To praise God, notice the world around you like these writers, scientists and saints

EarthBeat Weekly
Your weekly newsletter about faith and climate change

August 22, 2025

Birds fly as the sun sets over the mountains near Assisi, Italy, in this Oct. 26, 2011, file photo. (CNS/Paul Haring)

I recently listened to an episode of Kate Bowler's podcast "Everything Happens" where she interviewed self-proclaimed backyard naturalist Margaret Renkl about her 2023 book The Comfort of Crows: A Backyard Year.

The way Renkl spoke about noticing the intricacies of nature in the world around us, wherever we are, reminded me of how theologian Elizabeth Johnson in her book Ask the Beasts: Darwin and the God of Love highlights atheist scientist Charles Darwin's ability to behold the natural world with an attention to detail that to her seems sacred.

Renkl takes it one step further and urges us not just to notice, but also to love each member of our ecosystems — even mosquitos and wasps, a practice Bowler admits she's not quite ready for herself. (Having encountered two underground bee hives on our small property in the past week, precisely where my 3-year-old likes to play in the dirt, I am going to have to side with Kate on this one.)

A segment of Bowler and Renkl's conversation I particularly enjoyed focused on what we might learn from other species about how to be good mothers, particularly in regard to the reality of our kids growing up and gaining independence. Ultimately, they conclude that this looks quite different depending on the species, and it's okay for it to look different across human families, too.

I've long been a fan of Bowler's work exploring contentment, peace and even joy, amidst the precarity of a life that often includes suffering. I was unfamiliar with Renkl, and when I chose to listen to the episode "How to fall in love with the world again," I actually didn't know that it would have any connection to themes of nature or motherhood (two of my favorite topics). Now I'm itching to get my hands on a copy of Renkl's book, which as I understand it from the podcast's conversation is formatted somewhat like a devotional.

For many Catholics (and honestly, even non-Catholics), reflecting on how we notice and appreciate the created world conjures up thoughts of another historical figure, this one not a scientist like Darwin, but the beloved saint from Assisi, Francis.

There is no shortage of anecdotes about how this man born in the 12th century engaged peacefully with various members of God's creation — maybe not mosquitos and wasps, but other less-loved ones like a predatory wolf. Beyond sentient beings, Francis' poem "The Canticle of Creatures" highlights this same attitude of gratitude toward things like sunlight, water, wind and fire.

And while these natural phenomena each serve a positive purpose under the right conditions, in his spirituality column for NCR this week, Dan Horan speculates that for St. Francis at the time he was writing the Canticle 800 years ago, something like sunlight might actually have been painful to experience due to a severe eye infection he suffered at the end of his life.

"What allowed him to recognize and celebrate the inherent goodness of creation, his interdependence with it and its intrinsic relationship with the Creator with such joy amid suffering?" asks Horan.

I can't help but think that like Bowler, St. Francis probably didn't ascribe to the "everything happens for a reason" mentality. And instead was deeply attuned to how we make meaning of and find peace within a precarious world.

What else is new on EarthBeat:

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Sisters, activists praise appeals court order in Oak Flat case

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A federal appeals court on Aug. 18 temporarily blocked a land exchange that would have advanced a copper mine on Apache sacred land in Arizona.

Pope visits mountaintop Marian shrine

by Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service

Pope Leo XIV paid a private visit to the Shrine of Our Lady of Grace of Mentorella, high in the Monti Prenestini mountain range of central Italy.

In his 100 days as pope, Leo links climate, environment to broader global issues

by Brian Roewe, Stephanie Clary

Pope Leo's first 100 days have provided insight into how he will engage with environmental crises, from climate change, to deforestation and pollution, to the health impacts of a new technological revolution.

What's happening in other climate news:

Florida ordered to dismantle Alligator Alcatraz over environmental impact —Lori Rozsa for the Washington Post

Republicans who backed Trump's anti-environment bill have accepted over $105m from big oil —Dharna Noor for the Guardian

Trump admin tightens rules for renewable energy tax credits —Benjamin Storrow for E&E News

Trump blames renewable energy for rising electricity prices. Experts point elsewhere —Matthew Daly for the Associated Press

El Paso's heat is killing in record numbers. It may only get worse —Martha Pskowski for Inside Climate News

This Swedish church is being moved down the road before a mine swallows its town —Steafanie Dazio, Malin Haarala and Pietro de Cristofaro for the Associated Press

Final Beat:

On the themes of nature and motherhood, here are a few books from our shelf at home that provide an excellent read with young children to reflect on noticing the world around them, contemplating their unique role in it, and giving glory to God.

The Girl with Big, Big Questions
The second in Britney Winn Lee's Big, Big series illustrated by Jacob Souza, the protagonist in this story notices that in her neighborhood there are a lot of bird nests on the ground, which leaves them susceptible to danger. She hypothesizes that this is because the area does not have enough trees and rallies her community to solve the problem together.

All Things Bright and Beautiful
From the publisher: "All Things Bright and Beautiful is a delightfully illustrated rendition of the well-known classic song. Illustrated by Jean Claude, birds soar, bugs burrow, elephants dance, and plants grow as the whole world sings in praise of their Creator, God. Featuring lyrics to the song so kids and parents can sing along, each wonderfully illustrated page feature fun surprises and creative characters."

Thanks for reading EarthBeat.

Stephanie Clary
Environment Editor
National Catholic Reporter
sclary@ncronline.org