Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si’ – Care for Our Common Home” is a call for all Catholics to respect the Earth and to praise and honour God through our engagement with creation. Many would argue that alongside world peace the greatest issue facing the world today (all peoples, regardless of religious affiliation) is ecology and the environment, which encompasses; weather and the effects of this on famine and loss of shelter, extinction of species, degradation of air quality, pollution, sustainable energy and so much more.

This topic is such a huge, confusing and confronting area for many people. Our Christian faith implores us to “Love one another as I have Loved You” (John 13:34) and the Our Father describes “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven”. These integral teachings of our Catholic faith matter, they ask us to love the earth and all in it, as created by God, as we are loved by God. We are asked to remember that God has willed us to meditate on and care for our common home. As Christians we know that we should be people of contemplation and people of action, but how do we do this? Who do we turn to for advice? Are there others in the community that we can work with to effect change? As always, when you need information, you should turn to a library!

The Diocesan Resource Centre Library is excited to be able to offer a Human Library experience entitled “In Preparation for Season of Creation 2024”. Our Human Books will be Sr Carmel Moore rsj, who in the past has presented weekend and weeklong retreats on the theme of “Contemplation and Laudato Si’” and Ms Maryanne Murray, a Diocesan teacher, who has worked with Sr Carmel in this field. Once both books have presented their chapters, the readers are encouraged to ask questions of the books, those questions you cannot ask of a printed book. With the knowledge shared and the wisdom and understanding that comes from active listening, we, the readers, will have a chance to prepare ourselves to participate fully in the various activities of the 2024 Season of Creation, under the theme “To Hope and Act with Creation”.

We invite you to register for this event

Date: Friday 30 August 2024

Time: 10.15am

Place: Diocesan Resource Centre Library – 12 Tudor Street, Newcastle West

Registration: https://forms.office.com/r/Q3Wuzg0L2P

or email domnlibrary@mn.cathlic.org.au

For more information please contact Diocesan Librarian Mary O’Connor on 02 4923 0682 or mary.oconnor@mn.catholic.org.au

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