“Is it unusual for the Pope to make a comment on the environment?”

Revolution was once a bad word — even The Beatles were against it. But ever since the late Steve Jobs got hold of it and applied it to every new gadget to come off the Apple assembly line, the word has lost its threat and most of its meaning.

MONTREAL – Taking its cue from Scripture which warns against polluting the Earth or muddying clear water, a mission began 10 years ago in Montreal for a “Green Churches movement.” 

Trinity Sunday (Year C) May 22 (Proverbs 8:23-31; Psalm 8; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15)

How does one describe something that is infinite and ineffable in terms that humans can understand? The writers of the Scriptures often used poetry and metaphor, but even these attempts fell short of the majesty of God. No concept, doctrine or metaphor can ever contain the divine reality — they merely point to it and present it to us in the broadest strokes.

I took the Pulse Pledge during Lent and found myself reflecting on how something so small could actually make a difference. 

TORONTO - We have the technology to extend life beyond its natural limits, so why not apply our technological resources to end a life when natural death eludes us? Why not take full responsibility for the control humans already exercise over life?

VATICAN CITY - During Holy Week and in the Easter season, the Vatican will take part in several initiatives highlighting the importance of ecology and the care for creation.

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. - John Kostoff sees Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si’: on Care for Our Common Home as a calling for Catholic educators to foster a sense of environmental responsibility rooted in religion.

“This is really a challenge that Pope Francis is presenting,” said Kostoff, director of education for the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board.

TORONTO - To encourage his students to start thinking about the environment of tomorrow today, technology teacher Joe Ferro has brought renewable energy into the classroom at Neil McNeil High School.

TORONTO - The youngest students at James Culnan Catholic School are getting the opportunity to connect with nature as part of their daily life at school.

In the early 1940s, as a barefoot-in-summer lad in Ireland, I had my introduction to the natural environment. My family had a small store and pub on a gravel coast road in The Burren, a barren karst limestone district on Galway Bay.

My father had built a small windmill, using the dynamo from a Ford car, with a wooden wind direction indicator, on an eight-metre pole. The constant winds from the ocean kept three “wet” batteries charged, which provided enough electricity for four light bulbs and a wireless radio. Every night, my father and the neighbours from miles around gathered around the wireless to listen to the news/propaganda from the war fronts.

MANILA, Philippines - Philippine environmentalists and advocates for farmers, fishers and the poor praised lauded the recently released encyclical, "Laudato Si'," as "affirmation" for their causes and said that, using it as a guide, they were ready to get to work.

VATICAN CITY - Requests for copies of Pope Francis' environmental encyclical and the demand for tickets to see him at the United Nations indicate enthusiasm and expectations for Pope Francis' visit are running high, said the Vatican representative.

VATICAN CITY - Caring for all of creation includes paying particular attention to the needs of young people and the aged, Pope Francis told the audience of a Catholic radio station in Argentina.