World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly
Do not cast me off in my old age. (cf.Ps 71:9) We always went on a journey to visit my grandparents and my paternal great grandparents. We made a train trip and a further trek in a rail motor. As I reminisce, I thought of these wonderful relatives as ‘old’ but special, and they represent […]
JJN: June Prayer Intention, Refugee Week and World Refugee Day
The Josephite Justice Network (JJN) provides three reflections on Pope Francis’ June Prayer Intention, Refugee Week (16-22 June) and World Refugee Day (20 June). June Prayer Intention: Those fleeing own countries – Joelle Sassine Refugee Week 2024 – Finding Freedom: Family – Violet Cabral Embracing Humanity: World Refugee Day and Living Out Gospel Values – Emilia […]
June Prayer Intention: Those fleeing own countries
In June, we pray with Pope Francis for migrants fleeing from war or hunger, forced to undertake journeys fraught with danger and violence; may they find welcome and new life opportunities in their host countries. To host means to receive, but in order to receive, our hearts must be open. In his June prayer intention, […]
Laudato Si’ Week 2024: 19-26 May
This year marks the ninth anniversary of the publication of Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’ encyclical to every person living on this planet. Seeds of Hope is the chosen theme of the weeklong Laudato Si’ celebration. We are invited to be seeds of hope in our lives and our world, and to be rooted in the […]
Window on Creation
“Living in harmony with nature and with God gives us full happiness and purpose,” thus said Father Julian Tenison Woods in 1887. For Fr Julian, fullness of life meant the integration of science and religion. He sensed that the future of Earth depends on the realisation that all creation is in relationship, and that we […]
A Laudato Si’ Easter Reflection
As followers of Jesus, we are asked to walk humbly on the Earth and to care for the land, the oceans, and all creatures. Pope Francis reminds us in his recent Apostolic Exhortation Laudate Deum that the time for climate change action is becoming more URGENT. He has posed the question: “Are we working for […]
Josephites share the Laudate Deum call to action
Laudate Deum (‘Praise God’) is Pope Francis’ new apostolic exhortation published on 4 October 2023 addressing today’s environmental and human challenges. The Holy Father focuses on the situation of climate change in Laudate Deum, which is styled as a follow-up to the 2015 Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’. The Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development […]
Season of Creation 2023: We Can Do Something
Let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream. Amos 5:24 This text states a truth that is as appropriate today as it was in ancient times: justice precedes peace. Without justice, there can be no peace. However, the image of the never-failing stream does not ring true in our century. Streams […]
Laudato Si’ Week 2023
Hope for the Earth, Hope for Humanity has been adopted as the theme for Laudato Si’ Week this year, celebrated globally from 21-28 May. Pope Francis addressed the Laudato Si’ encyclical to “every person living on Planet Earth”. (#3). He frequently returns to the themes that humanity and creation are intimately woven together, just as […]
New Year 2023
New Year is a time to look back with gratitude for the gifts of 2022 and to open our hearts and minds to receive the gifts that our loving God has waiting for us in the coming year. As we watch the sun go down on New Year’s Eve, our hearts wait in anticipation for […]
Changing lives one stamp at a time
Each month, Pope Francis asks for our prayers for a specific intention. For the month of December, the prayer intention is for volunteers and not-for-profit organisations: We pray that volunteer non-profit organisations committed to human development find people dedicated to the common good and ceaselessly seek out new paths to international cooperation. Volunteers make an […]
Celebrating One Year of Laudato Si’ Plans
From Australia to Argentina, Zimbabwe to Canada, the United Kingdom to the United States, and everywhere in between—the world’s faithful joined together on 14 November 2022 to celebrate the one year anniversary of the Laudato Si’ Action Platform. The Josephite Community has joined and is committed to the Laudato Si’ Action Platform and has a plan […]