I am co-chair of the Social Justice Ministry, serving with Patricia Dineen, who pioneered this ministry effort from its beginning in 2006. With this column, we hope to share information on the work of the ministry and highlight social justice activities in parishes around the diocese. This year, we are planning the 16th annual Social Justice Convocation, focused on "Care for Creation -- Laudato Si'." Our events will include a virtual workshop via ZOOM on Saturday, Oct. 26, beginning at 10 a.m., focused on our Catholic responsibility to actively "Care for Creation."

In the spring of 2025, on March 29, we are organizing an in-person convocation at Boston College High School -- our first in-person event since COVID. The keynote speaker in March will be Father Andrea Vicini, SJ, the Michael P. Walsh Professor of Bioethics at Boston College School of Theology.

September begins the Season of Creation, which spans five weeks between the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation (Sept. 1) and the feast of St. Francis of Assisi (Oct. 4). This "time for creation" offers, in the words of Pope Francis, "individual believers and communities a fitting opportunity to reaffirm their personal vocation to be stewards of creation, to thank God for the wonderful handiwork, which he has entrusted to our care, and to implore his help for the protection of creation as well as his pardon for the sins committed against the world in which we live."

Next week, you are invited to attend the third annual Mass celebrating the Season of Creation at Sacred Heart Parish in Lexington on Saturday, Sept. 14, at 1 p.m. The celebrant will be Bishop Mark O'Connell. This Mass is for all Catholics in the Boston Archdiocese. There will be "holy hospitality" after Mass, followed by a short program reviewing Laudato Si' activities from the last year and looking forward to next year.

Since he returned from the Laudato Si' conference in San Diego earlier this year, Bishop O'Connell has been working to bring the message of Laudato Si' to the Boston Archdiocese. The ecclesial gathering, "Laudato Si': Protecting Our Common Home, Building Our Common Church," took place at the University of San Diego on Feb. 22-23. The focus of this conference was to search for ways to overcome the polarization surrounding Laudato Si', take a second look at our biblical call for us to care for creation, understand the urgency for action and look for ways to share this message. Panelists presented ideas for ways to bring Laudato Si' to life in their dioceses and institutions.

Armed with this information, Bishop O'Connell looked to Sacred Heart Parish in Lexington. After several years as a part of a collaborative parish with St. Brigid, Sacred Heart became a personal parish this year. A personal parish is different than a more common territorial parish. The personal parish can be created by bishops to serve the cultural or language needs of specific groups of Catholics. As Bishop Mark met with the local community earlier this year, he guided them to consider becoming a Laudato Si' parish, a call that they are actively discerning.

Bishop Mark said after his return from the spring conference, "I've never contemplated ecological conversion until this conference ... So, I guess my ecological conversion is beginning."

Please join us at this Celebration of Creation in Lexington next week. Also, consider joining us in October and again in March to learn more about how to begin our own individual ecological conversion.



DEACON TIMOTHY F. DONOHUE IS A PERMANENT DEACON AT HOLY NAME PARISH WEST ROXBURY, THE DIOCESAN DIRECTOR FOR CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES AND THE DIOCESAN DIRECTOR FOR CATHOLIC CAMPAIGN FOR HUMAN DEVELOPMENT. PATRICIA DINEEN IS THE FOUNDER OF THE SOCIAL JUSTICE MINISTRY. YOU CAN REACH DEACON TIM DONOHUE OR PAT DINEEN BY CALLING THE MAIN NUMBER OF THE PASTORAL CENTER: 617-779-3790.