The message and the voice of Laudato Si’ still continue to be a consoling message of peace for everyone, from the margins to the leaderships. Caring for our common home remains a relevant and urgent message as the world locked down from the impact of the global pandemic that laid bare more starkly the social and ecological crisis.
As people lived through the virus crisis in various forms of curfews and lockdowns, far away from homes or inaccessible to their loved ones, the human voice of compassion and concern is deeply appreciated, and people are sustained in the conversations of hope at a time of great suffering.
Ecojesuit shares this brief video, Connecting Voices, Connecting Laudato Si’: Action 2021, of the different voices that expressed reflections on Laudato Si’ celebrating the simplicity of life, of nature, and the deep importance of community. Ways forward and opportunities to establish a better normal are encouraging meaningful action for the common good, for the common home.
These reflections and comments come from various webinars during Laudato Si’ Week and show the unity in diversity that calls us to action over the coming year. Listening to people, four steps emerged in the effort to connect. First is learning from the Covid-19 experience, then second is recognizing we can act if we act together. Third is that conversion makes the difference and gives the perseverance, and finally, if we all act, the hope and the change take place.
Community is at the heart of renewal and regeneration. As individuals, we cannot survive alone. As a society, we cannot survive without the nourishment and the compassion of family life and community.
The dialogue of Laudato Si’ includes all of us and our lives, especially those who are in the margins of society, with no social power and locked in unjust social and economic structures, often excluded and neglected by broader society – migrants, indigenous communities, small farmers and fisherfolk, factory workers, retired people, informal settlers, displaced persons, refugees, among others.
Laudato Si’ Week 2020 continues with the announcement of a Laudato Si’ Special Anniversary Year from 24 May 2020 to 24 May 2021 with several initiatives that call for a peoples’ movement from below.
As we build back a new normal, Laudato Si’ reminds us that everything is connected and that an integral approach is what is needed. “Everything is closely interrelated, and today’s problems call for a vision capable of taking into account every aspect of the global crisis.” (LS 137)
Information on the Laudato Si’ Special Anniversary Year can be accessed at the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.
