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27 items

  • Congregational Profile: Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Grove City, OH: How it began in one parish

    In 2016, prompted by Pope Francis’ encyclical “Laudato Si,” we at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in Grove City, Ohio, held two 8-week sessions of discussions on the encyclical and at the end of the second session, our pastor, Fr. Daniel J. Millisor, appointed the discussion leader, Sister Nancy Miller, OSF as chairperson and called together a team to explore how the parish might lower our carbon footprint. The Creation Care Council (CCC) of our parish meets monthly for prayer, discussion and action in response to Laudato Si’s call for greater care for our common home.

    We conducted a parish survey, with the intention of enhancing awareness among parishioners, as well as to determine if, and how, members were already incorporating recycling and composting into their daily lives. The results were highly, though not entirely, favorable. In addition to regularly inserting information and suggestions into our parish bulletins, taking the CCC members to tour a landfill, recycling plant, and the OSU Byrd Polar Research Center, we requested that all committees at the parish look at ways to reduce or eliminate their use of Styrofoam dinnerware. Rather than condemn polluters, we wrote thank you notes to businesses that showed environmental stewardship. We began annually purchasing and giving away seedling trees to plant on Earth Day. We took on trying to improve parish recycling efforts – providing new recycling containers for all parish offices, inviting a local official – an environmental expert – to explain to us what is and is not recyclable, preparing an interactive recycling quiz at the parish festival, and then attempting to bring recycling to the parish picnic and festival.

    The efforts to incorporate recycling in parish events “failed” the first year, but we got it right the second year and this (the third) year, we successfully introduced food waste composting to Lenten Parish Fish Fry dinners, the Parish Picnic, and our largest parish event of the year: the Parish Festival. The 2019 Parish Festival served an estimated 5,000 meals, working with food vendors to increase their ability to serve compostable dishware and cutlery. In total, the CCC was able to divert 2,704 gallons of waste from the local landfill, which constituted 86% of all waste at the Festival.

    We also exceeded all expectations in soliciting nearly 100 volunteers to help teach and monitor correct depositing of these materials - without tapping the usual volunteer corps that was still needed to keep the regular parts of the festival going. With the support of our pastor and dedicated CCC members, we’ve come a long way, and still feel like we have only just begun!

  • Bishop Hartley High School, Columbus, OH

    Bishop Hartley has assembled a Care 4 Creation faculty committee, which focuses on long-term plans at the school. There is also a Care 4 Creation Association, which is for students and is also student-led. Instructors Rick Kohut and Ann Hawk have spearheaded some of the more long-term creation care projects there. Each have set up a vermicomposting bin in their classrooms, offering that it works well and is relatively low maintenance. Students from one of Rick’s classes had worked on a project where they created a poster/chart with pictures of endangered animals. Some of the students from Rick's classes engaged in the school's climate strike. One highly motivated student, Jamal, wrote a letter about the event which he sent to local politicians. Ann has been attending a yearly AEP Ohio energy efficiency program, and they in turn provide her with free energy savings kits for each of her students. AEP also offers energy saving kits for residential customers who are willing to complete their online Home Energy Profile. In addition, two new drinking fountains are about to be installed at the school that are designed to fill reusable water bottles. The school is also in the process of creating water bottles for sale with their school’s logo on them. The intent is to cut down on students and faculty purchasing and bringing in individual plastic bottles of water.

  • Engaged Organizations: The Catholic Foundation of Ohio - Columbus

    The Catholic Foundation of Columbus, Ohio is designed to be responsive to interests that come from within the diocesan parishes and schools. To the extent that those interests have included creation care work, there has been grant activity. Dan Kurth, Director of Grants for the Catholic Foundation, offers that the foundation’s rubric for creation care initiatives is essentially: Does this project have any green energy sustainability pieces to it? The energy efficiency component of the foundation’s responsive grants is the main integration of a Laudato Si' principle into the foundation's grant work. As the Laudato Si encyclical has grown in awareness, more funding has become available as energy efficiency-related projects have become more commonplace over time.

    The foundation has recently partnered with the Columbus Catholic Diocese on their Diocean Loan LED program, which has had considerable impact on diocesan savings. In addition, the foundation encourages schools to establish their own maintenance reserve funds in order to maintain more efficient operations. Specifically, there is a push to have schools and parishes upgrade their boilers, change over to LED lighting, and replace their windows with more efficient ones.

  • Engaged Organizations: Christ the King Catholic Church, Columbus, OH

    Jason Cervenec, Education and Outreach Director for OSU's Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center, has helped plan and carry out a number of initiatives for events and projects at Christ the King Catholic Church over the past few years. With the assistance of Deb Steele, the Volunteer Coordinator for Ohio Interfaith Power and Light (Ohio IPL), Jason has organized energy audits that were conducted by Ohio IPL programming and support. The LED retrofit with diocese Facility Director, Bruce Boyan, has been a noteworthy achievement at the parish as well. Additional energy efficient projects have included window replacement (also with Bruce) and the installation of an HVAC system. While the parish center is currently undergoing renovation work, Jason and other parishioners have reviewed the plans to look for additional efficiency and sustainability improvements. Recently, Jason had designed creation care bulletin inserts, with feedback from the Creation Care team at the Columbus Catholic Diocese, that have been widely circulate around town. The annual creation care information program that Jason initiated has garnered substantial support, with roughly 30 people in attendance each time. An additional work in progress project includes the installation of a bike rack station outside of the parish.

  • Tomorrow (Sept. 1) is World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation: Pope Francis calls on believers and unbelievers to care for our common home

    Thursday, September 1, 2016, has been declared a shared World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation by Catholic and Orthodox Christian communities. This year, Pope Francis issued a video invitation to prayer in which he calls believers and unbelievers alike to work together to care for our common home. In August of 2015, the pope issued a letter
    (https://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/letters/2015/documents/papa-francesco_20150806_lettera-giornata-cura-creato.html) declaring Sept. 1 as an annual day of prayer for the care of creation, joining the Orthodox Church, which has been doing so since 1989. Citizens are urged to pray and join a local prayer service, or if no local service is offered, representatives from Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox and Episcopalian churches will offer an online prayer service (https://seasonofcreation.org/2016/08/25/sept-1-online-prayer-service/) at 8am US EDT.

  • Laudato Si' and the U.S. Catholic Church Recordings

    "The 2023 Laudato Si’ and the U.S. Catholic Church (June 14-July 27, 2023) national conference, is part of a biennial conference series  co-sponsored by Creighton University and Catholic Climate Covenant to equip and inspire Catholics to more deeply integrate Laudato Si’ and its creation care teachings into the U.S. Church. The purpose of this year's conference is to encourage a greater understanding of the Laudato Si’ Action Platform’s seven goals – Response to the Cry of the Poor, Ecological Economics, Adoption of Sustainable Lifestyle, Ecological Education, Ecological Spirituality, Community Resilience and Empowerment, and Response to the Cry of the Earth – and encourage Catholic individuals and groups to enroll in the Platform, providing them with a clearer path for accomplishing each of the goals through speaker presentations."

  • Marianist Environmental Education Center

    "The Marianist Environmental Education Center (MEEC) is an environmental education community in the Catholic tradition. In Mary's hope-filled spirit, we preserve and act in communion with the land and educate other communities in sustainability through ecology-based simple living, social justice and spirituality."

  • The Pope, the Environmental Crisis, and Frontline Leaders | The Letter: Laudato Si Film

    "In 2015, Pope Francis wrote Laudato Si’ (The Letter); an encyclical letter about the environmental crisis to every single person in the world. A few years later, four voices that have gone unheard in global conversations have been invited to an unprecedented dialogue with the Pope. Hailing from Senegal, the Amazon, India, and Hawai’i, they bring perspective and solutions from the poor, the indigenous, the youth, and wildlife into a conversation with Pope Francis himself. This documentary follows their journey to Rome and the extraordinary experiences that took place there, and is packed with powerfully moving personal stories alongside the latest information about the planetary crisis and the toll it’s taking on nature and people.

    Because, in the words of the Laudato Si’ Movement chair Lorna Gold, 'once you know, you CANNOT look away.' #LaudatoSiFilm

    Learn more about the protagonists and how you can take action at
    https://TheLetterFilm.org"

  • Critique of Religious Patriarchy

    "This supplement is about transcending religious patriarchy in order to foster integral human development and a healthy mutuality between humans and the human habitat. Some meditations are proposed on the mysteries of the creation, the incarnation, and the redemption. They explore the Christian understanding that all men and women are consubstantial in one and the same human nature, and are consubstantial with Jesus Christ as to his humanity. The meditations are based on a layman's reading of the Sacred Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and the Theology of the Body as they pertain to the consubstantial complementarity of man and woman, which transcends the patriarchal binary of mutually exclusive male-female opposites. This understanding of the "complementarity in consubstantial unity" of man and woman applies to all the sacraments, sheds light on the great nuptial mystery of Christ and the Church, and would seem to support the ordination of women to the ministerial priesthood and the episcopate. The meditations are preceded by recent news on patriarchy in religion, society, and human ecology, and are followed by articles and research notes, a summary of points for discernment on the ordination of women, an annotated timeline of religious patriarchy in the Judeo-Christian tradition, and links to relevant literature, substantive research, and the synodal process of discernment currently underway in the Catholic Church."

  • Faith and Sustainability Podcast

    The Faith and Sustainability podcast is a project created by the Archdiocese of Atlanta as part of their Laudato Si Initiative. Host Leonard Robinson is joined every week by influential members of different faith communities and environmental experts, where they discuss a wide range of topics like environmental justice, how to recycle, and climate change. The Faith and Sustainability podcast explores how faith and sustainability connect, and finding out how to better care for our planet.

  • Care for Creation - Catholic Conference of Ohio

    "The Catholic Bishops of Ohio invite you to study the issues related to the stewardship of God’s creation. Care for the environment is a fundamental principle within Catholic Social Teaching. We applaud efforts already underway in many Catholic homes and institutions that help conserve energy, protect the environment, and advance a greater understanding of faithful stewardship. We hope that Catholic families and institutions around the state will continue in such efforts."

    This resource includes a statement calling to care for God's creation and contains information and links to several other resources related to religion and environmentalism.

  • Voting and Our Common Home: Reflections from the Catholic Tradition

    This resource shares information and resources related to the importance of voting for environmental issues on the basis of Catholic religious beliefs. This document is available in both English and Spanish and raises multiple different issues and considerations connecting religion, environmental issues, and voting.

  • Shepherd's Fest (Shepherd's Corner)

    Shepherd's Corner ecological center provides information regarding their annual festival on their webpage:

    "Explore our food pantry gardens, take a hayride around the property, meet our sheep, and walk the meditation trail & labyrinth. Savor delicious food from a local food truck (Moody Trudy). Meet the Jefferson Township fire department and check out a fire truck up close. Watch Gail Maraman, a local felt artist, demonstrate her art. Chat with AEP representatives about electricity savings, consider more responsible energy use with Columbia gas. and learn about the environmental efforts of Green Spot Columbus. We will have a farm stand featuring of our naturally grown produce, 2019 maple syrup, and crafts made by the Dominican Sisters of Peace and volunteers."

  • Five Years After Speaking Out on Climate Change, Pope Francis Sounds an Urgent Alarm

    This article covers Pope Francis's reaction to the world governments responses to climate change. The Pope writes to unite people through religion in an effort to bring awareness to the movement. The article details how the church is divesting in fossil fuel companies. The article also focuses on the political divide and how it affects people's views on the climate crisis.

  • Profile: Jerry Freewalt

    Jerry Freewalt is Director of the Office for Social Concerns of the Catholic Diocese of Columbus, Ohio. In this capacity, he serves as an educator and advocate to further the understanding of the Church’s social justice teachings. Jerry joined the office in 1995 as the respect life coordinator. Jerry also administers the respect life program, parish social ministry, rural life, jail and prison ministry, advocacy for persons with disabilities, and other education and advocacy efforts.

  • Let's Talk Faith and Climate: Communication Guidance for Faith Leaders

    Let's Talk Faith and Climate: Communication Guidance for Faith Leaders is designed to be useful to both experienced and novice climate change and faith communicators. This guide synthesizes the latest academic research and message testing on climate communications from across the social sciences into a practical guide to support meaningful discussions on climate change and faith among individuals and groups.

    This guide offers tips on how to initiate new conversations with the faithful, how to create one’s own successful, value-based messages, and how to utilize specific wording that has been tested for its ability to bring people together regarding climate issues. Additionally, this document provides guidance on how to more deeply integrate creation care concerns into one’s own organization, ministry, or denomination.

    This, along with the many resources offered by ecoAmerica’s
    Blessed Tomorrow program, will allow faith leaders to become as adept at talking about climate change as they are at inspiring others to act on behalf of our shared future.

  • Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach

    The Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach (CCAO) was founded in 1985 as the national advocacy office for the Missionary Society of St. Columban in the United States.

    CCAO serves as the line of communication between Columban missionaries on the ground and policy-makers in Washington, D.C.​ Their mission is to work towards a more just, peaceful, and environmentally sustainable world by engaging in the political process guided by our faith and the Gospel.​ They work for structural change for the poor and marginalized populations Columbans serve around the world. Moreover, they advocate for policies and structures that bring society and the world into the right relationships with all of God’s Creation.

    CCAO follows Catholic Social Teaching as their lens to engage in legislative advocacy and community engagement.

  • AOHD (Archdiocesan Office for Human Development)

    AOHD promotes activities concerning charity, integral human development, justice and peace within the Catholic Church's Kuala Lumpur Archdiocese. It operates under the purview of the AOHD Secretariat and Board of Management.

  • 2020 Lenten Campaign

    In the third year of the three-year (2018-2020), Lenten Campaign themed "Caring for Our Common Home." As a part of the campaign, AOHD (Archdiocesan Office for Human Development) has created resources such as posters, power-points, kit books, action sheets, graphic arts, and other materials that could help more faith organizations host Care for Creation campaigns.

  • Laudato Si' Action Platform

    The Laudato Si' Action Platform is a collaboration between the Vatican, an international coalition of Catholic organizations, and "all people of good will." Rooted in the strengths and realities of communities around the world, the platform takes a group-up approach to empower all to take "decisive action, here and now" as we journey towards a better future together.

    The platform offers:
    - Laudato Si Plans for institutions, communities, and families to use and implement their response to Laudato Si'
    - A process-oriented approach
    - Practical guidance on actions that help build a better future through the Laudato Si’ Goals
    - Recognition of progress

  • Catholic Climate Covenant YouTube Page

    This is the YouTube page for the Catholic Climate Covenant, containing several videos pertaining to their mission. Catholic Climate Covenant encourages US Catholics to care for creation and care for the poor.

  • Our common home

    This is a booklet guide to caring for our living planet created through a joint initiative of the Holy See and Stockholm Environment Institute. This booklet contains ten sections detailing topics such as climate, air, water, and actions to combat climate change. It was partly inspired by and contains quotes from Pope Francis' Laudato Si'.

  • 2023 Feast of St. Francis: The Way of Francis: Seeking Peace & Justice for All Creation

    "This year’s program is designed to assist you, your family, parish, school, diocese, religious community, or other Catholic institution learn about Catholic nonviolence, and the "Franciscan" call to seek peace and justice for all of creation. The need to answer this call has become more and more urgent, as our planet, and our most vulnerable brothers and sisters, are living the consequences of climate change and its associated economic and social disruptions. The 90-minute program enables U.S. Catholics to host in-person or virtual sessions to grow in their understanding and call to care for creation as integral to the Catholic faith through prayer, education and action."

  • Faith and the Environmental Movement: A Franciscan Perspective

    This blog post was written by a member of WE ACT, which is an environmental justice-based organization located in Harlem, NYC. The post discusses the relationship between Catholicism and environmentalism. The author argues that Catholics are key environmental changemakers because Catholic teachings and religious leaders, like Pope Francis, emphasize protection for God's creation and care for the poor.

  • Creation Care Tips Summer 2019

    This Creation Care bulletin insert provides quotes from Pope Francis, encouraging Christians to utilize their talents, while drawing upon their culture and experiences to care for the environment. It also provides ways to support Pope Francis's message to care for the Earth, such as reading the Laudato Si' encyclical, encouraging children to go outside, and hosting creation care events and retreats.