Jubilee for the Earth

Learn more about https://columbanjpe.org/jubileepodcast In his encyclical letter on the environment, called Laudato Si’, Pope Francis writes: “ It is remarkable how weak international political responses have been [to addressing our ecological crises]. … There are too many special interests, and economic interests easily end up trumping the common good and manipulating information so that their own plans will not be affected” (LS #54).Both the climate crisis and the biodiversity crisis are accelerating rapidly, with scientists warning us that there’s not much time left to act before the worst consequences are unavoidable. In the face of seemingly indifferent or callous political leadership, it’s tempting for us to give up hope that meaningful solutions to our ecological crisis can be implemented. How can we move past inaction? How can we create a “healthy politics” capable of prioritizing the common good? The solution is for each one of us to get more involved in politics. It’s important to remember that politics is not about politicians and political parties. What it’s about is every member of a community building the kind of communities they want to live in. Quoting the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, Pope Francis reminds us that “‘in order to make society more human, more worthy of the human person, love in social life – political, economic and cultural – must be given renewed value, becoming the constant and highest norm for all activity.’ … When we feel that God is calling us to intervene with others in these social dynamics, we should realize that this too is part of our spirituality, which is an exercise of charity and, as such, matures and sanctifies us” (LS #231).It’s our responsibility, as much as it’s our right, to use our moral voices to advocate alongside the earth and its more marginalized children for a more just, sustainable world. To solve the ecological crisis, we need every person to be a part of the solution, starting with their local community and moving all the way up to the highest levels of society and government. Music from https://purple-planet.com

Learn more about https://columbanjpe.org/jubileepodcast In his encyclical letter on the environment, called Laudato Si’, Pope Francis writes: “the notion of the common good also extends to future generations. The global economic crises have made painfully obvious the detrimental effects of disregarding our common destiny, which cannot exclude those who come after us. We can no longer speak of sustainable development apart from intergenerational solidarity” (LS #159). Across the world, young people are raising their voices to make it clear that caring for our common home is a major concern for them. Given scientific reports and planetary trends, they're being frank about their anxieties for the future: what will the world look like in the coming decades? Will it be hospitable enough for them to build thriving lives? Is it responsible for them to bring children into this world? Research into the growing rates of “ecological grief” make it clear that the destruction of the web of life is having a profound impact on young people’s mental health and overall happiness.Older generations have a responsibility to steward the earth so that it can be passed down to those that come after them. They also have a responsibility to listen to the perspective and the experience of young people, keeping in mind St. Benedict’s maxim that “it is often to a young person that the Lord reveals what is best.” (Rule of St. Benedict III). If we want to solve the world’s ecological crisis, we have to listen to young people. Decisions must be made with their input, because it will be their generations who will be responsible for facing the worst consequences of this crisis. Music from https://purple-planet.com

Learn more about https://columbanjpe.org/jubileepodcast En su carta encíclica sobre el medio ambiente, Laudato Si’, el Papa Francisco nos enseña que “la tierra es esencialmente una herencia común, cuyos frutos deben beneficiar a todos. … Por consiguiente, todo planteo ecológico debe incorporar una perspectiva social que tenga en cuenta los derechos fundamentales de los más postergados” (LS #93).La sobreexplotación de la biodiversidad del planeta trastorna los estilos de vida de las comunidades pobres y,muchas veces, las cambia de tal manera en la que comunidades enteras son obligadas a migrar porque carecen de los recursos naturales que necesitan para subsistir. Los impactos de esta extracción irresponsable de recursos naturales también hacen un daño permanente e irreparable a los ecosistemas en nuestros planeta.Si bien cada uno de nosotros puede tomar lo que necesita de la naturaleza para sobrevivir, cada uno de nosotros también tiene el deber de hacerlo de manera responsable y sostenible (cf. LS #67). Como personas de fe viviendo en una era de crisis ecológica, se nos invita a examinar cómo nuestros estilos de vida perpetúan estas condiciones de extracción injusta de los recursos naturales y a encontrar formas alternativas de vivir de manera más sostenible. Hay tantas formas en la que podemos empezar a cambiar nuestros estilos de vida y por consiguiente a nuestras sociedades –solo necesitamos un poco de compasión e imaginación. Music from https://purple-planet.com

Learn more about https://columbanjpe.org/jubileepodcast In an article for the Australian Academy of Sciences, Professor Ary Hoffman writes: “even small changes in average temperatures can have a significant effect upon ecosystems. … The interconnected nature of ecosystems means that the loss of species [because of climate change] can have knock-on effects upon a range of ecosystem functions.”Every day, scientists are learning more and more about how climate change accelerates biodiversity loss, and about how biodiversity loss worsens climate change. Their work has made it clear that we need to solve both crises together. For example, the United Nations observes that conserving or restoring habitats can remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, while adopting climate-smart ways of farming can significantly reduce greenhouse gas pollution. This shows us how caring for the planet’s biodiversity is a great way to care for the planet’s climate. Recognizing that we have to address both crises together also allows us to get at an even deeper truth: that climate change and biodiversity loss are not separate problems, but actually two consequences of one deeper problem. The problem is our over-extractive economy that prioritizes growth-at-any-cost over the common good of all creatures. Even though the climate and biodiversity crises are existential threats to a healthy planet, we must also address their root cause. Because if we don’t, then even if we do manage to solve our planet’s twin crises, our over-extractive economy will simply keep creating new ones into the future. Music from https://purple-planet.com

Learn more about https://columbanjpe.org/jubileepodcast According to the World Wildlife Fund, “although they comprise less than 5% of the world population, Indigenous peoples protect 80% of the Earth’s biodiversity in the forests, deserts, grasslands, and marine environments in which they have lived for centuries." But despite this, as the Guardian reported in 2020, “many Indigenous communities – especially those in isolated regions – [also] continue to face threats like disease outbreaks, poverty, environmental injustices and human rights violations. Some rural populations may even be facing extinction.”This dynamic is true of the Subanen people, an Indigenous community who live on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines. The Columban Fathers and the Columban Sisters have lived in solidarity with many of the indigenous communities of the Philippines for several decades now. And they’ve been living alongside the Subanen community since 1983. Our relationship with them has taught us that the unjust exploitation of the natural world and of indigenous communities has historically, and to this very day, gone hand-in-hand. If the global community wants to better care for creation, we have to first listen to the wisdom of Indigenous traditions, and center their experience and expertise in the conversation about solutions. In the words of Columban Fr. Vinnie Busch, “the Subanens regard their habitat as a sacred community to be cherished, not as a collection of resources to be exploited. They celebrate the sacred dimension of their habitat in their rituals, stories, music, and dance. [They] and other indigenous peoples can guide our faith communities to live in an enhancing way within the Earth community.”Music from https://purple-planet.com

Learn more about https://columbanjpe.org/jubileepodcast In his encyclical letter on the environment, called Laudato Si’, Pope Francis writes: “it is true that we Christians have at times incorrectly interpreted the Scriptures, [but] nowadays we must forcefully reject the notion that our being created in God’s image, and given dominion over the earth, justifies absolute domination over other creatures” (LS #67). Instead, Pope Francis urges us to build a “relationship of mutual responsibility between human beings and nature” (ibid). The first step toward building this new relationship is to reexamine the assumptions and values that we’ve taken for granted. This requires that we ask ourselves some fundamental questions. Does nature have intrinsic value? Does God love plants, animals, and ecosystems as much as God loves humans? Does the promise of new life extend to all God’s creatures? Our age of ecological crisis is challenging us to act differently: to live more sustainably and to build social systems that prioritize the common good. But this crisis is also challenging us to think differently. We have an opportunity to expand our spiritual and moral imaginations, and to see the world with fresh eyes: eyes that see how everything that God creates is holy. Music from https://purple-planet.com

For this bonus episode of “Jubilee for the Earth,” we want to share with you select passages from The Death of Life: The Horror of Extinction by Columban priest and eco-theologian Fr. Sean McDonagh. Fr. McDonagh’s work on biodiversity has had a wide reach – most notably, being used to inform the biodiversity sections of Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si’. Though it was written in 2004, much of Fr. Sean’s message is truer today than when it was first written. The Death of Life: The Horror of Extinction is a passionate plea to take action before it is too late - to save the many thousands of species currently under threat of extinction, who give glory to God by their very existence.

Our challenge today as people of faith is to reimagine the Biblical vision of Jubilee for the earth and all people for the 21st century. In our age of ecological crisis - where rampant consumerism and indifference to the holiness of Earth’s biodiversity is the default - how can each of us help build a movement to care for our common home and begin a new chapter in Earth’s history?

Because of the damage we are inflicting upon the Earth, more and more land is becoming uninhabitable. In 2017 alone, 68.5 million people were forcibly displaced by conflict, poverty, or environmental factors, more than at any point in human history. Climate change and biodiversity loss create environmental conditions that strain local economies and exacerbate conflicts for scarce resources. In these situations, it is always those who are living in poverty or are forced to the margins of society that suffer the most. The Earth’s resources - which have been entrusted to us - are for the life of the whole world. They do not belong to a wealthy minority, or even a human minority.

Columbans have come to believe that violence done to the Earth itself is a part of war, whether through habitat destruction, the extraction of resources for weapons, or the murder of environmental defenders. We see all too frequently how many international and national laws that are designed to protect fragile ecosystems and human rights are disregarded when they get in the way of military growth and profit-making. As people of faith, we have a responsibility to practice nonviolence. We can do this by choosing to live simply and sustainably, by preventing conflicts before they become violent, and by advocating against the rapid expansion of militarism around the world.We need this not only to save human life, but to save all life on Earth.

The call to wonder at the beauty of creation, and in doing so give praise to God, is at the heart of most of the world’s religions and spiritualities. In his encyclical letter on the environment, called Laudato Si’, Pope Francis acknowledges that “the majority of people living on our planet profess to be believers. This [then] should spur religions to dialogue among themselves for the sake of protecting nature, defending the poor, and building networks of respect and fraternity (LS 201).” We believe that the combined spiritual resources of the world’s faiths is a crucial component in guiding humanity away from its earth-killing lifestyle and towards a more holistic and sustainable kind of living. All believers have an inherent spiritual and religious responsibility to help care for our common home and to do so together.

In 2019, the United Nations published their “Global Resource Outlook,” which concluded that “90% of biodiversity loss is caused by resource extraction and processing.” This includes human activities like habitat destruction for agriculture and mining and the over-consumption of natural resources like non-renewable energy and fishing stock.“We need to grow in the conviction” Pope Francis says, “that a decrease in the pace of production and consumption can at times give rise to another form of progress and development” (LS 191). In the second episode of “Jubilee for the Earth,” two members of the Columban team for justice, peace, and ecology discuss the urgent need to reimagine how our economy operates and to redefine what human flourishing looks like.

Our patron St. Columban famously said, “if you want to know the Creator, look at creation.” As Catholics, Columbans believe that creation - animals, plants, ecosystems, and all natural things - is a sacred gift from God and that God is revealed to us through each member of creation. But has this fundamental teaching of our faith always informed our spirituality? And how should it now, especially in this time of ecological crisis?Columban priest Fr. Dan Troy talks with geologist and botanist Dr. John Feehan about the urgency of reconnecting our appreciation of nature with our everyday faith.

“Jubilee for the Earth” is a podcast mini-series about biodiversity and our sacred story launching August 31.It is produced by the Missionary Society of St. Columban. We are a Society of priests and lay people who live and share the good news of the Gospel by working with those who are poor and exploited, including the earth.Over the course of six episodes, we’ll explore the beauty of biodiversity and the threats it faces. We’ll travel around the world to hear from Columbans who are working to renew the face of the Earth. Grounded in Catholic Social Teaching, we hope that this podcast will help us all to see how caring for our common home is fundamental to our lives as people of faith and as global citizens.Learn more at www.columbancenter.org/biodiversity