By Katie Mahon, Communications Manager
Laudato Si’ is a term that many of us are likely aware of already because of the church, news, and social media.
While many of us may be aware of Laudato Si’, they might not know about its Action Platform and the work that religious organizations, including the Sisters of Saint Dominic of Blauvelt New York, are doing to promote and implement it worldwide.
On a recent episode of the Hearts Afire Podcast, Blauvelt Dominican Associate Ellen Nash discussed the Laudato Si’ Action Platform and shared that “(The Laudato Si’ Action Platform is) a seven-year process with seven goals. These goals provide a vision for a new and better world and a way forward.”
The goals of the Laudato Si’ Action Platform include:
·Response to the Cry of the Earth is a call to protect our common home for the wellbeing of all as we equitably address the climate crisis, biodiversity loss, and ecological sustainability.
·Response to the Cry of the Poor is a call to promote eco-justice, aware that we are called to defend humans and all forms of life on Earth.
·Ecological Economics acknowledges that the economy is a sub-system of human society, which itself is embedded within the biosphere–our common home.
·Adoption of a Simple Lifestyle is grounded in the idea of sufficiency and promoting sobriety in the use of resources and energy.
·Ecological Education is about re-thinking and re-designing curricular and institutional reform in the spirit of integral ecology in order to foster ecological awareness and transformative action.
·Ecological Spirituality recovers a religious vision of God’s creation and encourages greater contact with the natural world in a spirit of wonder, praise, joy, and gratitude.
·Community Engagement and Participatory Action encourages the development of cultures and policies that protect our common home and all who share it.
“Think of these goals as being connected, not individual,” explained Ellen, a Blauvelt Social Justice Committee member.
She went on to add, “I encourage you to find others to discuss these seven goals with. The more that we talk about them, the easier it will be to fully participate in the transformative process of this action platform.”
Another aspect of the Laudato Si’ Action Platform that Ellen discussed during the episode was its connection to Women Religious.
She explained how the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) is leading the effort for Women Religious congregations to provide resources and assistance in implementing the Laudato Si’ Action Platform.
Ellen went on to add, “We’ve been gifted with an opportunity to see so much of what we have valued and worked for over the years, being promoted now by the Vatican in the global church. This will make it easier to promote our concerns for racial, economic, social, and environmental justice.”
If you would like to learn more about the Laudato Si’ Action Platform, visit www.laudatosimovement.org.
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