IN THE CHURCH
tvc.dsj.org | September 5, 2017
3
Pope, Orthodox Patriarch Issue Joint Plea for Care of Creation
By Carol Glatz
Catholic News Service
VATICAN CITY – Together with the
head of the Orthodox Church, Pope
Francis urged people to be respectful
and responsible toward creation while
being aware of how disrupted ecosys-
tems impact the poor.
To mark the World Day of Prayer for
the Care of Creation Sept. 1, the pope
said he and Ecumenical Patriarch Bar-
tholomew of Constantinople “prepared
a message together.”
Although the text was not published
immediately, Pope Francis told people
at his general audience Aug. 30 that
the message would be an invitation to
all people “to adopt a respectful and
responsible approach toward creation.”
“Furthermore,” he said, “we appeal
to those who hold an infl uential role to
listen to the cry of the earth and the cry
of the poor, who suff er more because of
ecological imbalances.”
Pope Francis instituted the World
Day of Prayer for the Catholic Church
in 2015, joining with the ecumenical
patriarchate, who has observed the
Sept. 1 day of prayer since 1989.
The annual World Day of Prayer
for the Care of Creation, Pope Francis
said when he instituted it, is to be a
time for individuals and communities
to “reaffi rm their personal vocation to
be stewards of creation, to thank God
Valerio Mendoza, 83, joins a vigil for climate change on the eve of the U.N. climate summit in
Lima, Peru. (CNS photo/Barbara Fraser)
for the wonderful handiwork which
he has entrusted to our care, and to
implore his help for the protection of
creation as well as his pardon for the
sins committed against the world in
which we live.”
If Christians are to make their
special contribution to safeguarding
creation, they must rediscover the
spiritual foundations of their approach
to what exists on earth, beginning with
an acknowledgment that “the life of
the spirit is not dissociated from the
body or from nature,” but lived in
communion with all worldly realities,
he had said.
Where to Give to Assist with
Hurricane Harvey Recovery
WASHINGTON – Several organizations have established emergency relief
operations for the thousands of people aff ected by Hurricane Harvey and the
fl oods in Texas and Louisiana.
Contributions can be made to:
• Catholic Charities USA: online at https://catholiccharitiesusa.org;
telephone at (800) 919-9338; mail to P.O. Box 17066, Baltimore, MD, 21297-1066
and write “Hurricane Harvey” in the memo line of the check.
• Texas Catholics Conference is coordinating emergency services.
A listing by diocese of where to give has been posted online at
https://txcatholic.org/harvey.
• Local dioceses are expected to initiate special collection s during weekend
Masses in September . Funds will benefi t Catholic Charities USA’s disaster relief
eff orts as well as pastoral and rebuilding support through the U.S. Conference
of Catholic Bishops.
-Catholic News Service
Editor’s Note: Parishes throughout the Diocese of San Jose are collecting dona-
tions for those impacted by Hurricane Harvey. In addition, a special second
collection will be taken up the weekend of September 9-10.
A demonstrator holds a placard outside the
British Houses of Parliament during a demon-
stration against climate change in early March
in London. Catholics and Orthodox formally
will mark Sept. 1 as the World Day of Prayer
for the Care of Creation. (CNS photo/Facundo
Arrizabalaga, EPA)
Students from Saint Francis of Assisi School in Triangle, Va., rake leaves as part of a clean-up
effort. (CNS photo/courtesy Saint Francis of Assisi Church)
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