by Brother Servin Joseph
NASHIK, DEC 12, 2015: Divyadaan-Salesian Institute of Philosophy organised its annual Bachelor of Philosophy symposium on 'Nurturing Nature and Caring Creation' as a response to Laudato Si'- the encyclical of Pope Francis- on 
December 9.
The participants were from the Institute of Divyadaan, novices of different congregations in Nashik and some religious and lay people. The symposium began with a short prayer service followed by the introduction of the speakers.
The first speaker Brother Servin Joseph spoke about technology and its effect on the lives of people. He focused mainly on e-paper. Brother Melroy Mascarenhas then dwelt on anthropocentrism, where he spoke about the domination of human beings on all creatures.
Brother Markus Kujur dealt with the issue of integral ecology. He explained how we can approach ecology in today's context in the light of the Laudato Si'. Finally, Brother Aubrey Rebeiro highlighted the topic, 'human beings hand- in- hand with nature.'
After the presentations, the forum was opened to the audience for discussion. Several questions were raised by the participants, and the speakers took time out to answer all queries. The audience was then divided into six groups and given some practical questions to discuss, after which each group presented their responses.
At the end, all the participants pledged to nurture nature and care for all creation. Each participant was given a tulsi plant, as token for this initiative to care for mother earth. The programme was organised by the second year students of philosophy, under the leadership of Father Wyman Gonsalves, Father Robert Pen, rector of the institute and Father Felix Fernandes, the principal.