By Katie Beckmann Mahon, Communications Manager
Sr. Ceil Lavan, OP, is one of the fiercest advocates that you will ever meet.
In her ministry as Justice Promoter for the Sisters of Saint Dominic of Blauvelt, New York, you can almost always find her on the frontlines of the congregation’s advocacy efforts.
In a recent episode of the Hearts Afire Podcast, Sr. Ceil discussed her ministry and what is behind her motivation, and how that drives her activism.
“Over the years, I have experienced a deeper reality of the oneness of everything. We are all one. We are all creatures of the earth that are connected. We are made of the same stuff,” shared Sr. Ceil.
When asked when her passion for her ministry and activism first began, Sr. Ceil credited her “awakening” to the first time she saw photos of planet Earth floating in space, taken by the Apollo astronauts in 1968.
“Viewing the earth from space led them to say, ‘we are all one. We live on a planet that we are all a part of an interconnected system. That experience changed them and many of us forever.’”
Sr. Ceil went on to add, “Today, there is an ever-growing awareness that we are one people living on one planet, and it’s up to us to make sure that life on our planet can continue.”
“Earth can go on without us, but we cannot exist without her.”
It is that awareness, as well as love for the earth, that motivates Sr. Ceil.
“My motivation to work for environmental justice is emotional, as well as cognitive. Having a feeling of love for earth moves me emotionally to work for environmental justice.”