Church statements
Discover more about the encyclical Laudato Si:
List of ecclesial declarations
The Roman Catholic Church has intervened several times on the issue of the environment. Here is a list of the major ecclesial statements on the subject:
- 1972, Paul VI, Speech at the Stockholm Conference on the Environment
- 1979, John Paul II, Appointment of Saint Francis of Assisi as "patron saint of ecologists".
- 1981, AEQ (Assemblée des évêques du Québec), Pastoral letter "Christians and the environment".
- 1990, John Paul II, Message "Peace with God the Creator, peace with creation".
- 2001, AECQ (Quebec Assembly of Catholic Bishops), Pastoral letter "Cri de la terre, cri des pauvres" (Cry of the earth, cry of the poor)
- 2003, CCCB (Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops), Pastoral Letter "The Christian Ecological Imperative".
- 2006, Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, mention of ecology in sections 451-480
- 2008, CCCB (Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops), Pastoral Letter "Our Relationship to the Environment: The Need for Conversion".
- 2009, Bishop Luc Bouchard, Pastoral Letter "The Integrity of Creation and the Athabasca Oil Sands".
- 2009, Benedict XVI, Encyclical Letter "Caritas in Veritate".
- 2010, Benedict XVI, Message "If you want to build peace, protect creation".
- 2012, Synod of Bishops on the New Evangelization, Proposition 56
- 2013, CCCB, Building a New Culture - Central themes in recent Church teaching on the environment.
- 2013, Pope Francis, General Audience of 5 June, World Environment Day
- 2015, Pope Francis, Encyclical Laudato Si on the care of our common home
- 2016, Pope Francis, World Day of Prayer for Creation, September 1st
- 2017, Pope Francis, World Day of Prayer for Creation, September 1st
- 2018, Pope Francis, World Day of Prayer for Creation, September 1st
- 2019, Pope Francis, World Day of Prayer for Creation, September 1st
- 2020, Pope Francis, World Day of Prayer for Creation, September 1st