Sisters and scholars reflect on the environmental encyclical and the importance of appreciating the inter- connectedness of people and planet

Global Sisters Report:  A New Green World by Melanie Lidman, Dan Stockman

http://globalsistersreport.org/environment/green-new-world-27181

Excerpt:

“It’s very clever to use the word ‘our home,’” said Maryknoll Sr. Marvie L. Misolas, who runs environmental seminars and retreats in the Philippines and advocates for the government to adopt green policies. She appreciates the direct and simple language of the encyclical, which she plans to use in her seminars with indigenous farmers to encourage them to stop burning trees for agriculture, a major cause of deforestation in the Philippines and around the world.

“The encyclical has that tone of ‘this is ours; this is not only for Catholics, but it’s for everyone,’” she said. “It gives people that sense of ownership. The term ‘our home’ is very important for me – it has a lot of connotations for all of us. Home is where we live, where we are acknowledged. In connection to the planet it is a very beautiful metaphor.”