The 66-year-old archbishop released the letter, subtitled “The climate catastrophe — Creation’s urgent call for change,” on the eve of the Season of Creation, an “annual celebration of prayer and action for our common home” from Sept. 1 to Oct. 4. He invited parishes in Dublin archdiocese to observe the event.
“This pastoral letter, which I have titled, ‘The Cry of the Earth, the Cry of the Poor,’ approaches the climate catastrophe from the perspective of faith,” Farrell explained in an Aug. 30 statement.
“That is not to say, it excludes the insights and contribution of the natural sciences. On the contrary, healthy faith takes on board what God says through creation. Faith and science are not opponents; in a truly Christian view, faith and reason — fides et ratio — go hand in hand. God reveals himself through the world. That is the heart of our Catholic faith.”
He continued: “Scientists have issued a ‘code red’ not just for the environment, but for humanity itself. God now calls us, individually and collectively, to work for the good of the planet and the good of all. Let us not fool ourselves: there can be no enduring response to the cry of the earth without responding to the need for justice and dignity.”
The pastoral letter includes an appendix with poetry by the English Jesuit Gerard Manley Hopkins, who spent his final years in Dublin, and T.S. Eliot.
Pope Francis named Farrell as archbishop of Dublin on Dec. 29, 2020, succeeding Archbishop Diarmuid Martin, who had led the archdiocese since 2004.
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