St Benedict’s Garforth parishioner and member of the Diocesan Justice and Peace Commission’s Climate Action Group, Trish Sandbach, has sent information about a meeting across several parishes which took place earlier this year. We look forward to hearing what those parishes did during Lent – and hopefully, some of the ideas put forward will inspire other parishes to hold similar events to discuss how best we can Care for Creation and to start our ‘LiveSimply’ journeys.

About 25 Parishioners from four Parishes (Our Lady of Kirkstall, St John Fisher & St Thomas More, St John Vianney, and St Benedict’s) gathered at St Benedict’s, Garforth. All the parishes either have the LiveSimply Award, some for many years, or have started on the journey towards it. The purpose was to meet and share ideas for action, not merely in terms of achieving or keeping the award, but because one of the demands of our Christian lives is to care for God’s Creation, the Earth, our common home.  Pope Francis has spelt out so clearly that doing this is not an optional extra but a constituent part of being a Catholic Christian – and we recall that Vatican II made a similar declaration with respect to working for justice.

The day began with a brief resume from each of the parishes, giving us all some ideas about what had already been achieved and what the hopes for the future are.  A range of very practical activities emerged such as putting solar panels on churches and houses, insulating churches, LED lights and timers for energy and water usage.  Most of the parishes were involving children in growing vegetables or flowers that attract pollinators or in making insect homes, bird boxes or even a hedgehog hotel.  CAFOD campaigns, appeals and Fast Days are also well supported, as is the SVP with food and other essentials.  Supporting refugees and asylum seekers also formed a common theme across the parishes. For some, the passage of time and since the restrictions of the Covid pandemic meant that a need for renewal was evident in order actively to re-engage with parishioners.

Laudato Si’ makes it very clear that we all need to undergo an ecological conversion. If our patterns of consumption continue as they are and there is no change in our lifestyles and mindset, the planet’s poor will grow poorer, eco-systems will be further disrupted, weather extremes will worsen and much hardship will ensue.  Lent offers an opportunity, both spiritually and in practical terms, to focus on a change of heart, a conversion that will open our minds and hearts to the ‘cry of the poor and the cry of creation’.

In mixed parish groups, participants then addressed three questions.

• What are you planning to do for this Lent?
• How do we raise awareness about justice issues with regard to the elections?
• How do you approach tackling climate justice and global and local Poverty?

Discussion was lively and generated a wide variety of ideas.  However a few key themes emerged.  The first was the need for formation and reflection so that theology, spirituality and liturgy become foundational to our actions. In living simply, sustainably and in solidarity with the poor, in fighting for the planet and against poverty, we should not simply be activists but followers of Christ. A few sessions on Catholic Social Teaching might be one of the activities offered to parishioners during the periods of penitence and reflection in Lent and Advent; it is after all one of the foundation stones of our work for justice.

Secondly, we must be courageous in speaking truth to power.  We should try to build a relationship with our MP so that we can meet and respectfully challenge current policy and practice in order to repair the brokenness of our planetary system. Most CO2 is emitted and most environmental damage inflicted not by us directly, but on our behalf and largely outside of our individual control.  As churches and other faith organisations, we need to find ways to respond to this.

If we care about creation, then we need to believe as Pope Francis says that human beings can change. He obviously believes in the power of the Holy Spirit, and so should we!  We recognise that the global South suffers far more from the effects of climate change than we do, but they are least responsible for it. Therein lies a massive injustice that we have to address. At the same time in the UK poverty is growing as the cost of living is rising. People who just about managed before can no longer do so and are forced to use food banks and often cannot avoid going into debt.  Organisations such as Citizens and Church Action Against Poverty are working to raise awareness and seek structural change as well as addressing urgent needs.

The meeting offered encouragement and people felt energised by this coming together.  We think it will not be a one-off event and we will try to meet again, maybe three times a year and in different parishes, to walk in solidarity and support each other on the journey.

Bishop Marcus and all the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales recommend schools and parishes take part in CAFOD’s LiveSimply journeys towards an environmentally sustainable future The Diocesan Property Office already works closely with parish priests to provide the most sustainable solutions in the maintenance of our buildings, and similar environmental policy decisions are also made in our Catholic Academy Trusts – but it’s not all about the ‘big stuff’; if YOUR parish or deanery wants information, ideas or support from the Diocese of Leeds about ways we can ALL contribute to living out our Christian duty to heed the Cry of the Earth and of the Poor – or if you already have practical ideas and initiatives that are working in YOUR parish or school, then please contact jandp@dioceseofleeds.org.uk or environment@dioceseofleeds.org.uk