Care of God's Creation

Care of Creation

Because St. Francis of Assisi spoke often of his love and care for God’s Creation—even referring to the elements as his brothers and sisters—the Catholic Church has named him the patron saint of ecology. It is fitting, then, that in the spirit of our patron, our community encourages all people to join with our sisters and associates as we strive to:

• Reduce our carbon footprint
• Actively seek ways to reuse, recycle, and reduce our consumption
• Become educated advocates on current environmental issues such as fracking and the placement of petroleum pipelines

C.A.R.E. Committee

Pope Francis has said, “I believe that St. Francis is the example of care for the vulnerable and of an integral ecology lived out joyfully and authentically.”  The C.A.R.E.  (Creating Action to Reverence the Earth) Committee of the School Sisters of St. Francis agrees and, inspired by our patron saint’s example, we have been working for a decade to motivate sisters, associates, and all interested persons to deepen our commitment to the Earth.

What began as a task force on water issues has broadened its scope and we now strive to share knowledge about the challenging ecological issues of our day, such as climate change and climate justice.

We draw inspiration from the Pope’s words and example, particularly from Laudato Si, Pope Francis’s 2015 encyclical on care of Creation. In it, he wrote, “An integral ecology is inseparable from the notion of the common good, a central and unifying principle of social ethics. The common good is ‘the sum of those conditions of social life which allow social groups and their individual members relatively thorough and ready access to their own fulfilment.’”

Learn how you can become involved in our work by contacting Sister Kathy Braun.