Friday and Saturday, March 15 and 16, a number of us were either gathered in Assisi, Italy (the fortunate ones) or watching online (far less pleasing aesthetically and gastronomically) for “The Feast of Creation and the Mystery of Creation.” The seminar was hosted by The World Council of Churches (WCC), the Laudato Si’ Movement and other partners with the stated aim “to deepen the collective understanding and appreciation of the Feast of Creation, observed on 1 September.” (https://www.oikoumene.org/events/seminar-the-feast-of-creation-and-the-mystery-of-creation-ecumenism-theology-liturgy-and-signs-of-the-times-in-dialogue).
Like many ecumenical gatherings which truly listen to one another, there was a delight in simply being gathered together and in being pleasantly surprised by the insights of each represented ecclesial community. Like some international conferences, there were brilliant speakers (astounding in their eloquence and theological depth) and some quite mediocre speakers. There were people who have been involved for years in the meeting places of theology and ecology, spirituality, creation studies, climate change, environmental science, and those who seemed to have wandered into something they had never thought of. There were thoughtful responses in-person and on the ubiquitous ‘chat’ of Zoom and responses that evoked eye-rolling. In other words, the church gathered.
The very thoughtful and beautifully written ‘draft for discussion’ (not yet published) was extremely helpful in laying out the roots of focusing on a potential fixed date (on the liturgical calendar) of September 1 because of the extensive history of that date in parts of Eastern Christianity. I think this part of the “Creation Day” proposals, or the “Season of Creation” is actually little known in various Western Churches. The substantial discussion preparation paper reminded us that September 1st was the day understood as “the day of Creation,” symbolizing “the expression of…in the beginning”, the very day on which God said “Let there be light.” Defined as “the beginning of time” by “ancient Orthodox source of the Basilian Minology, it marked the first day of the calendar year…and was officially used by the Ecumenical Patriarchate from the 7th to the 18th century.” https://docs.google.com/document/d/14LSl7vxhzkaEFUQe2dMefmpgwCDizCZyVR7NAM8ikFc/edit
The discussion over the two days progressed from what had been the foci of ecumenical conversations thus far; a series of panels on “Lex orandi, lex credendi: Theology and Liturgy on the Mystery of Creation” followed by “Lex orandi, lex credendi: Theology and Liturgy on the Event of Creation” to the logical next-step, “The Journey Ahead.” While to this liturgist it always seems a bit odd to have theology panels (and conversations) separate from liturgy panels (and conversations), there was a great logic to the structure of the seminar in that it allowed both newcomers to the issues as well as those who have spent years immersed in it to enter in.
There were two aspects of the conversation which particular caught my ear (more than the mechanics of how will we add a feastday to our liturgical calendars, not unimportant!). The first was using the uniqueness of Italian language terminology to distinguish between “la Creazione, which primarily stands for God’s act of creation of the cosmos – i.e. Creation as theological mystery (creatio in Latin), and il Creato which stands for the result of the act of creation, the fruit of la Creazione – i.e. Creation as the created universe, or everything created (cuncta creata in Latin).” Here the theological and liturgical emphasis turned to the importance of the relationship between the two – the weaving of both the ongoing acts of God in creation as well as the results of creation. The two aspects, of course, lead to different responses in the 21st century: both thanksgiving and lament, the stance of awe and the profound need for repentance. The second reality of note to my ears was the proposed date for developing some aspect of this broader ecumenical focus is 2025. Next year is, of course, the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea and the creed which bears its name. That shared creed (shared amongst the majority of Protestants, Roman Catholics, Anglicans, Eastern Christians) bears the Trinitarian underpinnings of la creazione and il creato and appears to be the impetus for this global sign of ecumenical unity and agreement in such an important year.
Kudos to the planning team for a thoughtful and helpful contribution to the theological and liturgical implications of moving from a world day of prayer to a liturgical feast, and for engaging (with style and grace) a breadth of ecumenical voices and opinions.