In the just-released Social Justice Statement 2021-22 Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Poor, the bishops commit to a seven-year journey towards ecological sustainability via the seven Laudato Si’ Goals.
The online launch of the Statement was attended by myself and five of our Caritas/Justice Parish Reps. We congratulate the Bishops on this initiative and are grateful for the inspiration and encouragement it offers in the work for climate justice.
Speaking about the Statement in Bendigo last week, Bishop Shane said, “I urge everyone to read the Statement. It is an excellent document and I look forward, with the people of Sandhurst, to this Statement being a guide and encouragement for our diocesan journey towards ecological conversion and action”.
Bishop Shane also noted “In the light of the recent Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change Report, Pope Francis’ words from Laudato Si’ are even more prescient, ‘Doomsday predictions can no longer be met with irony and disdain … The effects of the present imbalance can only be reduced by our decisive action, here and now. We need to reflect on our accountability before those who will have to endure the dire consequences’ (LS 161).”
The bishops invite us to “uncover the sacramentality of creation” in recognising the divine presence in the world, and to respond with wonder and awe. They call for a “profound conversion expressed in a new way of living, both personally and collectively.”
“We are being called to a new way of thinking, feeling, understanding and living.”
The Statement explains that the Laudato Si’ Goals “aim to put Pope Francis’ [2015] encyclical into practice, making communities around the world sustainable in the spirit of the integral ecology of Laudato Si’”.
The statement urges families, schools, parishes, dioceses and organisations to join the bishops in signing up to the Laudato Si’ Action Platform.
The platform, an initiative of the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, will gather ideas for action from around the globe to help participants in their journeys. The Bishops’ Conference Office for Social Justice has been involved in developing the platform.
Social Justice Sunday which we celebrate on August 29, leads, by happy coincidence, into the Season of Creation, September 1 to 4 October. Reflective resources and prayers will be provided by the Sandhurst Care for Creation Group for each Sunday. All parishes are encouraged to use these resources as a way of nurturing the process of eco-conversion. A change of heart is the necessary first step towards action.
The Statement Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Poor and associated resources can be downloaded at www.socialjustice.catholic.org.au
By Kerry Stone
Sandhurst Coordinator Caritas/Justice
