A Story of Eco-Conversion
A longtime “outsider”, I grew up as kind of an only child because my brother was eight years older. I had connection to our family farm, but first to my own “backyard” which I knew intimately. I knew the plants, the flow of the land, the places that felt public and the secret places where the cactus bloomed. The trees sheltered me in not feeling alone. As my life expanded, so did my sense of “neighborhood” and where I could explore and be part of other landscapes and other creatures' ecosystems. Still, I was an “outsider” as I entered spaces negotiating as a visitor. But my new “neighborhoods” and new “neighbors” took hold of my heart and invited me into their world. How could I not love this place they called home? How could I more intentionally love this place we all call home? It became more critical from the 70’s on to be aware of these questions, but this journey of conversion, eco-conversion, has taken time to unfold. My Creator God was also calling me to see where my love for the natural world intersected with the poorest and most vulnerable people, creatures, and eco-systems. It also brought me to lament and repent of my deeply intertwined lifestyle of damage, being insulated from the effects, and resignation to small personal changes. But God knew how many of us were hungry and thirsty, ripe for conversion. That was Pope Francis and “Laudato Si”. This encyclical offered the prospect of others as inspired and with more wisdom and gifts…”The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet" Frederick Buechner.
Two particular moments of ongoing conversion were when, in the Laudato Si Animators formation we talked about contemplative prayer as the place where God is able to open me/us to creative response, more than I would ever think of or imagine. The second was being invited into a group of people who saw their faith as grounding our care for creation- the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor- and being empowered by this “lay movement”. There I was “inside” the Laudato Si Movement-Minnesota Chapter. This was a place that welcomed “outsiders” to belong and invited others to Environmental and Social justice work as Catholics.
This statewide chapter (LSM-MN) of a global organization seeks to mobilize us as Catholics, as the Body of Christ, to bond from our Catholic foundation and together seek what our hearts desire – God’s Kingdom of justice, love and peace. Pope Francis’ call is now echoed and renewed in a powerful way by Pope Leo XIV in his encyclical “Magnifica Humanitas” (Magnificent Humanity). Generally promoted as the Pope’s “AI” encyclical, it is so much more. This is church doctrine, in an accessible form, that speaks to our specific time and place in history. “The Church’s Social Doctrine…a process of discernment…becomes a theology of communion in history…” (MH Par 27) Our global church is calling us to bring our Catholic voice to all areas of our lives which includes “public witness” as disciples of Christ. Join us as part of your conversion journey in the Public Discipleship Series here at the Co-Cathedral.