Laudato Si’ Quote
49. It needs to be said that, generally speaking, there is little in the way of clear awareness of problems which especially affect the excluded. Yet they are the majority of the planet’s population, billions of people. These days, they are mentioned in international political and economic discussions, but one often has the impression that their problems are brought up as an afterthought, a question which gets added almost out of duty or in a tangential way, if not treated merely as collateral damage. Indeed, when all is said and done, they frequently remain at the bottom of the pile. This is due partly to the fact that many professionals, opinion makers, communications media and centres of power, being located in affluent urban areas, are far removed from the poor, with little direct contact with their problems. They live and reason from the comfortable position of a high level of development and a quality of life well beyond the reach of the majority of the world’s population. This lack of physical contact and encounter, encouraged at times by the disintegration of our cities, can lead to a numbing of conscience and to tendentious analyses which neglect parts of reality. At times this attitude exists side by side with a “green” rhetoric. Today, however, we have to realize that a true ecological approach always becomes a social approach; it must integrate questions of justice in debates on the environment, so as to hear both the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor.
Reflection: What do I think and feel when I hear the call to “hear both the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor?” Who are “the excluded” in my own community? What actions do I take, or could I take, to ensure they do not “remain at the bottom of the pile?” How does this passage call me to action in this Lenten season?
Action: What are the environmental issues where you live and how do they affect the most vulnerable? What groups are taking action on those issues? How might you support their work? Who is at the “bottom on the pile” in your community? How might you reach out in solidarity?
Prayer for Ukraine and for Peace
Dismantling Racism
Are you looking for a way to integrate Lent and your desire to be an anti-racist? Consider registering for the workshop “White Supremacy and American Christianity” sponsored by NETWORK on April 9, 2022. Details and registration can be found here.
SAVE THE DATE: The Dismantling Racism Committee will be offering workshops in May. You will be invited to attend a PART A and PART B of a Dismantling workshop facilitated by Notre Dame de Namur Sisters, Patricia Chappelle and Ann-Louise Nadeau. You can participate in a Part A workshop on either May 17th (1-3 pm Eastern) or May 24th (7-9 pm Eastern). Part B of the workshops will be offered May 19th (1-3 pm Eastern) or May 26th (7-9 pm Eastern).
Watch, be moved, and reflect on this video clip from the confirmation hearings of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson. What does this mean to you, and for SSND sponsored ministries and our work together?
Climate Change
April 22-May 1 is 2022 Faith Climate Action Week. Interfaith Power and Light, a Religious Response to Global Warming, has an excellent resource kit that can be downloaded for free. Find the link to the download here.
Would you like to receive training to be a Laudato Si’ animator, more able to lead others in discussion, prayer, and action toward ecological conversion? To learn more about this training initiative from the Laudato Si’ Movement, click here.
Not only are our food choices critical for the earth, but they are also critical for those who provide many of our food options. Think eating fish during Lent is a low-impact choice? Think again in terms of overfishing our oceans and in terms of human trafficking in the fishing industry. Every choice matters!
Laudato Si’ Congregation
“As a Laudato Si’ Congregation, we embark on a seven-year journey towards an integral ecology. In fidelity to our charism and
the mission to bring all to oneness, we commit to live more simply, responsibly, and sustainably and to Educate, Advocate, Act in
collaboration with others for the dignity of life and the care of all creation. Called to live our mission prophetically, we School
Sisters of Notre Dame live and 000minister with the conviction that the world can be changed through the transformation of persons.”
SSND Congregation Public Commitment 25 May, 2021
INVITATION for all Sisters, Associates and Colleagues in the AM Province to attend a Laudato si’ Action Platform ZOOM Presentation on April 21, 2022
The members of the Addressing Climate Change Committee (ADCCC) invite all Sisters, Associates and Colleagues to learn about our SSND commitment and responsibilities in becoming a Laudato si’ Congregation/Province.
The purpose of the gathering is
- To explain the responsibility of the Addressing Climate Change Committee in achieving the goals
- To further the understanding and engagement of the province with respect to the SSND commitment to become a Laudato si’ Congregation/Province
- To share the purpose and results of the Laudato si’ Survey (Fall 2021)
- To consider what Goals and Objectives we can embrace as a province in year one based on the Survey results
- To highlight the importance of the role played by all Sisters, Associates and Colleagues in living out the goals of the Laudato si’ Action Platform.
There are two different times for the same gathering:
9:30-11:00 am (Eastern time) OR 7:00-8:30 pm (Eastern time).
To register for the Laudato si’ Action Platform Presentation, kindly email Sister Sharon Wall at swall@amssnd.org and be sure to put in the subject line
LSAP, give her your email and tell her if you wish to join the morning OR evening gathering.
Sister Sharon will email you the ZOOM link and Preparation Material prior to the gathering.
Registration is due by April, 15 2022
Human Trafficking
The commitment for this year is on Online Child Exploitation. Please take the time, and prepare your spirit, to read this New York Times piece in its entirety. Every child is at risk and they don’t even need to leave home to be exploited. Read here.
Read the newsletter from US Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking here. The lead article is about sex tourism, and a growing awareness of child sex tourism. We must weep for our children AND act to protect all children.
SAVE THE DATE: “Child Online Exploitation 101” workshop will be hosted by the Human Trafficking Committee on Wednesday, May 11th on Zoom.
The workshop will be conducted by an attorney from the Department of Justice Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section who has successfully prosecuted cases of child online exploitation. Plan to attend this very important step in understanding the far reach of this trafficking into homes everywhere.
If you have not yet sent a Voter Voice to your congressional representatives on the Earn It Act, please consider doing so now! Find the link to this issue and all other current legislative issues here.
Justice for Immigrants
Called to be Dangerous Women (and Men): The Triune God Impels us into the Heart of the World is the theme of the Justice for Immigrants Committee Lenten reflections, based on scripture from the Sunday lectionary and linked to one immigration issue each week. This Fifth Sunday of Lent we look at the resettlement of Afghan refugees through Catholic Charities. Also, look back at the Second Sunday to see an added video on those who have DACA status. Look for a new reflection in the newsletter, on social media, and on the homepage. Please join us in reflecting on justice for immigrants and share it with others!
Tens of thousands of Afghans and their families have arrived in the U.S. to be resettled and are now in need of a pathway to real and lasting safety. 40% of them are children. They are here with a limited parole and no clear path to safety and stability. Please use your voice through Voter Voice to ask Congress to advance an Afghan Adjustment Act.
Sweeping changes are being made to the asylum process in the United States, hoping to speed up the enormous backlog of asylum cases. Speeding things up often means cutting some people out; learn more about the changes and how they affect all immigrants here.
Pray the Stations of the Cross with Jesuit Refugee Services USA on this YouTube video during these last few weeks of Lent, and reflect on how the suffering of Christ continues through the lives of our brothers and sisters who seek safety. Click here.
