Fr. Don’s Weekly Letter ~ 26 April 2026

Dear Good People of Saint Bernadette,

Sometimes when you are googling something, the query you begin to type autofills and you can see the most popular questions people are asking. For example, if you type, “Does Iran...” you immediately get “Does Iran have nuclear weapons?” Or if you type, “Is Pope Leo...” you find the number one question, “Is Pope Leo Black?” People are interested in his geneology which includes African American/Creole roots.

When I typed “Could the earth...” immediately I got the question I was seeking from artificialis intelligentia. “Could the earth exist without the moon?”

I remember when I was a boy we had this huge map of the moon (the visible side) and we would lay it out on the living room floor while watching space missions on our little black and white TV (really, if honest, green and white), searching for where the lunar landing was taking place. We came to know exactly where the Sea of Tranquility was and other “landmarks.” It felt like we were exploring the moon right alongside the astronauts. Those were difficult days and, like today, the moon landings were a moment of relief from all the social upheaval, assasinations, and war of the late 60s. Even as a boy I remember the relief of focusing on something that we could all share, as a country seeking to do great things despite the news cycle.

So I followed the Artemis II NASA website, especially their photo gallery. As soon as I found the shot of the moon with the earth rising behind it, it became my computer screens’ background!

On Earth Day this year (April 22) I find myself thinking of the moon. I’m hoping that if we plan to establish a presence on the moon we do a better job than we have done here. I’m hoping it doesn’t become some extra-global military target.

Could the earth exist without the moon? Yes, but it would not be habitable by humans. The delicate balance of such a massive enterprise of creation can only be the work of a Creator, not to mention galaxies beyond. The coincidences can’t be this razor thin.

The moon stabilizes the tilt of the earth at exactly 23.5 degrees. Without it, Earth’s tilt could wobble between 0 and 90 degrees leading to extreme seasons where poles might face the sun directly for years, while the equator would freeze. The moon’s gravity acts as a brake on Earth’s rotation. Without it, Earth would spin much faster, leading to much shorter days, potentially 4-12 hours long, resulting in violent, sustained winds up to 300 mph. Tides would be weakened, half as strong as they are now, ruining wetlands and causing a collapse in marine life. The planet would be unfit for human survival.

What a delicate balance we see, not only in the moon and the earth, but in all of God’s creation. How delicate the equilibrium even of our own Earth, and how dangerous and permanent are the effects of our lack of care for it.

Taking the thought one step farther, how delicate the balance of hearts and minds in families, in communities, and among nations. How great must our care for each other be, to ensure the justice and peace that allows all people to survive, even thrive. We must learn a greater attentiveness to our own words and actions which can build up and preserve certainly as effectively as they can do damage, especially today when it is a noble act of activism to be kind.

The Lord be with you,