A prayer by Pope Francis on Nature

Heavenly Father, we thank you for the gift of creation, and above all for the gift of life. Father, in the beginning of creation, you took man and placed him in the garden of Eden, to work in it and protect it. But unfortunately man became careless and did not cultivate and care for creation. On the other hand, he actually abused this precious gift. Father, give us the courage to change this attitude of ours, so that we can really start to appreciate your creation, and start looking at it as a free gift you gave us, which we have to safeguard and protect. Give us the wisdom to comprehend our egoism, by which we are causing destruction, desolation and filth. Help us so that we don’t remain indifferent at the loss of biodiversity and the collapse of ecosystems, which we oursleves are creating with our irresponsible behavior. We pray that with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can come to realize, that with all human activity, we are experiencing a change in climate, which is causing, as a result of our negligence, drought, floods, fires, besides suffering to those who are poor and ever so vulnerable. Help us to understand what is our role in this ongoing destruction of nature and the environment, so that we can start our road to conversion. Give us the wisdom to realize that we have a right and duty to respect the environment, and leave creation in a state whereby future generations can truly enjoy it. And teach us Lord to be humble enough to admit our faults and our careless way of life, And start to respect creation, so that like many young people, we can commit ourselves sincerely to save the planet we have to live on, and respect the gift of creation You gave us.