Laudato Si’ Committee: Working Together to Protect the Earth
In November 2018, the Conventual Franciscan Friars of the Province of Our Lady of Consolation launched the Franciscan Earth Care Initiative, celebrating the Franciscan tradition of honoring nature, the environment, and our planet. Much has happened within our Province since that time! Holy Cross Retreat Center responded to this initiative by forming the Laudato Si’ Committee, and ecumenical group that promotes environmental stewardship and sustainability into our everyday lives in southern New Mexico.
Holy Cross Retreat Center, along with the Province, through the Franciscan Earth Care Initiative, has committed to the following activities and more:
- Solar installations at HCRC.
- Building renovations using recycled and sustainable materials and resources.
- Educating retreatants and members of our local community about caring for the environment and appreciating the beauty of our desert climate and natural mountain range.
- Providing educational programs and speakers incorporating nature and spirituality to bring greater awareness of the importance of respecting and protecting the environment.
- Ways in which the friars and the community can work together to protect the earth.
Season of Creation | September 1 – October 4
“It is not yet too late” — Pope Leo XIV
The Season of Creation invites us to slow down, listen, and remember the gift we have been given in our common home.
For Franciscans, caring for creation is deeply connected to the spirit of St. Francis, who saw creation as brother and sister. It is a call to live with gratitude, reverence, and responsibility for the world around us.
Through the Franciscan Earth Care Initiative, the Province of Our Lady of Consolation continues this mission by encouraging a deeper respect for nature and our shared home.
May this season renew in us a greater appreciation for creation and a desire to care for it each day. 
Learn more about the Franciscan Earth Care Initiative: Franciscan Earth Care Initiative https://www.franciscansusa.org/franciscan-earth-care…/
“Praised be you, my Lord, with all your creatures, especially Sir Brother Sun… Praised be you, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars… Praised be you, my Lord, through Brother Wind… Praised be you, my Lord, through Sister Water… Praised be you, my Lord, through Brother Fire… Praised be you, my Lord, through our Sister Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us.”
El Papa Francisco publicó una encíclica llamada ¡Laudato, Si!, on May 24, 2015. The encyclical has the subtitle “On Care for our Common Home”. In it, the pope critiques consumerism and irresponsible development, laments environmental degradation and global warming, and calls all people of the world to take “swift and unified global action.”
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