Andy Drozdziak
Bishop John Arnold is calling Catholics to join an environmental movement and ‘secure our common home for future generations.’
Bishop Arnold, the bishop of Salford and lead bishop for the environment at the Bishops’ conference of England and Wales, will be speaking at a webinar on the importance of prayer, discussion and action to tackle the environmental crisis.
The webinar, which will take place on 21st March at 6pm, will be presented by Catholic Action for Animals and hosted by the Animal Interfaith Alliance. It will explore the theme ‘Introduction to animal rights from a faith perspective: new insights into animal agriculture.’
“This webinar for Catholics on animal agriculture will provide sound reasoning on what needs to be done with urgency if we are to care responsibly for our common home and our brothers and sisters in our global family,” Bishop Arnold said.
Bishop Arnold leads the Guardians of Creation initiative in the Salford Diocese, which offers guidance and resources to help the Catholic Church tackle the environmental crises, and he has transformed his home, Wardley Hall, into the Laudato Si’ Centre.
He said: “We are a generation that is facing great challenges but also many opportunities. In environmental concerns, we have so much evidence of climate change events that are affecting all continents and the oceans, destroying biodiversity, disrupting agriculture, and warming our world to a point where irreparable damage will soon be done. But, at the same time, we have the knowledge and the means to repair the damage and secure our common home for future generations.”
Bishop Arnold will be joined by US Jesuit Daniel Mascarenhas SJ, who will speak on the Biblical imperative for caring for animal rights. Daniel Mascarenhas said: “In the present, when Jesus has inaugurated God’s kingdom on earth, we are invited to be kind and compassionate to all, loving our neighbour as ourselves. Knowing God’s plans through Scripture, and loving God through our faith make certain claims on our lifestyle. Consequently, we can reflect on how our lives honour God’s hopes for humans and creation.”
Maureen Villanueva will present the Laudato Si’ Action Platform, an initiative of the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development that equips institutions, communities, and families to take practical steps towards total sustainability in the spirit of integral ecology.
Other speakers include Virginia Bell, the founder of Catholic Action for Animals and member of the Laudato Si’ Animators’ Network in the UK, Sarina Farb, a vegan educator, TEDx speaker, and lecturer on ethical and sustainable living, and Lisa Levinson from In Defense of Animals.
To register for the webinar, please email: Barbgard.aia@gmail.com putting ‘WEBINAR 21-3-24 REGISTRATION’ in the Subject line.
Picture: Bishop John Arnold at the Laudato Si Centre in Manchester. (CNS photo/Simon Caldwell)