In 2015, Pope Francis wrote Laudato Si’ (The Letter); an encyclical letter about the environmental crisis to every single person in the world. A few years later, four voices that have gone unheard in global conversations have been invited to an unprecedented dialogue with the Pope. Hailing from Senegal, the Amazon, India, and Hawai’i, they bring perspective and solutions from the poor, the indigenous, the youth, and wildlife into a conversation with Pope Francis himself. This documentary follows their journey to Rome and the extraordinary experiences that took place there, and is packed with powerfully moving personal stories alongside the latest information about the planetary crisis and the toll it’s taking on nature and people. Because, in the words of the Laudato Si’ Movement chair Lorna Gold, “once you know, you CANNOT look away.” #LaudatoSiFilm Learn more about the protagonists and how you can take action at https://TheLetterFilm.org
The Season of Creation runs from the World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation – September 1 – to the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi – October 4. It is a time set aside each year to focus on God’s gift of creation and our responsibility to care for it, our common home.
The theme for the Season of Creation in 2022 is Listen to the Voice of Creation.
There are many resources available to support you in your efforts to celebrate the Season of Creation. A key resource is the Season of Creation web site. Here you will find: ⦁ A celebration guide which provides a prayer service template from which you can choose material to use in your context ⦁ Social media and newsletter graphics and wording ⦁ A message from Pope Francis and more. The site also has a wealth of other resources which you may find useful for preparing a special Mass, a prayer service or other activities during the Season.
A Catholic Season of Creation
The Columbans in Australia have compiled resources to help you to incorporate Season of Creation themes into each Sunday Mass during the Season. You can access their resources and find out more here.
Pope Francis’ Message for the World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation 2022 One way you can help your community engage in the Pope’s message is to share a quote on each of the five Sundays during the Season of Creation. Here are five examples you can use:
Sunday 4 September The sweet song of creation invites us to practise an “ecological spirituality” (Laudato Si’, 216), attentive to God’s presence in the natural world. It is a summons to base our spirituality on the “loving awareness that we are not disconnected from the rest of creatures, but joined in a splendid universal communion” (ibid., 220). Sunday 11 September For the followers of Christ in particular, this luminous experience reinforces our awareness that “all things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being” (Jn 1:3). In this Season of Creation, we pray once more in the great cathedral of creation, and revel in the “grandiose cosmic choir” made up of countless creatures, all singing the praises of God. Let us join Saint Francis of Assisi in singing: “Praise be to you, my Lord, for all your creatures” (cf. Canticle of Brother Sun). Let us join the psalmist in singing, “Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!” (Ps 150:6). Sunday 18 September Tragically, that sweet song {of creation} is accompanied by a cry of anguish. Or even better: a chorus of cries of anguish. In the first place, it is our sister, mother earth, who cries out. Prey to our consumerist excesses, she weeps and implores us to put an end to our abuses and to her destruction. Then too, there are all those different creatures who cry out. At the mercy of a “tyrannical anthropocentrism” (Laudato Si’, 68), completely at odds with Christ’s centrality in the work of creation, countless species are dying out and their hymns of praise silenced. Sunday 25 September …There are also the poorest among us who are crying out. Exposed to the climate crisis, the poor feel even more gravely the impact of the drought, flooding, hurricanes and heat waves that are becoming ever more intense and frequent. Likewise, our brothers and sisters of the native peoples are crying out. As a result of predatory economic interests, their ancestral lands are being invaded and devastated on all sides, “provoking a cry that rises up to heaven” (Querida Amazonia, 9).
Sunday 2 October
…Finally, there is the plea of our children. Feeling menaced by shortsighted and selfish actions, today’s young people are crying out, anxiously asking us adults to do everything possible to prevent, or at least limit, the collapse of our planet’s ecosystems.
Intercessory Prayers
Here are a selection of prayers of intercession from which you may choose a prayer to include in the Intercessory Prayers of each Sunday in the Season of Creation or which you may use at a special Mass or prayer service for the Season of Creation:
For all that You have created, that we may always be aware that we are not disconnected from other creatures, but joined in a splendid universal communion. Lord, hear us. For Your wondrous gift of creation, that we may join St. Francis of Assisi and all of creation in ceaselessly praising You, our creator. Lord, hear us. For our sister, mother earth, who cries out because of the impact of our consumerist excesses, that we may put an end to our abuses and take action to end her destruction. Lord, hear us. For the countless animal and plant species that are dying out and whose praise of You is being silenced, that urgent and effective action is taken to ensure their survival. Lord, hear us. For our poorest sisters and brothers who feel much more acutely the impact of extreme weather events associated with climate change. That world leaders will hear their cry for dignity and justice and take timely action. Lord, hear us. For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples whose traditional lands and places of cultural significance are being devastated by economic interests. That their cries for justice are heeded and result in appropriate action by Government and business leaders. Lord, hear us. For world leaders who will gather for the COP 27 on climate and the COP 15 on biodiversity later this year. That they will remain resolute in their commitment to do what is needed to prevent the devastating impacts of climate change and halt the alarming loss of biological diversity. Lord, hear us. For the children of the world who are worried about the impact on the earth of short-sighted and selfish actions. That all adults will share in the responsibility to offer them a future without immense ecosystem collapse. Lord, hear us.
Other Resources
You may wish to use some of the resources below as part of your Season of Creation Masses, services and events or to share them in your newsletters over the Season of Creation.
This is NAIDOC Week (3 – 10 July). It is a weeklong celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture, history and contributions. The 2022 theme is Get Up, Stand Up, Show Up.
Many NAIDOC events are being held across the Archdiocese this week. Here are just a few, but please keep an eye out for any changes that may happen because of wet weather:
· NAIDOC at the Pools, Beenleigh Aquatic Centre, City Rd., Beenleigh & Logan North Aquatic Centre, 2 Sports Dr., Underwood, Wednesday 6 July, 12:00 – 1:00 PM
· Ipswich Family and Cultural Day, Briggs Rd. Sports Complex, Flinders View, Thursday 7 July, 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
· Gayndah NAIDOC Family Fun Day, Lions Park, Gayndah, Thursday 7 July, 10:30 AM – 1:00 PM
· Brisbane Family Fun Day, Musgrave Park 91 Cordelia St., South Brisbane, Friday 8 July, 10:00 Am – 4:00 PM
· Wan’dini Sunshine Coast Family Fun Day, Quota Park, Nambour, Saturday 9 July, 10:00 AM – 3:30 PM
· Gold Coast Titans NAIDOC Event, Viney Park, 1 Yaun St., Coomera, Wednesday 6 July, 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
· Fraser Coast Family Fun Day, Scarness Jetty, Hervey Bay, Thursday 7 July, from 11:00 AM
· Inala NAIDOC Family Fun Day, C.J. Greenfield Complex Park, 149 Kimberley St., Richlands, Wednesday 6 July, 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
· Cherbourg NAIDOC Celebration, Memorial Park (opposite the Ration Shed Museum), Cherbourg, Tuesday 5 July, from 10:00 AM.
The Logan NAIDOC Celebration at the Kingston Butter Factory Cultural Precinct has been postponed until mid-August.
All are welcome to the NAIDOC Mass to be celebrated in the Cathedral of St. Stephen, Elizabeth St., Brisbane, this Sunday 10 July at 12 noon.
Laudato Si’
Are you interested in exploring how your parish could get involved in the Archdiocese of Brisbane Laudato Si’ Action Plan? Your involvement can be as simple as asking for help to establish a study group to learn what Pope Francis teaches in his encyclical, Laudato Si’. Your involvement can be as simple and as flexible as you want it to be. Simply contact our Executive Officer, Peter Arndt, and he can discuss how we can support you. Either e-mail him at arndtp@bne.catholic.net.au or call on 0409 265 476.
You may even want to consider enrolling your parish in the Laudato Si’ Action Platform. This can also be as simple as you want it to be. There is no obligation to undertake a time-consuming or expensive audit to participate. , please contact Peter as above and we can help you to tailor your participation to your needs and circumstances.
Individuals, families and schools are also welcome to consider enrolling in the Platform. Please contact us and we can offer you advice and support.
The Season of Creation is a special time of the year set aside for us to reflect on the gift of creation and our responsibility to care for it. It runs from September 1, the World Day of Prayer for Care of Creation, to October 4, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi.
Promoting participation in the Season of Creation is one of the actions identified in the Archdiocese of Brisbane Laudato Si’ Action Plan. Why not organise a Season of Creation service in your parish, school or office during this time?
This year’s theme is : Listen to the Voice of Creation. Resources are now available to help you to get involved. Take a look at the resources, which include a celebration guide, at the Season of Creation web site.
The Queensland Churches Environmental Network (QCEN) will hold an ecumenical service for the Season of Creation on 1 September at 7:30 PM at the Albert Street Uniting Church, 319 Albert Street, Brisbane City. All are welcome.
Social Justice Statement 2022 – 2023
The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference will launch their new Social Justice Statement, Respect: Confronting Violence and Abuse, nationally in early August. It explores the roots of violence and pays particular attention to the impact of violence on women and children. It proposes a number of responses from faith communities to violence in the community. The text of the Statement and other resources will become progressively available, but liturgy notes are already available here.
Printed copies of the Statement and the accompanying prayer card will only be available through a direct order from the printer.
A Brisbane launch of the Social Justice Statement will take place at St. James’ Hall, 92 Kirkland Avenue, Coorparoo, on Tuesday 23 August, at 7 for 7:30 PM. All are welcome to this event which will also be livestreamed.
Signs of Our Times
Signs of Our Times was officially launched a month ago by Archbishop Coleridge. Signs of Our Times is a collaboration between the Commission and the ACBC Office for Justice Ecology and Peace. It seeks to promote a culture of encounter in Catholic social action. It encourages action which is grounded in prayer, scripture and the Church’s tradition. It is a resource to help us to be a church on mission.
We are happy to help you to use these resources to enter more deeply into the daily struggles of the people around you. Take a look at the resources and, if you are interested in learning more, please contact Peter Arndt at arndtp@bne.catholic.net.au or on 0409 265 476 and we will help you to use these resources to become a more missionary Church.
As part of the “Season of Creation” and in ongoing response to the Papal Encyclical “Laudato Si’ “, the Archdiocese of Brisbane Justice and Peace Commission and Evangelisation Brisbane co-host a panel discussion: ”Cultivating a Sense of Place: Contemplating Ecology in a Time of Loss”.
News from the Catholic Justice & Peace Commission of the Archdiocese of Brisbane which has been mandated by successive Archbishops to promote understanding of Catholic social teaching in the areas of justice, peace and the environment since 1985.
COP 26 Approaches
The formal meetings of world leaders at the COP 26 in Glasgow are days away. Our world is faced with immense challenges because of dangerous climate change. The scientific evidence is overwhelming. Swift and decisive action is needed.
Many of you have already been working to impress on our leaders the need for urgent action. What is certain is that our work will not end when COP 26 in Glasgow ends. We will need to continue our advocacy well beyond this year. As Christians, we will also need to direct attention to the way we live and to the spirituality which shapes our outlook.
Nothing about Us without Us!!!
In their recent Social Justice Statement, Australia’s Bishops have stressed the importance of listening to the voices of First Nations people about caring for the earth. It is essential that our work for justice, peace and care for creation prioritises the concerns and advice of First Nations people in Australia and of Pacific peoples. They are already facing the harmful consequences of climate change and they have the least responsibility for it. In humility and respect, we should acknowledge their leadership in the struggle for climate justice. Unless we are committed to this way of acting, we have not heard the core message of Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’. The Holy Father calls for a commitment to integral ecology. We need to hear the cries of the earth and the cries of those who are poor. In this current crisis, those who are the most vulnerable and have the least power must be at the heart of action to address it!
First Nations elders in Brisbane have been saying to us, loudly and clearly, “Nothing about us without us!” They are leading action to address the climate crisis and the social problems they face in Australia. The peoples of the Pacific are also seeking to shape the regional and global response to the climate crisis. They are living with the impacts of climate change right now. We need to listen to them and support their leadership in the struggle for justice.
In this spirit, I am sending messages on behalf of the Commission to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander elders and leaders and to church leaders in the Pacific offering our continued support for their priorities and their leadership during and after COP 26.
Supporting First Nations Leadership in Australia
The Commission encourages you to offer your support to campaigns led by First Nations people including:
Common Grace is running a number of actions on climate change as well as important issues like First Nations deaths in custody:
Our Islands, Our Home Torres Strait Islanders are campaigning for climate action to save their island homes from rising seas. Support the #TorresStrait8 who have taken action against the Australian Government at the UN for its failure to take action on climate change:
Get Up First Nations Team is taking action to support traditional owners who don’t want fracking on their country. They are also taking action to provide food security in remote communities, to address the on-going shame of First Nations deaths in custody, and to protect sacred sites from being damaged by the activities of mining companies
The Wangan & Jagalingou Traditional Owners Council has waged a David and Goliath struggle against the Adani company so they can protect sacred sites on their country in central Queensland. Queensland Police recently declared that they would not remove Wangan & Jagalingou people from their country as they had a right to perform traditional ceremonies on their country under the Human Rights Act. I had the privilege of spending 2 weeks last year on country as part of the solidarity contingent in their Standing Our Ground campaign. Wangan and Jagalingou people are on country now, performing ceremonies. They invite us to come and join them in solidarity as they continue to defend their right to be on their country and protect their sacred sites. . You can offer your support in a variety of ways including going up to country as part of the solidarity contingent.
Supporting Pacific Leadership
In the days leading up to COP 26, the Pacific Conference of Churches (PCC) has issued a call for climate action. It is the result of 2 years of consultation across the Pacific. Please share this statement in your community, in your networks and with your MP. It may be found here.
Listening to the Call of Church Leaders
Pope Francis, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew recently issued a joint declaration offering us guidance in our response to the climate crisis. They called for 3 responses:
· Prayer for world leaders in the lead up to COP 26;
· Meaningful sacrifices by individuals for the sake of the planet;
· Actions by leaders which focus on people-centred profits and which lead us to a just and sustainable future.
As you reflect on their challenge, ask yourself how you will respond. You can read more here.
Calling for Action from Our Political Leaders
Please join the Commission which is sending messages to all Federal MPs in the Archdiocese. We are calling on them to support strong, urgent and decisive climate action which responds to the calls of First Nations people and of the peoples of the Pacific. E-mail them, ring their offices and even make an appointment to meet them to tell them what they should support. You can find contact details for all Federal MPs here.
A journalist friend in the Solomon Islands, Jeremy Gwao, has been investigating the impact of climate change on people living on Wagina Island in the Solomon Islands. They make a living by growing kelp, but things are changing as the climate changes. Jeremy’s article underlines the urgent need for decisive climate action. It’s well worth a read:
Media Statement Monday 4 October 2021 BRISBANE’S CATHOLIC JUSTICE & PEACE COMMISSION ANNOUNCES 40 DAY PRAYER CAMPAIGN 40 days of prayer lead up to next phase of the Laudato Si’ Action Platform
The Catholic Justice & Peace Commission of the Archdiocese of Brisbane announces its co-leadership of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development’s 40-day campaign of prayers based on the Laudato Si’ Goals, for communities joining the Laudato Si’ Action Platform.
The prayer campaign supports the seven sectors joining the Laudato Si’ Action Platform with a dedicated day of prayer for each, connecting each sector with a Laudato Si’ Goal. 14 November will begin the next phase in the Laudato Si’ Action Platform. On that date, Laudato Si’ Planning Guides and all related materials will be published, and members of the universal Church will be invited to make a firm commitment to creating their own Laudato Si’ Plans.
While the next phase in the platform had been planned for 4 October, the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development sees a need to continue building on the dynamic conversations taking place with the Catholic Justice & Peace Commission of the Archdiocese of Brisbane and nearly 200 additional partners.
The Catholic Justice & Peace Commission of the Archdiocese of Brisbane has been an integrally important co-leader of efforts to build the Laudato Si’ Action Platform. Serving as a member of the Parishes and Dioceses working group, the Commission has assisted in shaping both the model and the content of the platform.
Extending the date from 4 October to 14 November helps ensure that the Laudato Si’ Action Platform will truly serve the needs of Catholic parishes, schools, families and other institutions
All Catholic parishes, schools, families and households and other institutions are warmly invited to review the existing resources on the Laudato Si’ Action Platform website and to discern their commitment to creating a Laudato Si’ Plan.
For further information or comments, please contact Peter Arndt, Executive Officer of the Commission, on +61 409 265 476
On October 6, the Australian and PNG Governments came to an agreement that would result in the end of Australia using PNG as an offshore immigration processing centre. Read the full text of the Joint media release between the Hon Karen Andrews MP and the Hon. Westly Nukundj MP – Finalisation of the Regional Resettlement Arrangement here.
While the Catholic Bishops Conference of PNG and Solomon Islands welcomes the end of offshore processing in PNG, it expresses serious concerns about the continuing impact of Australia’s shifting of its responsibility to Pacific neighbours and the on-going hardship placed on the refugees in both PNG and Nauru.
Please read the comments from the Church in PNG and e-mail the Minister for Home Affairs, Karen Andrews, who announce the new arrangement. Urge her to stop shifting responsibility to support and resettle the refugees to our Pacific neighbours. Encourage her to bring all the refugees back to Australia so that we can take direct responsibility for the refugees: Karen.andrews.mp@aph.gov.au
Please continue to send a similar message to the Minister for Immigration, Alex Hawke, who was recently promoted to Cabinet. His e-mail address is: Alex.hawke.mp@aph.gov.au
Please continue to pray for our Pacific neighbours and for the refugees. In October, please especially pray the Rosary.
Peter Arndt, Executive officer, Catholic Justice and Peace Commission
Brisbane’s Catholic Justice and Peace Commission has called for both the Federal and Queensland Governments to take action on the rights of Indigenous Australians.
The Commission’s Executive Officer, Peter Arndt, said that the human rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people was of the highest priority to the Commission.
“On International Human Rights Day, the Commission wants to express its solidarity with Indigenous people who are still waiting for justice,” Mr Arndt said.
“After speaking with our Indigenous advisors, we urge the Federal Government to act quickly to become a signatory to the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,” he said.
“The Prime Minister promised to do this at last year’s election, but the Government has not done so yet,” he said.
“The Government was given an opportunity to show its support for the Declaration in the Senate in September, but did not do so,” he said.
“Our Indigenous advisors have also told us that many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are very upset with the Queensland Government’s unwillingness to listen to them on the Stolen Wages issue,” he said.
“The great majority of Indigenous people consulted by the Government wanted it to use unclaimed funds in its reparations scheme to pay more money to Indigenous workers who had wages taken away from them and never given back,” he said.
“They do not want any of the money from the reparations scheme or the Aboriginal Welfare Fund being used to establish an education fund, but the Government has ignored them,” he said.
“Aboriginal workers have a right to be paid their wages in full,” he said.
“Every Indigenous child also has a right to get a decent education funded by the Government and not just a select few who get a scholarship funded out of Indigenous workers’ wages,” he said.
“The Government should not be taking money from funds put aside to pay Indigenous people what they are owed in wages and using it for other purposes,” he said.
“There is a lot of anger and hurt within Indigenous communities over this issue and the Government must listen,” he said.
For further information, please contact Peter Arndt on (07) 3336 9173 or 0409 265 476.
NBThis release is issued with the approval of the Commission or its Executive under the provision of its Charter which enables it to speak in its own right.The views expressed in it do not necessarily represent the views of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane.
The Queensland Government legislated in 2005 to enable it to proclaim such a code and recently sought comment on a proposed code which it has developed.
The Commission has made a submission to the Government supporting the introduction of the code and urging the Government to proclaim it as soon as possible.
The Commission’s Executive Officer, Peter Arndt, said that the Commission had shown an interest for the last decade in better protection for clothing outworkers.
“One of the first things I did when I became the Commission’s Executive Officer in 2001 was to represent it at the official launch and signing of a voluntary Queensland code of practice for outworkers,” Mr Arndt said.
“The Commission also did a lot of work to ensure that special protections for outworkers were included in the former Coalition Government’s WorkChoices legislation in 2005 and its independent contractors legislation in 2006,” he said.
“Many of the people we are seeking protection for are vulnerable women who get paid very low rates for making garments at home,” he said.
“They often have unrealistic demands placed on them in terms of delivery times for orders,” he said.
“The proposed code means that there will be greater transparency in the complex production chain in the clothing industry,” he said.
“This transparency will help in tracking down unscrupulous contractors who are not paying outworkers adequately,” he said.
“The Commission’s submission argued that the code would also help in protecting these workers’ entitlements to health and safety protection,” he said.
“Outworkers suffer three times the rate of manual handling injuries as factory-based clothing workers,” he said.
“We think this is linked to their poor pay rates and unrealistic delivery times,” he said.
“The Commission’s submission stressed that outworkers had rights in relation to their working conditions and pay,” he said.
“These rights are essential to protect their human dignity which is a principle at the heart of the Church’s social teaching,” he said.
“We want Queensland to join New South Wales which has had a mandatory code in force since 2005 and South Australia which introduced a code last October,” he said.
“These workers should not be exploited and a mandatory code will help to stop this,” he said.
“It will also help ethical contractors who are looking after their workers because unscrupulous contractors won’t be able to undercut them by paying their workers below-award pay rates,” he said.
”This code is another step in efforts to provide vulnerable women with fair and just conditions,” he said.
For further information, please contact Peter Arndt on (07) 3336 9173 or 0409 265 476.
NBThis release is issued with the approval of the Commission or its Executive under the provision of its Charter which enables it to speak in its own right.The views expressed in it do not necessarily represent the views of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane.
Catholic Justice and Peace Commission of Brisbane 