November 5, 2015

Ashley Ralston is a parishioner of Our Lady Queen of Peace, Adur Valley. He was part of a group looking at our new encyclical study guide. Here he shares his insight into being a Catholic activist and the importance of applying the lens of Scritpure to campaigning.

Many years ago, I went to a talk given by the late Gerard Hughes SJ (author of God of Surprises) about putting theology into practice, including the pitfalls that we encounter. For me, as an activist, it proved to be useful, because grounding your issue in sound theology, means the activism itself becomes like a prayer to the supreme Creator. That is doing theology.

So it is with Catholic Social Teaching, from Rerum Novarum to the present time, the theological input underpinning the ‘the sign of the times’ enables us to read our world through the lens of Scripture. Laudato Si’ continues this in a very accessible way.

Download the Laudato Si’ study guide

Continue reading “Prayer as activism: My response to Laudato Si’”

October 27, 2015

Yesterday the presidents of all the Continental Associations of Bishops’ Conferences released a statement calling on world leaders to limit global temperature increase and protect vulnerable communities from climate change. We hear firsthand from the Prime Minister of Pacific Island Tuvalu – one of the places most impacted by climate change – on how extreme weather is affecting his community and what must be agreed at the Paris climate talks in December.

If there is one country that is right on the front line of climate change, it is Tuvalu. Our Pacific Island nation has only 26 square kilometres of dry land, none of it more than four metres above sea level. Most of the 12,000 population live less than two metres above sea level.

When Cyclone Pam – a maximum category 5 storm – hit us in March this year, we had waves up to five metres high. Crops were ruined, livestock swept away and an enormous amount of infrastructure, including a hospital, was destroyed. Nearly half of our people suffered losses, and we are only beginning to recover. We continue to seek support from the international community to rebuild.

It is clear. The science tells us that these severe events are caused by human interference with the climate. As Pope Francis wrote in his recent encyclical, “Climate change is a global problem, with grave implications.” We, in low-lying island states such as Tuvalu, are the first to feel the effects, and have the most to gain or lose from the new international climate change agreement to be concluded in Paris at the end of the year.

Take action: Email David Cameron about climate change

Continue reading “Prime Minister of Tuvalu: We’re on the front line of climate change”