In recent years St. John Paul II, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, and especially Pope Francis
have added a sense of urgency to their call for Catholics to act on climate change and care
for the poor. Pope Francis encyclical, Laudato Si, On Care for Our Common Home calls all
Catholics to act now. The Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development
created the Laudato Si Action Platform (LSAP) as a means for Catholics worldwide to
respond to this call. The MBS Creation Care Team is enrolled and participating in the LSAP.

Why the urgency?

• Nations are not on track to reduce greenhouse gases, which are causing our planet to

warm. In 2020, concentrations of global greenhouse gases reached new highs, and
real-time data point to continued increases.

• LSAP: “Action is urgently needed. Our Creator called the human family to be the

steward of creation, but we have neglected that call. This issue connects with core Catholic teachingon caring for our brothers and sisters, honoring our Creator, and embracing a
consistent ethic of life.”

The US Bishops themselves having been calling for action since 1981. In 2006, to address
growing ecological awareness and the need to implement Catholic social teaching on ecology
within the US Church, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) helped
form Catholic Climate Covenant. Inspired by the USCCB's 2001 statement on climate
change, and supported by 20 national partners, Catholic Climate Covenant helps US Catholics
respond to the Church's call to care for creation and care for the poor.

The purpose of this ministry as stated in Laudato Si is within the context of integral ecology—that
everything is connected, everything is a gift from God and everything will return to God. And, it is
centered in the Gospel.

The overarching purpose is as follows:
1. Evangelize the Gospel, inspiring witness to Jesus and living our faith through transformative
action.
2. Foster a spiritual and ecological conversion, deepening our relationship with Christ
3. Bridge gaps between parish ministries
4. Foster inter-parish networking within the local church
5. Build community and outreach with sharing parishes and partners
6. Invite and enrich parishioner engagement, including youth and young adults
7. Service the Universal Church by partnering with the Vatican in promulgating LSAP

In this ministry our purpose is to reflect on Pope Francis’ question: What kind of world do we want to leave to our children?

And then how do we respond to each of the 7 Goals of LSAP:
§ Response to the Cry of Earth,
§ Response to the Cry of the Poor,
§ Ecological Economics,
§ Simple Lifestyles,
§ Ecological Education,
§ Ecological Spirituality and
§ Community Involvement and Participation.