Care for God’s Creation Catholic Church Teaching on 
Caring for God’s Creation – What Can I Do?
(Articles In the bulletin FORUM on: 2009-11-15 & 2009-11-22 & 2009-11-29 & 2009-12-06.)

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Catholic Social Teaching Theme:  Care for God’s Creation      Catholic social teaching tells us that we show our respect for the Creator by our stewardship of creation.   Pope Benedict XVI sent a compelling message to those gathering at the 2009 Summit on Climate Change, conveying his support, by stating “How important it is then, that the international community and individual governments send the right signals to their citizens and succeed in countering harmful ways of treating the environment!…The protection of the environment, and the safeguarding of resources and of the climate, oblige all leaders to act jointly, respecting the law and promoting solidarity with the weakest regions of the world” (Caritas in Veritate, no. 50).      The Most Reverend Stephen Blaire, Bishop of Stockton launched their 2004 diocesan Environmental Justice Project by stating “To respect life, you must respect the envelope of life, the Earth, on which all life depends.” In our desire to bring that same stewardship of creation closer to home, what can we do?   Pray & Learn & Assess/Act & Advocate/ Join St. Francis’ Efforts. Pray: The New South Wales, Australia Council of Churches offers this beautiful PRAYER for creation: Creator God – Maker and shaper of all that is,  Seen and unseen; You are in the expanse and depth of Creation, And in the processes that make life possible. Yet we are distracted  By the gods we make ourselves, And our lives become fractured and fragmented. In our brokenness  We disturb the Earth’s capacity to hold us. Instead we find climate uncertainty  And global injustice. Call us back from the brink.  Help us to choose love not fear, To change ourselves and not the planet; To act justly for the sake of the vulnerable; And to make a difference today  For life tomorrow. In your name –  Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Learn Take a few minutes to LEARN and understand the multiple aspects of Catholic teaching on caring for creation. Sites such as the National Catholic Rural Life Conference (http://www.ncrlc.com ) and the Catholic Climate Covenant (catholicclimatecovenant.org) offer insights on our role in protecting God’s creation. In the process, you’ll soon be able to explain the meaning of “carbon footprint” to all your friends! Not interested in accessing a computer? Contact Steve Lavender of our Parish’s Peace and Justice Committee at 734-973-2564 to receive information by mail. Assess The Catholic Climate Covenant tells us that we must ASSESS how we—as individuals, in families, parishes and other affiliations—contribute to climate change by our own energy use, consumption, waste, etc. St. Francis of Assisi is forming its own “Green Team” – a group of enthusiastic individuals trained to work with families and the parish in compiling our assessments and recommending strategies for improving our use of energy and resources. See next week’s Forum for details on joining the Green Team! Act We must ACT to change our choices and behaviors in order to reduce the ways we contribute to climate change. How do we do this?   • Making the decision to act is a critical first step. St. Francis of Assisi, our parish patron is also the patron saint of the environment. The Catholic Climate Covenant offers the opportunity to take the St Francis pledge, a wonderful way of affirming our decision for action. The pledge can be found at http://catholicclimatecovenant.org. • Beginning in January, invite a member of the St. Francis Green Team into your home to assist with an assessment of your current energy and consumption patterns. The results of the assessment are completely confidential and will be used as a baseline for future actions and improvements. Contact Steve Lavender (734-973-2564) of our Parish’s Peace & Justice Committee