As we move into spring and summer, we like to enjoy the outside and perhaps need to ask ourselves, “What am I doing to care for our common home?” Some quotes from this extraordinary 2015 encyclical come to my mind. First of all, Pope Francis states, “Faced as we are with global environmental deterioration, I wish to address every person living on this planet.”
This is a plea for all of humanity (not only Catholics) to wake up and care for creation and end environmental destruction.
Another strong quote: “Living our vocation to be protectors of God’s handiwork is essential to a life of virtue. It is not an optional or a secondary aspect of our Christian experience.” If we are to survive, each one of us must do whatever we can to protect all of creation or, in other words, take action to care for our “common home.”
By Sister Martha Bertke
Assembly Directive: Act responsibly in the use and care of our planet’s resources.