to respond to situations in which the dignity of humans is violated.
Valuing the sacredness of creation thus places an obligation upon us to address
social injustices. Catherine McAuley, foundress of the Sisters of Mercy, spent
many years of her life living with a Quaker family where she came to embrace the
Quaker teaching that “there is that of God in every person.” That belief motivated her life of service and continues to animate the Sisters of Mercy
to this day. And thus, this value of the sacredness of creation is deeply rooted
in our university’s history.
In short, in this one value is inscribed not only the
importance of living with an eye toward the preservation of our environment, but
a theological foundation for the study of the liberal arts and for working for
the well-being of all people.
