(Source: Pax Christi)
The Church is celebrating the fifth anniversary of Laudato Si’: On care for our common home, the powerful and beautifully crafted encyclical which calls us to a new understanding of all of the connections woven into creation.
In this time of crisis, it is clear that nonviolence is a crucial pillar in the foundation of the more just and sustainable post-pandemic world to which Laudato Si’ leads us.
We invite you to sign this message to Pope Francis expressing our gratitude for his leadership during this time of crisis and our support for the teachings of Laudato Si’.
For more information and to find this appeal in French, Spanish, Italian, German, and Japanese please visit the Catholic Nonviolence Initiative website.
Full text of the appeal to Pope Francis: The path of nonviolence toward a Laudato Si’ future
(Source: Catholic Nonviolence Initiative)
The coronavirus has laid bare the deep roots of racism and cultural violence, economic injustice, wars “fought piecemeal,” climate change and environmental destruction that are facing the human community and our planet.
Response to the pandemic requires a fundamental shift from the “unjust normal” of systemic and structural violence across the globe, from systems that destroy, dehumanize and diminish, to a culture of solidarity that seeks the fullness of life for all.
Active nonviolence – a spirituality, a way of life and a program of societal action – is key to this global shift; to the roadmap laid out in “Journeying for the Care of Our Common Home”; and to the future envisioned in Laudato Si’.
The two hands of nonviolence speak clearly to this moment in history: “No” to the multidimensional violences that plague our world; “yes” to human dignity and respect for the integrity of creation.
Nonviolence is a path for conversion, for deep personal and societal transformation from the old way of domination and exploitation toward a “civilization of love” (Laudato Si’ #231).
The universal ethic of nonviolence can shape a new, more just “normal” and guide the growing mass movement of ordinary people, including many Catholics, longing for the post pandemic world that you have helped us to envision.
To further encourage a process of ecological conversion, we believe that a companion reflection to Laudato Si’ would deepen and greatly expand Catholic understanding of and commitment to nonviolence as a crucial pillar in the foundation of integral human development and a more sustainable “common home.”
We are deeply grateful for the hope and vision that you bring to these troubled times.
