Laudato Si' Week 2023

Laudato Si’ is the name of Pope Francis’ encyclical about care for our common home. We will be celebrating the week of May 21-28 to mark the 8th anniversary.

Despite being a Catholic document, Laudato Si’ is addressed to “every person
living on this planet,” because all of us are responsible for restoring our common home.
(Laudato Si’, 3)

The name “Laudato Si’” means “Praised be”, an expression used by Saint Francis of Assisi to glorify God. Laudato Si’ stands on millennia of Catholic teaching. In the last 60 years, Pope Benedict XVI, Pope John Paul II, Pope John XXIII, and Pope Paul VI have all made explicit statements about the protection of the environment. 

Released in 2015, Laudato Si’ has been widely received as a document of compelling
beauty and clarity, and it has had an unprecedented impact both inside and outside
the Catholic Church. It helped call world leaders to take action on the Paris Climate
Agreement, which was the first time concrete goals to lower global warming were set
by all nations.

According to some commentators, Laudato Si’ is the most widely quoted encyclical in
history. It has been read by people of many faith traditions, resonating with all because it
calls for the moral value of care. It continues to transform millions of lives and inspire
people inside and outside the Church to commit to a life of care for creation and for our
vulnerable sisters and brothers.

The ecological crisis affects the well-being of all, and the poor and vulnerable above all.
Future generations and those who have least contributed to the ecological catastrophe
suffer from it the most. These high human costs of the ecological crisis call to mind the
core principles of Catholic Social Teaching.

Within Laudato Si’, Pope Francis calls on “all people of goodwill” to undergo an ecological conversion, “whereby the effects of their encounter with Jesus Christ become evident in their relationship with the world around them.” (Laudato Si’, 62, 217) An ecological conversion means moving toward greater love of God, each other, and creation by acknowledging our contribution to the ecological crisis and acting in ways that heal our common home.

Ecological spirituality comes from this profound ecological conversion, and helps us to
“discover God in all things.” (Laudato Si’, 160) We can discover God in both the beauty of
creation and in the sighs of the sick, aware that the life of the spirit is not disassociated
from worldly realities. This will help us to “overcome individualism [and] develop a
different lifestyle to bring about significant changes in society.” (Laudato Si’, 208)