Catholic

Care for Creation by Pope Francis

Book cover courtesy of Amazon.com

Care for Creation: A Call for Ecological Conversation is a collection of Pope Francis’s writings and words which give background to the direction of Laudato Si’. Grouped into ten chapters, this book offers a very accessible introduction to the Pope’s understanding of the call of the church to creation care.

He frames the current struggle as one guided by a lust for money’s idol and the globalization of indifference. He calls each reader to action, not blaming them for the global issues of poverty and climate change, but implicating them as necessary actors in the solutions. He recognizes the ecological crisis as related to the inner crisis of belief and identity experienced globally. Pope Francis argues that we all must become part of the solution, taking faith-inspired action to care for our world and those in it. Far from arguing that only the church or individuals can create lasting change, he believes that there must also be systematic change in the government and economic structures which govern our world.

For those who are intimidated by Laudato Si’ or are looking for more of Pope Francis’ reflections on creation care and ecology, this book in short sections frames the call to care for the world and those who live in it.

This book can be found on Amazon, major book retailers, and your favorite independent bookstore.

University of Dayton Divests from Fossil Fuels

Image courtesy of udayton.edu

In June 2014, the University of Dayton became the first Catholic university in the United States to announce their divestment from coal and fossil fuels. Members of the university staff see this move as part of the university’s commitment to “being a responsible steward of the Earth’s natural resources.” This decision was commended by the president of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities. Their decision was one inspired by faith reflection as well as a commitment to financial stability for the university.

Beyond divesting from coal and fossil fuels, the university has taken further steps to move their campus toward efficiency and sustainability. A signatory of the of The American College and University President’s Climate Commitment (ACU PCC) and a member of other sustainability committees, the university now has two full time employees who work to improve campus sustainability and offers academic programs in these areas as well.

The University of Dayton is also home to the Hanley Sustainability Institute.

Click here to be linked to The University of Dayton’s site on their efficiency and sustainability initiatives. Click here to be directed to the Hanley Institute homepage.

“Pope Tells Oil Executives to Act on Climate: ‘There Is No Time to Lose’”

Image courtesy of NYT and CreditMaurizio Brambatti/EPA, via Shutterstock

Pope Francis continued his efforts to uplift climate change as a focus of global Catholic action with a conference of oil company executives at the Vatican in early June 2018. The pope, who has called for a swift energy transition away from fossil fuels and to more renewable energy sources, praised progress made by big oil companies while pushing for even further change.

In his statements on climate change, Pope Francis argues for our present duty to care for the gift of the earth for ourselves as well as future generations. He also recognizes that the poor will be disproportionately affected by global warming.

The Global Catholic Climate Movement has followed the pope’s directive and removed funding from organizations which support fossil fuel. Catholic universities, like Notre Dame, are working on plans to remove fossil fuels from their own energy production.

For more on Global Catholic Climate Movement click here. To be directed to the article originally published on the New York Times click here.

Fasting for Climate Justice

Picture courtesy of catholicclimatemovement.global

Fasting for Climate Justice is a resource from Global Catholic Climate Movement (GCCM ) on the practice of fasting for climate action through two initiatives: meatless Fridays and monthly fasting. The GCCM encourages abstinence from meat on Fridays as a way to reduce one’s negative impact on global climate change. The GCCM also promotes fasting for the climate which takes place the first day of each month. To read the entire resource, click here.

Homily Help

Picture courtesy of catholicclimatecovenant.org

Homily Helps is a resource from Catholic Climate Covenant that offers resources that help to integrate the insights of Laudato Si’ and caring for creation into Sunday mass. It includes highlights from the Scripture, relevant quotations from Laudato Si’, sample applications, and more. To download the entire resource, click here.

17 Ways to Reduce your Carbon Footprint

Picture courtesy of catholicclimatemovement.global

17 Ways to Reduce your Carbon Footprint is a guide from Catholic Climate Movement that offers ways to reduce your carbon footprint when travelling, in home energy, and in food. To read the entire guide, click here.

Start 2018 by Speaking up for God’s Creation

Picture courtesy of yecaction.org

Young Evangelicals for Climate Action posted an article on how to speak up for God’s creation. The article focuses on The Clean Power Plan and how to effectively speak up to stop the repeal and replace of the plan. To read the entire article, click here.

Campus RENEW

Picture courtesy of renewintl.org/

Campus RENEW is a two-and-a-half-year process which facilitates renewal and transformation on college campuses. The process aims to create student leaders with mature faith and social consciousness to guide the Catholic Church. Campus RENEW hopes to create communities of students who recognize the call of Jesus to view service, including caring for creation, as a way of life. To read more, click here.

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops: Care for Creation

USCCB Logo

Picture courtesy of usccb.org

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops considers caring for creation as one of its seven themes of catholic social teaching. They believe that being stewards of creation is a sign of respect to the Creator and a requirement of their faith. They list examples of scripture that show the importance of stewardship. To read more, click here.

Why We Care for God’s Creation

Picture courtesy of crs.org

Why We Care for God’s Creation is a primer created by Catholic Relief Services. It is designed to help bring the conversation of caring for God’s creation to faith organizations. To read or download this resource, click here.