Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Pro-Prefect for the Section of Evangelization of Dicastery for Evangelization, called for the protection of the environment and the care for others in a message he delivered at a conference in Africa.
“We need to discuss the root cause of the environmental degradation to have concrete resolutions,” said the cardinal in his homily during Mass for the 20th Plenary Assembly of the Association of Member Episcopal Conferences in Eastern Africa in Dar Salaam, Tanzania.
“We need to ask ourselves, why is it that caring is less these days?” he said.
Cardinal Tagle reminded Church leaders and the faithful of the “care for God’s creation,” a message contained in Pope Francis’ encyclical on the environment, the “Laudato si’.”
In separate remarks, Archbishop Hubertus Matheus Maria van Megen, the apostolic nuncio for Kenya and Sudan, commended the gathering for helping Catholics in the region celebrate their faith together.
The nuncio cited the use of local languages for prayers during Holy Mass as a sign of co-existing among members in the region.
“Only Arabic is missing during our prayers here,” he said. “That is the language spoken in South Sudan where I am coming from,” added the prelate.
Among the issues that will be discussed during the 10-day assembly in Dar es Salaam are the care for creation and Laudato si’; faith, values, and ethics in the care for the environment; and, care for integral ecology. – from a Vatican News report
