Dear Sisters and Family of the Incarnation:
The Catholic Church, together with the great ecumenical family, celebrates the Season of Creation from September 1st to October 4th, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, a time to pray and act in favor of creation.
Season of Creation 2026
Theme and Symbol Presentation
“Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. [...]Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.” (Ezek 47:9,12)
The theme of the 2026 Season of Creation is “Living Water,” inspired by the book of Ezekiel: “Wherever the stream flows, every living creature will live and multiply” (Ezekiel 47:9).The prophet describes a river that springs from the Temple of God, beginning as a small stream, then becoming a powerful current that brings life wherever it flows.Its waters even heal the Dead Sea and allow trees to bear abundant fruit.
This vision is a message of hope, healing, and renewal for all creation.The water flowing from the sanctuary symbolizes the life-giving presence of God.It transforms barren places, restores ecosystems, and brings life back to life.
The symbol for this year is therefore that of immersion in living water.It invites us to enter into the river of God ourselves, to allow ourselves to be transformed by his grace and to become, in turn, sources of life and healing for others and for all creation.
The historical context in which Ezekiel writes is one of political, social, theological, and national catastrophe.Jerusalem has been destroyed by the armies of Babylon.
However, the divine presence symbolized in the water that begins as a small stream and becomes a mighty river will reverse reality.
Fruit trees are naturally seasonal and vulnerable — to drought, pests, war, and famine. In Ezekiel's vision, they bear fruit every month.That means that the order is restored, life is unbelievably abundant. The trees bear fruit “because the water flows from the sanctuary.” Their productivity does not depend on rainfall patterns or soil conditions, but on continuous divine presence.
Ezekiel’s vision stands in sharp contrast to the reality of the water crisis we face. According to the United Nations UN News, 1.7 billion people lack basic hygiene services at home, and 2.1 billion people still lack access to safe drinking water - that is 1 in 4 people on the globe!
As climate change intensifies, and groundwater extraction increases, several countries are now reaching a so-called “point of water bankruptcy”, that is a condition marked by irreversible losses of natural water capital.
Although access to drinking water is a human right for all, the multifaceted water crisis disproportionately affects vulnerable communities, future generations, and non-human life that has no voice in political or economic systems. These are some of the many challenges:
- Water becomes unaffordable for the poor.
- Impact on health of water borne diseases.
- Impact of industrial discharge of chemicals and other pollutants into rivers.
- Increasing water consumption fueled by the datacentres and energy production required by our digital activities, including for use of artificial intelligence.
- Poor governance and corruption by companies and governments.
- Impact on food security of droughts, floods, storms and desertification.
- Salination of the soil due to sea level rise or overexploitation of aquifers.
- Violence over competition over scarce water supplies.
These many issues are leading to migration, pushing people into exile, with loss of homes and culture.
The impact on ecosystems and biodiversity is devastating: according to the World Wide Fund for Nature, we are facing catastrophic declines in aquatic wildlife, with freshwater populations dropping by a staggering 85 % and marine populations by 56 % in the last 50 years.
Even so, Ezekiel’s vision is ultimately one of hope. As co-workers with the Creator, Christians’ relationship with non-human creation should be grounded in the biblical vision of creation as an interconnected community of life (cf. Gen 9:8–17; Hos 2:18; Ps 24:1). Our relationship is that of sacred partnership and mutual custodianship rather than domination. Pope Francis described this as “a relationship of mutual responsibility between human beings and nature” rejecting excessive or tyrannical anthropocentrism (Laudato si’ 67, 68, 116).
Those of us who are aware of receiving the life-giving water of God are called to become sources of life for others.
The 2026 Season of Creation calls us to move from contemplation to action.We are invited to:
·Protect water from pollution and overexploitation;
·promote access to safe drinking water and sanitation for all;
·combat injustices related to water and food security;
·promote environmental education in families, schools, and Christian communities;
·plant and protect trees, which contribute to soil regeneration, erosion control, and biodiversity conservation;
·restore degraded ecosystems and protect living species;
·care for oceans and seas, essential for biodiversity and climate regulation;
·encourage lifestyles that are more respectful of creation;
·support vulnerable communities that directly suffer the consequences of environmental degradation.
Churches can be places where faith and ecology meet: through prayer, catechesis, tree planting, protection of natural spaces, water access projects and solidarity actions.
-We stand before a container of water, we contemplate it, we are grateful for it.
ØThanksgiving:You can then express an awesome oration, and add water as a sign of the desire to purify it.We sing the chorus intermittently.
ØAdoration :Lord our God, we praise you for all your creation. Thank you for heaven, earth, mountains, seas, animals, and all the beauty you have made.Through your creation, we see your grandeur and power. May our hearts give you glory today and forever.Through you, Jesus, and in you, and with you, we worship your greater glory.
The message of the 2026 Season of Creation is above all a message of hope.The river of Ezekiel reminds us that God brings forth life where all seems dead.His water transforms, heals, and makes fruitful.
We are invited to immerse ourselves in the living water of God's love, to welcome his healing, and to allow ourselves to be transformed.But this spiritual experience must become a concrete responsibility: caring for the water, the earth, the oceans, the animals, the plants, and our most vulnerable brothers and sisters.
Like the river that flows from the Temple and gives life to everything it encounters, we too are called to become instruments of life, justice, peace, and healing:“Where the stream flows, everything can live.”
May the Season of Creation 2026 help us to enter into this river of life and to participate, with God and with the whole human community, in the renewal of our common home.
Magnificat song
September 1st, 2026
International Commission on Integral Ecology