The "Laudato Si' and the U.S. Church" conference will open 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 in eight areas of the U.S. Catholic Church working to more faithfully incorporate Laudato Si’:
- Advocacy
- Colleges/Universities
- Communications/Media
- Creation Care Teams (especially at parishes and dioceses)
- Environmental Justice
- Homiletics
- Parochial School Education
- Youth & Young Adults
Each ministry leadership team will share the strategies, plans, and resources being developed with members of their working group. Presentations will be followed by discussion with conference participants.
The conference will conclude July 15 with a closing 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 full conference schedule can be found here.
The conference is free, but registration is required, and a freewill donation is encouraged to offset costs that include Spanish language interpretation.