Missionary Society of St. Columban - The Hills Of Valparaíso

The Hills Of Valparaíso

A Columban priest seeks to teach about and protect a unique environment in Chile threatened by human activity.

By Fr. George G. Hogarty

As the human community continues to move into ecologically sensitive areas, it faces the challenge of developing viable ways to coexist with irreplaceable plants and animals in these once-secluded regions. One example is the hills surrounding Valparaíso, Chile.

Local inhabitants have imbued Valparaíso’s towering hills with a romantic aura. They love the hills that lock their city into a tight embrace over the vast Pacific Ocean. Today, these hills have not lost their romance, but increasingly they have become the home to the city’s poor. Many housing projects have sprung up and continue to expand, putting pressure on the hills’ delicate ecosystems. I recently visited Valparaíso and saw for myself the effects of human habitation.

The environment of the Las Palmeras area of Valparaíso is threatened by new housing projects.

In 2000, Columban missionaries began working in the poor hilltop sectors of Valparaíso called Las Palmeras (the palms) and Las Lagunas (the lagoons). Today, three budding communities built around the Columban-run Sagrada Familia (Holy Family) church are being made into a parish.

While the task of forming viable Christian communities continues apace, the new pastor, Columban Father Derry Healy, believes the emerging Christian communities in his future parish have a distinctive Christian message to offer the local residents and the wider Church because of their closeness to an ecologically sensitive area.

During my visit to his hilltop mission, Fr. Derry was my guide. He showed me the churches that serve the new housing projects as well as the hills’ unique nature. In one spot, we stood on the hill where the Sagrada Familia chapel is located and saw the distinctive palms from which Las Palmeras gets its name. Fr. Derry claimed that 57 of the 110 rare chilnensis australis palms known to exist in the hills of Valparaíso are in the valleys of the hilltop area where he lives and works.

Fr. Derry Healy

Fr. Derry, who is writing a master’s thesis on the relationship between ecology and liberation theology, wants to understand why ecology is so seldom mentioned by liberation theologians concerned about the plight of the world’s poor.

Fr. Derry firmly believes that the liberation of the world’s poor and ecology are intricately related. In Latin America, for example, it is often the poor who are the first to encroach upon ecologically sensitive areas out of sheer economic necessity. They also are usually the least prepared to deal with these delicate environments.

His own reflections have led Fr. Derry to two conclusions: first, local people must protect the fragile beauty of the flora in these hills and anywhere else where ecosystems need protection; second, Christian communities should actively protect the ecosystems in which they live.

Linking Faith & Ecology
Fr. Derry says drastic measures are needed to protect the hills of Valparaíso from careless urbanization. And Fr. Derry is doing his part. The day I visited Valparaíso, Fr. Derry met with representatives of the three Christian communities and several health groups and neighborhood councils of the hilltop communities.

“If ecology is genuinely linked to the liberation of the poor,” Fr. Derry told me, “then the poor have to show that they are aware of the value of creation in their midst. We all have our part to play if we want an environment that continues to reflect God’s beauty and diversity yet provides a decent place in which to live.”

In previous meetings, parishioners and socially active neighbors formed an action group to promote protection of the natural environment. Fr. Derry says that although this is a good start, more is needed. As we walked along the ridge of one of the hills, we came upon one of the future parish’s three chapels: Our Lady of the Way.

The chapel seemed to be suspended precariously on stilts over a valley filled with unique local flora. Fr. Derry hopes to build a small museum on the side of the chapel dedicated to creating awareness of the hills’ biodiversity.

Change is impossible without greater environmental awareness, and Fr. Derry believes that Christians in his parish should be among the first to learn about the role creation plays in their lives. Still, awareness without faith is always insufficient for a Christian.

To this end, Fr. Derry plans to build a sacred walkway, such as a set of Stations of the Cross through the valley below the hills, so Christian communities and those interested in preserving nature can link their faith with the need to save the area’s unique environment.

Fr. Derry’s task won’t be easy, but the wisdom of Chinese philosopher Lao-tzu comes to mind: “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

I thanked Fr. Derry for introducing me to this unexpected corner of natural beauty in the hills of Valparaíso and for sharing his vision of what this special place could become.

Columban Father George G. Hogarty of Australia was ordained in 1983 and has spent his missionary life in Australia, Chile and South Korea. He has been in Lima, Peru, since 2006.