Earlier this month, on Nov. 13, the Church marked the 6th Word Day of the Poor. In recognition of the day, officials with the Conference of Major Superiors of Men shared a message from Pope Francis, in their latest Justice and Peace Alert. Celebrated annually on the 33rd Sunday in ordinary time, the day encourages Catholics to go to the peripheries where people struggle with economic and existential problems.

In his message, Pope Francis not only encouraged people to remain focused on Christ “who became poor for our sake” (2 Cor 8:9) but also to follow the tradition of the early church, which pooled resources to help those in need. In particular, Francis reflected on the deep cost war inflicts on the innocent.

CMSM officials also highlighted the continued impacat of Laudato Si, the second encyclical published in 2015 by Pope Francis. At the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin gave an address focused on food security and water security. He brought up Pope Francis’ theme of interconnectedness from Laudato Si’. War, climate, market disruption, and selfishness of resources all disrupt food security and water security, and due to their interconnectedness, a unified effort must be made in addressing them. 

 In the United States, a letter was delivered to President Biden urging him to take a larger leadership role in fighting climate change. Catholic Climate Covenant, one of the letter’s signers, also plans to provide further resources around lowering emissions and energy efficiency projects.