Laudato Si

Care for our common home

The Laudato Si' Ministry will be updating this web page frequently to provide information on the care of our common home.  We encourage you to check in with us each month.

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Pope Francis released his encyclical letter on the environment entitled,”Laudato Si’”  ON CARE FOR OUR COMMON HOME in June 2015. On October 10, 2020, he appeared in a TED talk to address the socio-environmental crisis that was explained in the encyclical and that continues to be a global challenge. This crisis “requires us, all of us, to face a choice between what matters and what doesn’t. Urgent action is required.”

The Pope Francis TED talk addresses many of the important issues that are discussed in Laudato Si’ and can be viewed on Youtube with the following link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHuwaKrHuR0

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“The urgent challenge to protect our common home includes a concern to bring the whole human family together to seek a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change….It is my hope that this Encyclical letter….can help us to acknowledge the appeal, immensity and urgency of the challenge we face."                           
                                                            Pope Francis, Laudato Si’,13,15

Image Credit Fairphone, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

SUMMARY OF CHAPTER THREE OF LAUDATO SI’:
ON CARE FOR OUR COMMON HOME

“THE HUMAN ROOTS OF THE ECOLOGICAL CRISIS”

This chapter gives an analysis of the current situation not only its symptoms but also its deepest causes.

Pope Francis asks us to consider what changes we need to make so that all might share in the benefits of technology. He calls for dialogue to create an ethical framework of principles and behaviors.

Today’s technology model promises unlimited growth but is based on the lie that there is an infinite supply of the earth’s goods. Products and decisions are made by certain powerful groups that dominate economic and political life. Maximizing profit is the goal and there is no interest in a better distribution of wealth, concern for the environment and the rights of future generations.

The Pope call us to move away from the “use and throw-away culture” with its discarding and trashing that wastes environmental resources and human gifts. This throw-away culture treats others and nature as simple objects.

The encyclical address two crucial problems of today’s work:

• Practical relativism: That is seeing something as relevant only if it serves immediate interests. This practice leads to environmental degradation, social decay and the promotion of the throw away culture.
• Work: Often today the powerful groups such as corporations stop investing in people in order to gain greater short-term financial gain. When the costs of production are reduced by laying off workers and replacing them with machines, this is not necessarily progress.  

1. Do you feel caught up in a “use and throw away culture”? Can you see way out
2. Pope Francis is very concerned about the way we understand ourselves, our purpose and role, both in our lives and in our communities, caring for each other and our common home. Do you think this is important? Why or why not?

• Buy produce at a local Farmers' Market. Look for produce from organic farms which is healthier for us and our soil.
   
• Join community garden or start your own organic garden at home.  It’s time to start those seeds that will be planted in the garden this spring. During the summer harvest those delicious tomatoes, zucchini, peppers and other favorites you have grown.

• Plant trees or buy more plants to reduce carbon.

About the Laudato Si' Ministry at St. Teresa

The Laudato Si' (“Praise be to You”) ministry offers an opportunity for St. Teresa parishioners to respond to the moral and spiritual challenge of the social, economic and environmental crises that face the world. As a parish we are called to care for Our Common Home that has been created for us. Our goal is to raise awareness of these issues as presented by Pope Francis in the encyclical letter, Laudato Si' and develop ways in which to implement changes that will preserve and protect our planet.
 
We welcome all interested in taking action as individuals and as community to raise awareness, educate and motivate others to take better care of creation and create a “climate of life” in which all can thrive. 
 
To expand your knowledge and find ways you can become involved please log onto catholicclimatecovenant.org or laudatosigeneration.org

Contacts: Rose Wood (818)433-9960 mailto:roselaterriwood@gmail.com; Mary Jo Buettner (619)246-7925 mailto:maryjobuettner@yahoo.com; Barbara Ford (530)906-6793 mailto:bford32446@gmail.com.