By John Battle, Commission ChairOur human story has always been a story of ‘people on the move’ as is well reflected in both the history of evolution and the Biblical tradition. Initially people are thought to have emerged from the Rift Valley in Africa some 2 million years ago (though anthropologists today recognise some 15-20 […]
Climate Change
23 Mar – Check out our podcasts!
Trying to keep up with technology is not always easy (if you are over 35). Since the end of January we have been dipping our toe in the podcasting world. We currently have 4 podcasts that you can listen to on our Buzzsprout podcasting website. But don’t leave it too long before taking a look. […]
16 Mar – SPARK Social Justice sponsors places at Sustainability Conference
Live in the Leeds Diocese, concerned about our climate emergency and aged 18-30?SPARK Social Justice is sponsoring people for the full cost of attending the 2023 National Justice & Peace Network (NJPN) Conference. The conference fees are £225 and SPARK will pay directly for your ticket. Rail travel to the nearest station will also be […]
29 Jan – Laudato Si: What more can we do?
On the 17 January we held our first Zoom conversation of 2023. It was with the Rt. Rev. John Arnold, Bishop of Salford. Bishop John is the lead on Climate Change for the Bishops’ Conference and he is also a trustee of CAFOD. He was in conversation with Commission Chair, John Battle, about the importance […]
28 Nov – Climate Prayer Vigil at the Bishops’ Conference
On the 14th of November, several Catholic climate activists – held a five-hour prayer vigil outside Hinsley Hall during the Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales (CBCEW) Autumn Plenary Meeting.The meeting took place at Hinsley Hall, Leeds. The Animators held their vigil from 12noon until 5pm. The group consisted of activists from Dioceses across […]
09 Nov – One year on from COP26
By CAFOD’s Youth Delegation to COP26 in 2021 and collated by Matty MaslenLast year, CAFOD sponsored a youth delegation to travel to Glasgow to attend the UN Climate Summit COP26.A year on, as COP27 occurs in Egypt, we reflect on what has come from the past year for us personally, and for the climate movement […]
05 Sep – SS John Fisher & Thomas More gain LiveSimply Award
By Keith Pitcher (Parishioner in SS John Fisher & Thomas More, Burley in Wharfedale and a member of the J&P Climate Action Group)In June 2022 the Parish Family of SS John Fisher and Thomas More, Burley-in-Wharfedale was the delighted recipient of CAFOD’s LiveSimply award. This is given to Parish Families and schools who have worked […]
22 Jun – CAFOD’s new Campaign: ‘Fix the Food System’
By Matthew MaslenCAFOD’s new campaign ‘Fix the Food System’ begins with a simple fact: “The global food system is broken. It doesn’t work for those who work the hardest – small farmers – and it’s a major driver of the climate emergency.” The way that we produce and consume food is wasteful, exploitative and damaging. We […]
10 Mar – Laudato Si for Parishes & Homes
By Keith Pitcher, SS John Fisher & Thomas More, Burley in Wharfedale Pope Francis’ messages in Laudato Si have been clear in the need for us to protect our beautiful but fragile world. He calls on us, collectively and individually, to: consider the way we look at creation pray about this identify and stop practices […]
01 Mar – Current Commission Climate Work
By Trish Sandbach, Commission Vice-ChairClimate change has been a Commission priority area even before the publication of Laudato Si (LSI) in 2015. Projects in this arena have been workshops about Laudato Si as well as workshops and active support for CAFOD’s Live Simply award scheme. In 2020 several people in the diocese ‘graduated’ as Laudato […]
28 Jan – War & Climate Change
This was the title of our January webinar led by Tim Devereux, Chair of the Movement for the Abolition of War. Tim spoke for about half an hour and the rest of the time was used in questions. After a brief scene setting about Climate Change itself, Tim went on to explore the greenhouse gas […]
17 Nov – Attending COP26 with CAFOD
By Matty Maslen – Bradford & Glasgow UniversityAt the beginning of the month, I was lucky enough to attend COP26 as part of CAFOD’s Young Adult Mobilisation. From Friday 5th to Sunday 7th of November, we were among hundreds of thousands of people who had travelled from all across the globe to Glasgow for the […]
10 Nov – COP26 events around the Diocese
Together for the Planet @ St Benedict’s Garforth By Trish Sandbach, Commission MemberA couple of months ago the Faith and Justice Action Group from St. Benedict’s in Garforth were discussing how to start bringing people together after the separation and isolation of lockdown and restrictions while continuing to observe Covid safety – as the pandemic […]
05 Oct – Conflict & Climate Change Liturgy
The feast of St. Francis on October 4th marked the end of the Season of Creation. The J&P Commission celebrated this feast with a liturgy exploring and praying about the links between Conflict and Climate Change. Using the YCW See, Judge Act approach, short videos were used to find out about the experiences of people […]
16 Sep – Climate Emergency Walk to Bradford: an Invitation
photo courtesy of CAFODIn December 2015, we went with a small number of people to Paris to encourage the nations meeting there to take climate change seriously. Even the Pope had written about its importance for humanity!Now, 6 years later has any progress been made? In our churches or anywhere outside?Once […]
04 Sep – Reflections from the Action for Life on Earth Conference
By Sara of Margaret Clitherow parish in Leeds Sara was one of the young people sponsored to attend this conference by our SPARK Social Justice Project. My intentions in attending the Justice and Peace Climate Change Conference were to educate myself more on the global crisis and try to understand how churches were taking action. […]