By Br. Jacek Orzechowski, OFM
It was early spring of 2019, in Yuma, Arizona, on the U.S. and Mexico border. The oppressive heat forced me to slow down. A young Indigenous couple, Marcos and Andrea, and their child tried to keep up with me.
I walked with them to a Greyhound bus from a temporary shelter set up by the Catholic Charities where I volunteered. Marcos looked at me and said in Spanish, “We used to grow corn and beans and live off the earth. But then, the droughts became so frequent and unbearable. The earth was no longer able to feed us. We often didn’t have enough water for ourselves to drink…. So, to survive, we had to head up north.”
I think of Marco, Andrea and their daughter when I hear people speaking blithely about the existential threat climate change presents. Their story reminds me that there are countless stories of real people, their pain and dashed dreams behind scientific research and alarming facts.
The life-support system of our planet is in peril
Unless we act decisively, by 2050, more than 1 billion people could be displaced from their homes because of human-induced climate change. As humanity moves closer to the collapse of the life-support system of our planet, the fossil fuels industry continues to reap enormous financial profits, ramp up its production and fund disinformation campaigns.
But we cannot afford despair. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reminds us, "It is We the People versus the polluters and the profiteers. Together, we can win.”
Hope is on the horizon. We are on the cusp of seizing unprecedented opportunities. Clean, renewable energy systems are becoming more affordable and out-competing dirty fossil fuels. A substantial generational shift is taking place in young people's sensibilities regarding concerns about the environment and equity. And a profound religious “green” reawakening begins to sweep across many churches, mosques, synagogues, and temples.
Together, we begin to re-imagine how to live differently on earth in ways that honor the web of life, each other and future generations.
Learn how to make a difference at Siena's symposium
What an amazing time to be alive! What a great privilege it is for all Franciscan-hearted people to play an active role in this epic struggle. None of us can remain on the sidelines. Your contributions and mine are needed and can make a difference.
From Oct. 10 to 11, 2024, Siena College will host the Earth’s Cry, Humanity’s Call symposium. The three of us who work at Laudato Si’ Center for Integral Ecology at Siena College — Br. Michael Perry, OFM, Br. Jimmy Kernan, and I — are organizing this two-day event with the heartening support of the local fraternity and in close collaboration with Siena faculty, student groups and its administration.
The Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a co-sponsor of the symposium. As we prepare to mark the 800th anniversary of the Canticle of the Creatures and the 10th anniversary of the Laudato Si’ encyclical, the event at Siena College is shaping up to be a clarion call to all Franciscan families to do what is ours to do in helping to rebuild, renew and re-sanctify the world.
The symposium includes a free livestream option. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will be the keynote speaker. Our diverse group of presenters includes other prominent figures, professors, students and local community leaders. Please see the schedule for more detailed information and visit Siena's website to register for the event
Help promote the symposium
Siena College, St. Bonaventure University and other Franciscan schools are making strides in responding to the challenge of Laudato Si’. Some friars in initial formation helped Puerto Rico rebuild after the devastating climate change-supercharged Hurricane Maria. Others accompanied climate refugees on the border or worked in hydroponic gardens to eliminate food deserts in the impoverished areas of some inner cities.
Young people from various schools will attend the symposium at Siena. Please extend an invitation to the youth minister, director of religious education, or young adult group at your parish. Promote the symposium with these resources:
— a short YouTube video: Shoot For Change: Join our Team as we safeguard our Common Home.
And one day, when you are ushered into the fullness of God’s Kingdom in the company of Jesus Christ, Mary, Sts. Francis and Clare of Assisi, you may be greeted by a boisterous crowd of people you never met in person, who otherwise, without your small but crucially important response to the cry of the poor and the cry of the earth, would have become climate refugees. What a great banquet celebrating God’s liberating, saving action and you being a stakeholder in it!