By Rev. Dr. Victoria Marie (June 13, 2019)

The State says they want to make things right with First Nations
Yet their actions lead to more and more desolation
Reconciliation’s just a word to those who hold power
As policies continue to make relationships sour

Many will suffer harm from the Trans Mountain endeavour
Burnaby Mountain folks’ lives will be changed forever
Air, flora, fauna and waters, all will be tainted
Devastated, so ravenous king mammon is sated

My heart bleeds for the Eagle parent pair
Nest closed off to boost stock price per share
Gone will be the sight of foraging mountain deer
Where will they go, when the trees disappear

Tears for the Orca disoriented by high decibel sounds
As the Trans-Mountain piledriver pounds and pounds
Plastic fencing pinned down in the sea with rocks
The intent, returning salmon spawning to block

Nature’s destruction, no concern to some humans
Whose aim is to extract and move diluted bitumen.
Like prophets of old, some spoke up without fear
acted against this destruction, voices loud and clear

Mammon’s minions destroy God’s gifts with impunity
Jail, fines were the reward of the prophetic community
Undeterred, these warriors pray and plan their next shifts
Nothing will stop them from protecting God’s bounteous gifts

It’s not Earth protectors who are sowing extinction’s seed
It’ll be wrought by Trans Mountain and minions unbridled greed
In defense of creation, today’s prophets shout out this cry
“Leave it in the ground or annihilation is nigh”

—-

Victoria Marie is is co-founder of the Vancouver Catholic Worker, on unceded Coast Salish Territory. She is a priest, member of Roman Catholic Women Priests Canada, spiritual director, and pastor of the Our Lady of Guadalupe Tonantzin Inclusive Catholic Community and author of Transforming Addiction: The role of spirituality in learning recovery from addiction (Scholars Press, 2014). This reflection is a shared or dialogue homily where Vikki gives a short “homily starter” then those present offer their reflections.