Laudato Si’ has sparked a vibrant, faith-filled environmental movement
This week marks the tenth anniversary of the bestselling Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home, the landmark encyclical by Pope Francis released in May 2015. In it, he issues a powerful and prophetic invitation to “every person living on this planet” (LS, 3) to hear both the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor, a call that has only grown more urgent over the past decade.
Over this time Trócaire has journeyed with supporters, partners, and communities, bringing the wisdom of Laudato Si’ to life. Together with the Laudato Si’ Movement, we have worked to inspire meaningful and lasting change for our common home. At the heart of this journey is a moral imperative, one that challenges all people to embrace ecological conversion and to respond with courage and compassion to the environmental crisis.
Laudato Si’ has sparked a vibrant, faith-filled environmental conversation which has turned into a movement, both globally and here at home. It has changed hearts, communities, and policies. Here are just a few milestones from the past ten years:
- Laudato Si’ played a key role in shaping the historic 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, reminding world leaders of their shared moral responsibility.
- In 2024, 56% of Dublin parishes celebrated the Season of Creation, something not widely practised in Catholic parishes pre-Laudato Si’.
- In March 2023, the Irish bishops asked parishes across the country to return 30% of church grounds to nature in an effort to address the biodiversity crisis locally and nationally. Parishes are forging partnerships with biodiversity officers and community groups around the country in order to embrace the challenge.
- In 2018, the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference divested its shared assets from fossil fuels. This announcement came on the eve of Pope Francis’ visit to Ireland and many Irish dioceses and religious orders have also divested.
- Hundreds of Laudato Si’ Animators have been trained in parishes across the country to share the wisdom and calls of Laudato Si’
Pope Francis reminds us: ‘Truly, much can be done’ and, ‘we know that things can change’ (LS 180, 13). These words are not just optimism, they are a call to hope-filled action and are a challenge to each of us. By embracing simpler lifestyles and cultivating ecological awareness, we become agents of cultural change. Through this, policy change becomes possible, and hope begins to flourish. Laudato Si’ is also a document which provides much needed spiritual nourishment and invites all people to embrace an ecological spirituality which can sustain us and help us to grow in our relationship with God, with the earth and with one another.
In this spirit of active hope, we are proud to share Stories of Hope, a tribute to the many Laudato Si’ animators, activists, volunteers, and collaborators across Ireland. These are stories of courage, creativity, and unwavering commitment to care for our common home. As we celebrate a decade of Laudato Si’, we invite you to be inspired by these remarkable journeys, and to take your place in this ecological movement of faith, hope and action.
Each day of this week – Laudato Si Week – a new ‘Story of Hope’ will appear on Trócaire’s Laudato Si’ page: https://www.trocaire.org/our-work/working-in-ireland/parishes/laudato-si/
‘Let us sing as we go. May our struggles and our concern for this planet never take away the joy of our hope.’ (LS, 244)
ENDS
Thank you to Jane Mellett, Church Manager of Trócaire for providing this story. Please submit your story to info@catholicbishops.ie
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