The sanctity of our environment

In a letter to the editor of the Times Union last Saturday, Sister Doreen Glynn, CSJ urged the voters and the governor of New York State to take action on the important issue of climate change.

 

Gov. Andrew Cuomo can deny authorization for new gas plants and gas infrastructure, such as Danskammer power plant in Newburgh, and to adopt the Advanced Clean Truck rule to mandate targets for electrifying truck fleets.

 

Voters can support a proposed state constitutional amendment stating that “each person shall have the right to clean air and water, and a healthful environment.”

 

Sister Doreen’s entire letter is here.

Laudato Si' Conference

The response of American Catholics to the Pope’s encyclical on the environment “has not been commensurate with the urgency and gravity of the climate crisis” according to the Catholic Climate Covenant, which has a leading role coordinating U.S. Catholic enactment of the Vatican “Laudato Si’ Action Platform.”

This issue will be addressed next month at Creighton University’s biennial conference “to convene, equip, and inspire Catholics who can more deeply integrate Laudato Si’ and its climate change teaching into the U.S. Church.”

According to a news release about the virtual event:

The 2021 conference will open on July 13 with keynote addresses by His Eminence Blase Cardinal Cupich, Archbishop of Chicago, and Maureen Day, PhD, Assistant Professor of Religion and Society at the Franciscan School of Theology. Together, they will assess why the U.S. Catholic response to Laudato Si’ has not been commensurate with the urgency and gravity of the climate crisis.

On July 14-15, the conference will feature interactive breakout sessions facilitated by teams of ministry leaders working to more faithfully incorporate Laudato Si’ into eight areas of the U.S. Catholic Church: 

• Advocacy 

• Colleges/Universities 

• Communications/Media 

• Creation Care Teams (especially at parishes and dioceses) 

• Environmental Justice 

• Homiletics 

• Parochial School Education 

• Youth & Young Adults 

On July 15, the conference will conclude with an address by Sister Ilia Delio, OSF, PhD, Josephine C. Connelly Endowed Chair in Theology at Villanova University. Sister Delio will consider Catholic spiritual and theological insights that can enliven a more faithful commitment to care for our common home.

The 2021 virtual gathering will be free and open to the public but registration is required. At the time of registration, attendees are encouraged to make a freewill donation to help offset conference costs that include Spanish language translations.

World Refugee Day

Sister Doreen Glynn, CSJ recently volunteered at Annunciation House in El Paso. She will share some reflections on her time there on Monday, June 21, during an interfaith Zoom event marking World Refugee Day.

The hour-long program begins at 7 p.m. Among others participating are representatives of the Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, and Protestant faiths. [The final list is still in formation.] Speakers will share selections from their sacred texts, prayers, and/or stories of what people of their faith are doing to help refugees.

No pre-registration is required. Here is the link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81648352852

Sponsors include the diocesan Commission for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, and Catholic Charities Commission on Peace and Justice.

For more information, contact Deacon Walter Ayres at 518-469-4339.

 

International Religious Freedom Summit

More than 40 organizations committed to upholding religious freedom have joined as convening partners for an International Religious Freedom Summit in Washington on July 13-15.

A statement from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) noted that Bishop David J. Malloy of Rockford, chairman of the USCCB Committee on International Justice and Peace welcomed the announcement.

The USCCB’s statement also noted that Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, archbishop of New York and chairman of the USCCB’s Committee for Religious Liberty, will be one of the keynote speakers

“According to a Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, 83 percent of the world’s approximately 7 billion people now live in countries with high government or social hostilities involving religion. Every culture, nation, religious or political system must strive to better protect religious freedom, a vital human right,” said Bishop Malloy

“It is for that reason that I welcome the announcement of an International Religious Freedom (IRF) Summit to be held in our nation’s capital this July. This summit is intended to raise awareness about international religious freedom within the United States and to bring together a broad coalition that will work together for the cause of religious freedom around the world.”

More information is available here.

Poust named executive director of NYS Catholic Conference

Dennis Poust, a 20-year veteran of the New York State Catholic Conference, has been named Executive Director of the Conference, which represents the Bishops of New York State in public policy matters.

He had been serving in an interim capacity since January, following the resignation late last year of Richard E. Barnes, who resigned to take a position with the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation.

From the news release:

Poust, who received a bachelor’s degree in politics from New York University in 1988, came to the Conference as Director of Communications in 2001 after having lived and worked in Austin, Texas, the previous six years. Born and raised in the Bronx, Poust began his career as a reporter and editor at Catholic New York, newspaper of the Archdiocese of New York, and also contributed regularly to several national Catholic publications.

“I am humbled by this appointment, and I’m so grateful to Cardinal Dolan and the Bishops for their confidence in me,” Poust said. “I’m also tremendously grateful to our incredibly talented and dedicated Conference staff. They have been instrumental in the smoothness of this transition and our successes. I have been very fortunate for nearly two decades to serve under my friend Rick Barnes, whose example I hope to emulate and whose counsel I will continue to value.” 

Poust is married to Mary DeTurris Poust, a Catholic spiritual writer and the Director of Communications for the Diocese of Albany. They live in Delmar, N.Y., and have three children, Noah, Olivia and Chiara.

The appointment was made by Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop of New York and President of the New York State Catholic Conference, with the consent of the other seven diocesan Bishops of the state.

“My Brother Bishops and I are grateful that Dennis has accepted the position of Executive Director on a permanent basis,” Cardinal Dolan said. “He has brought welcome continuity as the staff navigated the 2021 Legislative Session in Albany. At the same time, we Bishops have been impressed with his vision for the Conference going forward, with a focus on further engaging the Catholic people of our state toward faithful citizenship.”

Webinar discusses pastoral letter about racism

This Saturday, June 5, the Office for Catholic Social Ministry in the Diocese of Hartford will conclude its year-long webinar series on the U.S. Bishops’ Pastoral Letter against racism with a free two-hour virtual conference from 10 a.m. to noon.

The conference will provide “a broadened understanding of racism as a life issue and our role and responsibility in developing and nurturing anti-racist attitudes to address the sin of racism.”

 

The keynote address by New Orleans Auxiliary Bishop Fernand Cheri is titled “Addressing Racism in Contemporary Culture.” There will also be prayer and workshop options. 

 

One workshop discusses the question, “If we Catholics are pro-life than why don’t we turn out for Black Lives Matter the way we do for the March for Life?”

In this workshop, Rev. Ryan Lerner, Chaplain for Saint Thomas More Catholic Chapel & Center at Yale University, reflects on ministry and heeding the call to conversion during the summer of racial reckoning, and the turn from 2020 into 2021.

The other workshop addressed the question, “Biased? Who me?”

 

It is led by Nicole Miller, who currently serves as the Assistant Dean of Student Affairs at Goodwin University where she moderates various panels, conversations, and trainings on anti-racist and anti-bias teaching practices. She also is a diversity trainer for the Anti-Defamation League.  

 

For more schedule, more information, or to register, click here.

 

Video recordings of the previous webinars are available here.

The Pope's prayer intention for June

 “Let us pray for young people who are preparing for marriage with the support of a Christian community: may they grow in love, with generosity, faithfulness and patience.”

- Pope Francis