Laudato Si’ Action Plan Newsletter for June 2025, No. 8
Welcome to the eighth edition of the Laudato Si’ Action Plan Newsletter of the Carmelite PCM Province. This electronic newsletter is intended to inform the members and partners of this province on our collective commitment to living the values of Laudato Si’ –hearing and responding to the cries of the earth and the cries of the poor.
I ask you, in the name of God,
to defend Mother Earth.
– Pope Francis
We mourn the passing of our beloved Pope Francis, the author of the encyclical, Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home.
Our New Laudato Si’ Action Plan!
A message from Dennis Kalob, the Laudato Si’ Action Plan Coordinator
We released our new province-wide Laudato Si’ Action Plan last month (during Laudato Si’ Week and as the world was commemorating the 10th anniversary of the encyclical). An email went out with that announcement. In case you missed it, I invite you to read our plan, which includes specific reports from 15 different PCM Province ministries and communities. Click here for the report. The document is on our province’s website and uploaded to the Laudato Si’ Action Platform (a project of the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development).
This is all very impressive—this commitment to live the values and vision of Laudato Si’. My heartfelt thanks to all those who submitted their plans!
I know there are others who were unable to meet the deadline to be included in this report. There are also those who submitted their plans, but have notified me of their desire to edit them in the weeks ahead. I say to all of these folks, yes, you can still submit your plans or edit them at any point. This is a living document and I will update it periodically to include new information. I am currently looking to update our Action Plan in mid-August, in time for the Season of Creation (September 1-October 4).
Please contact me if you have any questions or would like to consult with me either over the phone, virtually, or in-person. My email is lscoordinator@carmelites.net. Thank you!
I invite you to watch this very informative and inspirational webinar from Catholic Climate Covenant:
Remembering Pope Francis
The 12-year-long papacy of Pope Francis was transformational for the Church and exceptionally influential across the world. Of course, there was the profound and beautiful encyclical, Laudato Si’: On Care for our Common Home. There was also Fratelli Tutti, Laudate Deum, and Evangelii Gaudium, among other documents that form a significant part of the legacy of Pope Francis. He had a great deal to say about the state of humanity and all of creation, as well as about our responsibility to act to make the world a better place and in so doing, serve God.
Francis’ heart was big and that was seen not only by his passion for justice and peace, but also by how he treated people in his daily interactions. People always remarked about his kindness, gentleness, and compassion. He was forever attentive to the needs of those around him, as well as those on the other side of the world.
While so many appreciated Pope Francis’ extraordinary gifts, it is sad that there were those who could not see the depth of the goodness of the man nor the true urgency of his message.
So, it remains to those of us whom he left behind on this Earth to carry on and rededicate ourselves to the cause of social and ecological justice. That is the best way we can honor Pope Francis. Let this work be our prayer.
From the Prior General:
Brothers and sisters in Carmel,
The world mourns the passing from this world of Pope Francis, on the morning of Easter Monday. On Easter Sunday he was fully alive in mind and heart, in a body that could not give any more. It is like a death in our family. He was so close to us.
His vision and his spirituality were very clear. They came from the Gospel. They were inspired by Mary and the holiness of the saints, the great saints and the saints next door. Salvation, mercy and peace are in Jesus Christ and are given to those who look to Him and see in him the truth that can make us free. Children of the one Father, every one of us, we are sisters and brothers to one another. That is our greatest dignity and everything we need to know about one another, in order to build and live in a world where that dignity is the rule of law and no other. There is a cry in the human heart, and in the created world itself, that the followers of Christ, the pastors and the political leaders needs to hear. There is a way to treat other human beings and it is not the way of devious interests or the recourse to arms of violence but the way of tenderness and mercy for all. When we recognize that the Eucharist is not the reward for holiness but the greatest help we have towards holiness, we recognize the heart of Pope Francis’ ministry and the way he himself celebrated every time he stood at the altar.
Carmelites around the world, let us give thanks to God for the life, witness and teaching of Pope Francis and pray for his eternal happiness, as we treasure our own vocation to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ and preach his Gospel. Mary, mother of the word incarnate, salus populi, pray for us in our sorrow, and open our hearts in thanksgiving for the wonders of God’s mercy shown to us in the life of Pope Francis. May he rest in peace.
Míċeál O’Neill
Prior General
24th of April, 2025
United Nations’ Tribute to Pope Francis:
https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1w/k1w70mg947
FYI: The presentation by the Secretary-General begins around the five-minute mark. The Presentation by the representative of the Holy See begins at 29:25. The entire program lasts about one hour.
“As the spiritual leader who guided our Church for 12 years, Pope Francis breathed new life into centuries of Catholic teaching. As the man who inspired me and our movement, his warmth, humility, and commitment to the common good showed us a new way forward. He sparked a sense of new hope and beginnings for many, so it’s fitting that Pope Francis passed into eternal rest during Easter, when we celebrate the renewal of all life. We pray thanks for the gift of Pope Francis and for sharing in his precious few moments on Earth.”
–Lorna Gold, Executive Director of the Laudato Si’ Movement
“As the first pope from the Global South, Pope Francis brought a profound sense of global solidarity to Rome. As the first pope named after Saint Francis of Assisi, he underscored how ‘the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor’ are one interconnected cry. As we mourn the passing of the Pope of the Peripheries, the inspiration and spiritual guide of the Laudato Si’ Movement, let us recommit to singing ‘Laudato Si’ and praising our Creator even more earnestly.”
—Tomás Insua, Founding Executive Director of the Laudato Si’ Movement
“Pope Francis reminded us that the climate crisis is not only an environmental emergency—it is a moral challenge. He spoke out many times about the climate and nature crisis, raising his voice for those least responsible yet most affected: the poor, the marginalised, and future generations. With the courage of his convictions, he called us to care for our common home and to recognise that the fate of the Earth and the fate of humanity are one and the same. His leadership urged a new kind of solidarity—rooted in compassion, justice, and the deep understanding that we are all connected.”
—Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland (1990-1997) & United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (1997-2002)
Pope Francis on Migration
On 17 February 2016, Pope Francis visited the Mexico/U.S. border and said mass. Here are excerpts from his homily:
“We cannot deny the humanitarian crisis which in recent years has meant migration for thousands of people, whether by train or highway or on foot, crossing hundreds of kilometres through mountains, deserts and inhospitable zones. The human tragedy that is forced migration is a global phenomenon today. This crisis which can be measured in numbers and statistics, we want instead to measure with names, stories, families. They are the brothers and sisters of those expelled by poverty and violence, by drug trafficking and criminal organizations. Being faced with so many legal vacuums, they get caught up in a web that ensnares and always destroys the poorest. Not only do they suffer poverty but they must also endure all these forms of violence…
“Let us together ask our God for the gift of conversion, the gift of tears, let us ask him to give us open hearts like the Ninevites, open to his call heard in the suffering faces of countless men and women. No more death! No more exploitation! There is always time to change, always a way out and always an opportunity, there is always the time to implore the mercy of God…
“And now I also want to greet from here all our beloved brothers and sisters who are joining us simultaneously from the other side of the frontier, especially those who are gathered in the Stadium of the University of El Paso, known as The Sun Bowl, under the guidance of your Bishop, Monsignor Mark Seitz. Thanks to technology, we can pray, sing and celebrate together that merciful love which God gives us, and which no frontier can prevent us from sharing. Thank you, brothers and sisters of El Paso, for making us feel one single family and one same Christian community.”
For the full text of Pope Francis’ homily, click here.
Pope Francis on Gaza
Pope Francis also addressed the grave situation in Gaza. Nightly, he talked with a Christian community there, expressing his heartfelt concern for their wellbeing and the wellbeing of all who lived there. He also called for an investigation regarding the allegations that Israel was committing genocide.
On 22 December 2024, Pope Francis said, “…with sorrow I think of Gaza, of so much cruelty; of the children machine-gunned, the bombing of schools and hospitals… So much cruelty!”
It was reported that one of Pope Francis’ last acts was to donate to Caritas Jerusalem the popemobile from his 2014 visit to the Holy Land. He asked that it be transformed into a mobile clinic to provide healthcare for children in Gaza.
You are called to care for creation not only as responsible citizens but also as followers of Christ! Respect for the environment means more than simply using cleaner products or recycling what we use. These are important aspects, but not enough. We need to see, with the eyes of faith, the beauty of God’s saving plan, the link between the natural environment and the dignity of the human person.
–Pope Francis, in meeting with young people, Santo Tomás University, Manila, 18 January 2015
We give the last word to our new pope, Leo XIV (25 May 2025):
“Ten years ago, Pope Francis signed the Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’, devoted to care for our common home. It has had an extraordinary impact, inspiring countless initiatives and teaching everyone to listen to the twofold cry of the Earth and of the poor. I greet and encourage the Laudato Si’ movement and all those who carry on this commitment.”
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