Dehonians, facing the climate disruption and nuclear weapons
From October 7-10, 2024, about 90 participants, including Dehonian religious, lay associates, partners-in-mission and colleagues, all from Canada and the USA, gathered in Olive Branch, Mississippi to learn about the dual threats of climate disruption and nuclear weapons. Important resolutions were taken.
During our days together, we were guided by our Dehonian Spirituality, the Encyclical Laudato Si’ of Pope Francis, and Catholic Social Teaching. While reminded of the beauty and wonder of our world, we were appalled by the suffering and injustices experienced by our brothers and sisters and all of creation from the devastating effects of these two threats.
We maintain hope in a God who became one of us and whose heart feels the suffering of humanity.
This conference summons each one of us to do something – institutionally, locally and personally.
We can no longer remain silent but must do what we can, however small, to change what is happening to our world – if not for ourselves, then for our children and Mother Earth.
Therefore, we commit ourselves to the following goals.
We will read and reflect on these words.
We will pray with them and listen to their challenge.
We will let them transform our hearts and change our behaviors.
We will act upon them wherever we are and in whatever context we find ourselves.
We will assess the progress of our commitments and be accountable to each other.
- We commit to inspiring hope by being prophets of love and servants of reconciliation through actions such as:
- Prayer
- Integrating Lakota spirituality with Dehonian Spirituality
- Dehonian Day of Reconciliation with prayer/fasting for our common home
- Living simply as Dehonian members, associates, and partners-in-mission
- We commit to fostering dialogue, education and awareness on climate disruption and threats of nuclear war in our lives and respective ministries, schools and organizations through actions such as:
- Establishing eco-committees, director of ecological well-being
- Creating a toolbox of online information and forums for continuing
- dialogue
- Engaging youth in dialogue and ecological practices, e.g. agriculture
- Supporting nuclear disarmament (as a pro-life issue) and striving for peace
- We commit to transitioning towards a ‘net zero’* footprint and adopting sustainable lifestyles based on what we need and not what we want through actions such as:
- Reducing the use of plastics and food waste in our homes and workplaces
- Buying locally and building community gardens
- Buying what we need, not just what we want
- Looking at alternative means of travel, e.g. car sharing, biking, walking,
- public transportation
- Developing budgets that are value-based (mission-based budgeting)
- Net zero refers to the balance between the amount of greenhouse gas (GHG) that’s produced and the amount that’s removed from the atmosphere
- We commit to protecting and revitalizing our natural resources through actions such as:
- Divest investments in fossil fuel companies
Sell investments in fossil-fuel companies and invest instead in companies focusing on transitioning to cleaner energy sources, restoring forests to absorb carbon dioxide, utilizing emission-free transportation, designing sustainable buildings, and managing water resources responsibly to minimize environmental impact.
- Use alternative energy sources, such as solar, wind, etc.
