Laudato Si and the Other Pandemic

 

There has been a fair amount of confounding and annoying news about the Roman Catholic church in the United States recently, including the veiled threat of excluding President Biden from communion because he support the right of women to make their own reproductive choices. 

I am encouraged to see that there is a RC conference currently underway which supports what is often called Creation Care, based on Pope Francis' 2015 encyclical, Laudato Si: On the Care of Our Common Home. I've read this intelligent and theologically nuanced document twice, and led a study group on it before my retirement. Today and tomorrow there will be discussion groups on a number of topics based on several important themes which will encourage congregations and institutions. A few of them are:

• Advocacy
  • Advocacy for God's creation and climate action are essential to the fullness of Catholic faith. Learn the theological foundations of this ministry, the various ways in which it is expressed, and how U.S. Catholics are equipping and galvanizing organizations and individuals to go forth in this work.
• Communications/Media
  • Hear from Catholic editors, reporters, and other communicators about the role media and communications play in lifting up the messages and information from Laudato Si’. Connect to a network of communicators and leave with strategies, examples, and resources to overcome the challenges of communicating about care for creation.
• Creation Care Teams (especially at parishes and dioceses)
  • Creation Care Teams are the heartbeat of care for creation in parishes, dioceses, and other Catholic organizations. In this session we offer inspiration, motivation, and a practical road map for building a significant response to the Vatican’s Laudato Si’ Action Platform in your local organization.
• Environmental Justice
  • Climate change and ecological harm disproportionately injure poor, vulnerable, and marginalized persons and communities—especially those of color. Learn from experts in the field as we consider how to “hear both the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor” and integrate environmental justice into the U.S. Catholic embrace of Laudato Si’.
• Preaching for Creation Care
  • What does it mean to preach for creation care? This session will offer resources to help homilists seeking to incorporate the wisdom of Laudato Si’ into their preaching and ideas to help parishioners support their pastors in this endeavor.
• Youth & Young Adults
• Hear from young adults in the Catholic sphere about the unique role of young people in mobilizing the U.S. Church for creation care and climate action. Leave with resources for educating and organizing your community and the opportunity to plug into a network of young people activating for our common home.

We should be impressed and inspired. Many denominations and congregations have been in survival mode during the COVID-19 pandemic and have not given much attention to what is an even greater pandemic, the climate emergency which affects us all. I appreciate this initiative and hope that other faith communities are inspired to do the same.