Minnesotans gather to discuss local, national response to Pope Francis ecology encyclical

Faith leaders, others discuss ways to nurture ‘ecological conversion’ in churches, homes, and the broader Minnesota community

St. Paul, Minn. (September 9, 2015)—Today more than 350 Minnesotans, including faith, political, and community leaders, gathered for the event “Natural and Human Ecology: a panel discussion on Laudato Si’” at the University of St. Thomas. The event was developed by the Minnesota Catholic Conference in response to the continued conversation about Pope Francis’s encylical, Laudato Si’, released earlier this summer. Event participants discussed ecology and environmental concerns from a range of perspectives, highlighted the inter-connectedness in matters of social and human concern, and reviewed the U.S. bishops’ support of certain federal policies designed to protect our natural resources environmental legislation.

“Since the release of the encyclical Laudato Si’, we have received an outpouring of interest from Minnesota’s Catholics and those of other faiths who want to learn more about the document and about its major themes,” said Jason Adkins, executive director of event host Minnesota Catholic Conference. “Pope Francis is telling us that if you love God, you will love his creation and protect it. When we treat the earth simply as raw material to be exploited for power and profit, we will often do the same to human beings. The pope is calling all of us to embrace a new ethic that does justice to both persons and the environment.”

Panel discussion participants included Cecilia Calvo, Project Coordinator for the Environmental Justice Program of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), who affirmed the U.S. bishops’ support of the bipartisan Nonprofit Energy-Effeciency Act, S.600, sponsored by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and John Hoeven (R-ND). She was joined by academic experts Dr. Daniel Finn, Clemens Professor in Economics and Liberal Arts and professor of theology at St. John’s University, and Dr. Christopher Thompson, Academic Dean of The St. Paul Seminary, who specializes in Creation stewardship. Other panelists were Fred Callens, of Callens Honey Farm, a 35-acre family farm in southwest Minnesota, and Fr. Joseph Backowski, pastor of St. Mary’s parish in Breckenridge and St. Thomas parish in Kent.

Following a recorded greeting by federal EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, Jim Ennis, executive director of Catholic Rural Life, an event co-sponsor, provided opening remarks. “Laudato Si’ is a watershed moment for the Church and for the world. Pope Francis has given the Church a great gift that needs to be unpacked, and this event helps explore the significance of this letter,” Ennis said.

University of St. Thomas Center for Catholic Studies director Dr. Michael Naughton is hopeful that the defining ideas emerging from the encyclical are shaping the current and future conversation on the ecology in the U.S. and abroad. “Pope Francis wants to reconnect that the nature ‘out there’ is inextricably connected to the human nature in each of us. He is drawing from Catholic teaching and emphasizing that what happens in the family, as well as in education, business, and other human institutions, has direct implications to what is happening in our natural environment,” said Naughton. “The integration of human and natural ecology, what Francis calls ‘integral ecology,’ is a defining idea that I hope will shape conversations about the environment on the global and national stage in the coming years.”

Rounding out the event participants was nationally-recognized meteorologist and entrepreneur Paul Douglas, who appeared in a pre-taped interview talking about the importance of raising awareness about climate change and conservation, and Bishop Paul Sirba, Bishop of Duluth, who provided closing remarks.

Catholic Rural Life, a membership-based organization serving rural Catholics, their communities, and parishes, and the University of St. Thomas Center for Catholic Studies, were event co-sponsors.

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Minnesota Catholic Conference (MCC) coordinates the Catholic Church’s non-partisan lobbying and public policy activities on behalf of the bishops of Minnesota. It supports the ministry of the Minnesota Catholic bishops by: working with political and community leaders to shape legislation that serves the common good; educating Catholics and the public about the ethical and moral framework that should be applied to public policy choices; and, mobilizing the Catholic community to make its voice heard in the public arena. On the grassroots level, MCC’s Catholic Advocacy Network provides an opportunity for Minnesota Catholics to carry out their responsibility to participate in political life.

Catholic Rural Life (CRL) is a member-based, national organization that applies Catholic social teaching to the issues facing rural America and works to strengthen the Church in the countryside. Founded in 1923, CRL is based in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The University of St. Thomas Center for Catholic Studies is an academic community dedicated to the ongoing renewal of Catholic higher education. Shaped by the Catholic principles of the unity of knowledge and the complementarity of faith and reason, the Center pursues its mission through interdisciplinary teaching and research, service to the community, and cultivation of spiritual life.