VATICAN CITY — The Vatican announced that it will commemorate the fifth anniversary of Pope Francis' encyclical on the environment with a yearlong series of initiatives dedicated to the safeguarding and care for the Earth.
In a statement released by the Vatican press office May 16, the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development announced a "Special Laudato Si' Anniversary Year" from May 24, 2020, to May 24, 2021, which will emphasize "ecological conversion in action."
As the world continues to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, the dicastery said, the encyclical's message is "just as prophetic today as it was in 2015."
"Truly, COVID-19 has made clear how deeply we are all interconnected and interdependent. As we begin to envision a post-COVID world, we need above all an integral approach as everything is closely interrelated and today's problems call for a vision capable of taking into account every aspect of the global crisis," the statement said.
Among the events set to take place throughout the year are prayer services and webinars dedicated to environmental care, education and the economy. The dicastery also detailed the rollout of a "seven-year journey toward integral ecology" for families, dioceses, schools, universities, hospitals, businesses, farms and religious orders.
The Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development said that amid the current pandemic, "Laudato Si'" can "indeed provide the moral and spiritual compass for the journey to create a more caring, fraternal, peaceful and sustainable world."
"We have, in fact, a unique opportunity to transform the present groaning and travail into the birth pangs of a new way of living together, bonded together in love, compassion and solidarity and a more harmonious relationship with the natural world, our common home," the dicastery's statement said.
"As Pope Francis reminds us," it said, "'all of us can cooperate as instruments of God for the care of creation, each according to his or her own culture, experience, involvements and talents.'"
Recalling the fifth anniversary of his encyclical after reciting the "Regina Coeli" prayer May 17, Pope Francis expressed his hope that the message of "Laudato Si'" will encourage people to take upon themselves the shared responsibility of caring for the Earth.
"In these times of pandemic, in which we are more aware of the importance of caring for our common home, I hope that all our common reflection and commitment will help to create and strengthen constructive behaviors for the care of creation," the pope said.
— Junno Arocho Esteves, Catholic News Service
Go online
At www.usccb.org/environment: Learn more about “Laudato Si’” and get educational resources in English and Spanish for this year-long anniversary celebration, including a link to the full encyclical, prayers, a summary video, and study guides.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — This is the time of year parishes have been preparing to welcome new Catholics into the church through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, but the coronavirus has changed how catechumens and candidates are participating in RCIA.
To prevent this pandemic from stopping these people from pursing full entrance into the Church, Charlotte-area based Catholic publisher TAN Books has released a free online version of the Credo RCIA program, which was developed in tandem with the Dominican friars at the Thomistic Institute, based at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington.
Access to the YouTube videos for each lesson and PDFs of both the catechist and catechumen materials are available online through TAN Books and the Thomistic Institute websites. Visit www.tanbooks.com/credo for more information.
Credo is a video program that “carefully teaches participants and catechumens the key tenets of the faith,” said a news release announcing online access.
It is designed to be all-encompassing, covering all topics recommended by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. It also can be used with other RCIA programs so leaders can easily pick up wherever their participants left off. Credo can be streamed from anywhere.
In RCIA, catechumens are those have never been baptized, and they receive baptism, confirmation and first Communion at the Easter Vigil. Candidates have already been baptized in another Christian tradition, and they enter the Church through a profession of faith, being confirmed and receiving the Eucharist.
The Thomistic Institute, founded 10 years ago, “seeks to promote Catholic truth in the contemporary world by strengthening the intellectual formation of Christians, especially at top tier universities,” according to a news release.
The institute – thomisticinstitute.org – has over 50 student chapters, including at Harvard, Yale, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, New York University, Duke University and on campuses in Dublin, London and Rome.
— Catholic News Service
Also online
At www.charlottediocese.org/coronavirus-update: Looking for resources to help educate your children in the faith during these unprecedented times? The Diocesan Office for Faith Formation has compiled lots of online catechetical resources to promote at-home faith formation lessons.