Laudato Si’ Action Plan Newsletter for February 2026, No. 13
Welcome to the thirteenth 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. It is prepared by Laudato Si’ Action Plan Coordinator, Dennis Kalob.
Our Province’s Laudato Si’ Action Plan
We are looking to revise our province’s action plan to include the progress made by the various Carmelite ministries and communities since they first submitted their individual plans last year. So, if you or a member of your ministry or community submitted a plan that was included in our province’s report, we ask that you review it, continue to take steps to fulfill your goals, and begin to consider how you will update your plan later this year. We will be looking for updates by September 1, which is the first day of the Season of Creation.
If your community or ministry did not have an opportunity to submit an action plan last year, you may do so this year and you will be included in the updated provincial report, which we plan to publish in late September.
You can find the current PCM Province’s Laudato Si’ Action Plan and all of the 13 issues of the Laudato Si’ Action Newsletter 这里. Please send questions and comments to Dennis. He can be reached at LSCoordinator@Carmelites.net.
NOTE: Later in this issue of the newsletter, you can find some resources that might prove helpful.
The Laudato Si’ Movement’s theme for 2026 is “FROM HOPE TO ACTION.”
For more information, click 这里.
Laudato Si’ Week is May 17-24. Please consider how your community
or ministry might celebrate the week.
Our thanks to the artist, David Hayward, for giving his permission to reprint his drawing, “Pepper Spray Jesus.” It is a simple, but immensely powerful and timely illustration of Matthew 25. “…just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”
Suggested reading: “A Catholic guide to resisting the ICE crackdown,” by Kevin Clarke, America magazine, January 29, 2026.
Also from America, there is this article: “The U.S. bishops have made a (needed) statement on deportations. Now it’s time to act,” by J. Kevin Appleby and Dylan Corbett, January 12, 2026. Within the article is a link to the bishops’ special message.
Many Church leaders have been speaking out on the mass detention and mass deportation policies of the current U.S. administration and the violent nature of these policies, which are an affront to human dignity. Among the most outspoken is Cardinal Tobin of the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. He has called ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) a “lawless organization” and called for an end to its funding. “We mourn for a world, a country,” Cardinal Tobin said, “that allows 5-year-olds to be legally kidnapped and protesters to be slaughtered.”
“I exhort all the faithful of the Catholic Church, and all men and women of good will, not to give in to narratives that discriminate against and cause unnecessary suffering to our migrant and refugee brothers and sisters. With charity and clarity we are all called to live in solidarity and fraternity, to build bridges that bring us ever closer together, to avoid walls of ignominy and to learn to give our lives as Jesus Christ gave his for the salvation of all.
“Let us ask Our Lady of Guadalupe to protect individuals and families who live in fear or pain due to migration and/or deportation. May the “Virgen morena”, who knew how to reconcile peoples when they were at enmity, grant us all to meet again as brothers and sisters, within her embrace, and thus take a step forward in the construction of a society that is more fraternal, inclusive and respectful of the dignity of all.”
–Pope Francis (10 February 2025)
Holy Hours for Peace
The President of the USCCB, Archbishop Paul Coakley, has invited bishops and priests across the U.S. to offer a Holy Hour for Peace. For more information, click 这里.
“Many people today feel powerless in the face of violence, injustice, and social unrest,” says Archbishop Coakley. “To those who feel this way, I wish to say clearly: your faithfulness matters. Your prayers matter. Your acts of love and works of justice matter.”
Resources For Your Creation Care
To purchase sustainable products for your home, community or ministry try the following:
Cleanomic.com or EarthHero.com. Both provide options for environmentally friendly products for kitchen, bathroom, laundry and beyond.
"(《世界人权宣言》) American Society of Landscape Architects has great resources that promote the development of sustainable landscapes of all sizes. “Sustainable landscapes are responsive to the environment, regenerative, and help create healthy communities. They sequester carbon, clean the air and water, increase energy efficiency, restore habitats, and create value through significant economic, social, and environmental benefits.”
"(《世界人权宣言》) Center for Green Schools “is a global leader in advancing green schools and providing the resources needed to create sustainable, healthy, resilient, and equitable learning environments.” They “are driving the green school movement by working directly with those implementing sustainability within school systems and offering a wide array of initiatives that accelerate action.”
天主教气候公约 has abundant resources, including “homily helps,” Season of Creation guides, and much more (in English and Español).
FaithInvest is an international, non-profit organization that supports faith-based groups to invest in ways that are consistent with their values and for the benefit of people and planet. Their Living Laudato Si’ resource hub is very informative and should be quite helpful to those considering ecological economics, in general, and ethical investing, in particular.
“Care for creation is truly a vocation for every human being.
We are creatures among creatures, entrusted with the responsibility to care for all that the Creator has made.”
–Pope Leo XIV
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