EarthBeat Weekly: Pope Francis says stop "madness," end "senseless war" on creation

Pope Francis says stop "madness," end "senseless war" on creation Your weekly newsletter about faith and climate change September 1, 2023   The Colorado River cuts through Black Canyon June 6, 2023, near White Hills, Arizona. (AP photo/Matt York) On May 25, the Vatican released Pope Francis' message for the 2023 Season of Creation (Sept. 1 - Oct. 4) in which he called for a stop to the "madness" of the "fossil fuel era." "Let us heed our call to stand with the victims of environmental and climate injustice, and to put an end to the senseless war against creation," wrote the pope. He again used war language on Wednesday when he revealed during his general audience in St. Peter's Square that his follow-up document to his 2015 encyclical "Laudato Si', On Care for Our Common Home" would come in the form of an apostolic exhortation to be released Oct. 4, the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi. Pope Francis said the new document is an effort to help "put an end to the senseless war against our common home … It is a terrible world war," reported NCR Vatican correspondent Christopher White. Read more: Pope Francis' new environmental exhortation to be released on Oct. 4 Releasing a new environmental exhortation on that particular day makes it both a grand finale to the annual ecumenical Season of Creation observance, and also an interesting backdrop to the first day of the long awaited "Synod on Synodality." The first of two scheduled meetings will take place from Oct. 4-29 in Rome this year, with a second meeting scheduled for October 2024. The pope has said before that he hopes his environmental messages might influence deliberations about global responses to climate change, like the next United Nations conference on climate change, COP28, set to take place in Dubai in November and December. It's difficult not to wonder with this most recent news if he might hope his forthcoming environment message will influence the synod proceedings as well. Some have been critical of the U.S. Catholic Church's lack of enthusiasm in taking up the message of Laudato Si'. Ecological concern certainly doesn't rank among the so-called "culture wars" that garner much attention from certain influential bishops. But in a message for the Season of Creation, Archbishop Borys Gudziak and Bishop David Malloy, chairs of the domestic and international justice and peace committees for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, urged U.S. Catholics to take up the cause of environmental action in the name of justice.  "The ecological conversion of hearts and changes in lifestyles are important for us as individuals and our holiness, but it is the public policy decisions about collective impacts that will significantly change the course of our environmental future," the bishops said. In a report for EarthBeat, NCR environment correspondent Brian Roewe noted that the bishops' message was released on the same day that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army issued a rule that significantly reduced which watersheds are protected under the 1972 Clean Water Act, to comply with a recent Supreme Court decision.  Read more: US waterways polluted with injustice, bishops say in Season of Creation message   What else is new on EarthBeat: Q&A: Dorothy Fortenberry on climate change, changed relationships in 'Extrapolations' by Stephanie Clary Dorothy Fortenberry was a writer and executive producer on Apple TV's drama "Extrapolations," which she says is "an attempt to try to capture in a TV show: What are the changes that come from staying the same?" Laudato Si' Animators Program forms Catholic advocates for ecological conversion by Maria Wiering, OSV News Launched in 2016, the Laudato Si' Animators Program is an initiative of the Laudato Si' Movement that certifies individuals committed to ecological conversion, sustainability and prophetic advocacy to create "a global network of motivated Catholics who are empowered to bring Laudato Si' to life in their communities," its website states.   Dancing with Sister Water and all our sisters and brothers by Martha A. Kirk Global Water Dance events are calling attention to the water issues that Pope Francis articulates in Laudato Si'. Will you join the dance? Will you passionately dance with brothers and sisters around the globe? A glorious garden view, and food to share by A Nun's Life Ministry From A Nun's Life podcasts - The gardens of the Dominican Sisters of Mission San Jose are a double victory: They offer a glorious view, and they produce food enough to share with the community. The Francis Effect podcast: Trump indictments; climate crisis; Season of Creation by NCR Staff Listen: Season 13 of "The Francis Effect" kicks off as Heidi, Fr. Daniel, and David catch up on summer 2023; they discuss indictments against former President Donald Trump; and they look ahead to the Season of Creation. What's happening in other climate news: 'I'm not the guilty one': the water protector facing jail time for trying to stop a pipeline —Nina Lakhani for The Guardian The spirituality of sharing space with spiders —Rebeca Bratten Weiss for U.S. Catholic magazine Washington to adopt rules protecting farmworkers from wildfire smoke —Natalia Mesa for High Country News Race, place and living with the Tar River Part I and Part II —Justin Cook for Gambit Appalachia Mobilizes Against Manchin's Dirty Deal —Yessenia Funes for Atmos  Final Beat: For the Season of Creation this year, EarthBeat will be recirculating nine "Creature Features" through a twice-weekly newsletter to the EarthBeat Reflections email list. Each Tuesday and Thursday from Sept. 1 to Oct. 4 subscribers will receive an email with an original illustration of the day's creature by Catholic graphic designer and illustrator Ryan McQuade (he's also written for NCR's culture section) along with a preview of and link to an essay or report on EarthBeat that highlights a specific animal. There will also be a corresponding series of posts on EarthBeat's Instagram account, so make sure you're following @earthbeatncr. You can sign up for the EarthBeat Reflections email list here. Thanks for reading EarthBeat! Stephanie Clary Environment Editor National Catholic Reporter sclary@ncronline.org Instagram: @stephanieclaryncr   Featured Advertisers   Join this five-part webinar series connecting spirituality and human sexuality. Learn how the Church understands sex, sexuality, gender, and human love in light of contemporary questions.   Advertisement