Ten years ago, Pope Francis gave us the gift of Laudato Si, on Care for our Common Home. He encouraged all people to stand up to protect our environment and to be good stewards of the Earth and its resources. His words weren’t just abstract Earth Day pledges. Pope Francis saw firsthand the effects of climate change and natural disasters on the most vulnerable around the world. By caring for God’s creation, we can uphold the dignity of all those in need, as well as show compassion for our common home.

Pope Francis knew that the Earth connect us all. Developing countries are incredibly impacted by climate change. Impoverished communities do not have the resources to speak up when their water sources are polluted, or their neighborhood is impacted by negative environmental practices. We know that pollution spreads but so does love. We are called to love our neighbor by loving the environment and thinking about how our personal decisions impact our neighbors who live next door, as well as neighbors in towns very different than ours.

Some of you may know that prior to my role at CCD, I served as the Director of Youth Ministry at Holy Spirit in Duncanville. One evening, the youth group found a prayer called “A Prayer for Rain,” and they wanted to pray it. I warned them- you’re going to get what you pray for! Sure enough, the next morning I was driving south on Loop 12 and saw a storm hovering only over the ridge that is Duncanville and Cedar Hill. When I got to Holy Spirit, the campus was covered with dime sized hail. Our prayers can make an impact, and so can our service.

At Catholic Charities Dallas our Disaster Preparedness & Relief Services program assists families following a natural disaster. We work to provide long-term support following storms and small, personal disasters, such as apartment fires. We also work with electric companies and can provide limited funds to families struggling with utility bills. Families in need can apply for assistance on our website at ccdallas.org/disaster.

At CCD, we also know that food waste has a huge impact on our environment. We are grateful to work with the North Texas Food Bank, who provides food to help us serve those in need. NTFB and CCD work with grocery stores and other food providers to ensure that the community is not discarding food when our neighbors are hungry. Reducing food waste ensures that no one is hungry, and our environment is cared for as well.

Over the last few months, we have seen a significant increase in the need for food assistance. Unfortunately, we’ve also seen a decrease in volunteers. We desperately need helping hands to serve at our mobile food sites and choice pantries. To sign up for a shift please visit volunteer.ccdallas.org. Thank you to the FIAT mission group for helping out at our food sites this month!

We also encourage you to host a food drive for CCD! Food is needed all year long to stock our shelves and to feed families in our communities. We make it easy by dropping off a metal cart that can stay in your narthex or community center, and then we pick it up when it is full. If you would like to schedule a food drive, please email dbuschow@ccdallas.org

Thank you for helping us live out the Catholic Social Teaching tenent of Care for God’s Creation! Until Next time.

Learn more about CST

• Examination of Conscience in Light of CST
  • English PDF
  • Spanish PDF
  • Thank you to Bishop Lynch, Holy Family of Nazareth (Irving), and Immaculate Conception (Corsicana) for hosting presentations this month! Find out more about presentation options here: Host a talk by Devyn