A Catholic Thing: That Environmental Stewardship Thing

“As the Body of Christ, We Serve One Another”
That Environmental Stewardship Thing & Catholics 
(Written by Ashley Bishel for Forum Cover March 10, 2013.)

Last June, I attended an Environmental Justice service trip Green Bay, WI with an organization called Young Neighbors in Action. During that week, we not only volunteered at a sustainable organic farm called Tsyunhehkwa, which is run by the Oneida Nation, but also learned about why, as Catholics, it is important for us to take care of our planet.

We learned about the Nine Themes of Catholic Environmental Ethic. These included some familiar phrases, such as "respect for life", but applied in a broader context - for example, treating animals as not just a means of human fulfillment but as God's creations. Another theme was "new solidarity" - sacrifice of self interest for the good of others and the earth.

One of the things from that week that stood out to me clearly was a quote from a message John Paul II delivered during the World Day of Peace in 1990: "The ecological crisis is a moral issue". It wasn't something that we have an option to take an interest in, it’s a duty. We have a moral responsibility to take care of God's earth as both Catholics and human beings. That’s huge - environmental issues are not something we can, in good conscience, ignore. We need to take action.


Enjoy using the sack and activities calendar for our LENTEN PROGRAM  Sustain a House … Help a community.   Visit: StFrancisA2.com/lent

Our Lenten Activities Calendar 2013  

Our PRAYERS of the Faithful Petitions During Masses 2013

Our ARTICLES, all tie into Habitat for Humanity's sustainable practices.