The fifth anniversary of Laudato Si’ offers us an opportunity to act together in a strategic way to care for creation. Our special emphasis will be the impact of plastics on our environment.
As Pope Francis reminds us, “The urgent challenge to protect our common home includes a concern to bring the whole human family together to seek a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change” (Laudato Si’ paragraph 13). This is a great opportunity for us to experience our solidarity, to learn, and to act together.
Get involved in CSSJ activities and actions
The congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and the U.S. Federation of Sisters of St. Joseph have organized the following slate of activities and actions and invite all to join.
Share Laudato Si’ messages on social media
Artists from the U.S. Federation of Sisters of St. Joseph created a variety of creation-themed artwork and generously shared it with all of us to post on social media throughout Laudato Si’ Week. We have also listed some passages from Laudato Si’ you can pair with them. Feel free to make your posts your own and invite your friends and followers to join us in action!
Group discussion: 7pm Eastern/6pm Central/5pm Mountain/4pm Pacific
Sunday, May 17
Presentation: “The Be-attitudes for Care of Our Common Home” by Lin Neil, CSJ
Interactive program presented via Zoom videoconference at 4pm Eastern/3pm Central/2pm Mountain/ 1pm Pacific Missed the presentation? Watch it now on YouTube!
Watch the 95-minute video on your own. We have a limited number of video views. Information on how to view it will be sent to those who register through the link below, even if you don’t have time to both view the video and join the discussion.
Optional group discussion on Zoom at 7pm Eastern/6pm Central/ 5pm Mountain/4pm Pacific
We need to address single-use plastics through our personal choices to avoid them but also by letting the manufacturers and local vendors know of our concern. Please take these two actions.
Tell Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Nestlé to stop using single-use plastic packaging. For the second year running, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Nestlé were the three biggest single-use plastic polluters in 484 cleanups in 50+ countries across six continents in September 2019. If we don’t hold them accountable now, experts predict that there will be more plastic than fish in the oceans by 2050. Click here to send letters to Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Nestlé. We encourage you to add your own words about why this is important to you, perhaps mentioning Laudato Si’ Week and the call to preserve our common home. You will receive an acknowledgment that your letter was received and an invitation to share it on social media. Please do.
Spanish conversation on Linda Neil, CSJ’s presentations
Conversación en castellano sobre las presentaciones (videos) por Linda Neil (Be-actitudes y Vivir Simple) a 8pm Eastern/7pm Central/6pm Mountain/5pm Pacific
Pray together in a Closing Ceremony of Celebration and Commitment
We close this week commemorating Laudato Si’ with a celebration of the gifts and challenges of being members of this one sacred Earth community. We will reflect on, discuss, and recommit to aligning ourselves with the Creator’s dream for our Earth. We will call on the graces continually bathing us through Creation and on the goodwill and strength of each other as we go into a sacred future together.
Interactive service presented via Zoom videoconference at 2pm Eastern/1pm Central/noon Mountain/ 11am Pacific
The cry of the dear neighbor impels us to go deeper, to journey farther, to respond boldly and creatively. We are called to bold conversation and prophetic action! Join us!
The Story of Bottled Water: The Story of Bottled Water tells the story of manufactured demand—how you get Americans to buy more than half a billion bottles of water every week when it already flows virtually free from the tap. Over five minutes, the film explores the bottled water industry’s attacks on tap water and its use of seductive, environmental-themed advertising to cover up the mountains of plastic waste it produces. The film concludes with a call for viewers to make a personal commitment to avoid bottled water and support public investment in clean, available tap water for all.
The Story of Microbeads: This 2-minute short takes on plastic microbeads—the nasty little bits of plastic that companies have been putting in everything from body washes and hand soaps to toothpaste and make up. In it, we show how microbeads are actually designed to go down the drain and into our rivers, lakes, and oceans…and what folks like us can do to stop this ridiculous assault on our public waters.
The Story of Microfibers: Most of us wear synthetic fabrics like polyester every day. Our dress shirts, yoga pants, fleeces, and even underwear are all increasingly made of synthetic materials — plastic, in fact. But these synthetic fabrics, from which 60% of all clothing on earth is made, have a big hidden problem: when they’re washed, they release tiny plastic bits — called microfibers — that flow down our drains, through water treatment plants, and out into our rivers, lakes, and oceans by the billions. This 2-minute short explains it all.
More information on the pledge and possible actions
We are committed to journeying farther in our efforts to save our planet. Many of us have already taken actions to reduce the presence of single-use plastics. Please consider taking a next step during Laudato Si’ Week. Choose an action, print out this poster, and fill in your Laudato Si pledge, take a photo of you holding it and share on social media using the hashtags #CreationCare. Challenging your friends and colleagues to do the same.
Recycle single-use plastic water bottles
Use a reusable water bottle
Use cloth bags and produce bags for shopping- remember to use bags of natural fibers like cotton (polyester and many mesh products are made with plastics)
