The ceremony was organised by the Global Catholic Climate Movement, the Pan-Amazonian Ecclesial Network and the Order of Franciscan Friars Minor.

Among those present at the ceremony were Pope Francis and members of the curia.

Pope Francis remained seated in a chair outside the group throughout the ceremony.

During the ceremony participants held hands and bowed before carved images of pregnant women. One of the images reportedly represented Our Lady.

They sang and held hands while dancing in a circle around the images.

The dance resembled the "pago a la tierra," a traditional offering to Mother Earth common among indigenous peoples in some parts of South America.

No explanation was provided by the event organizers as to why the dance was performed for the Feast of St. Francis or what it symbolized.

During the ceremony, some people carried bowls of earth from different places around the world.

They placed these around a tree from Assisi, which had been planted as a "symbol of integral ecology.".

Each bowl symbolised a different issue, including ecological devastation and migration.

A group of people, including Amazonians in ritual dress, as well people in lay clothes and a Franciscan brother, knelt and bowed in a circle around images.

After what appeared to be the offering of prayers by participants, who prostrated themselves on the grass around a blanket upon which fruit, candles, and several carved items were set, an indigenous woman approached the pope.

She presented him with a black ring, which appeared identical to the one she was wearing.

The ring appeared to be a tucum ring - a black ring worn in Brazil and Latin America as a sign of dedication to certain social causes.

It is often associated with liberation theology advocate Bishop Pedro Casaldáliga.

After witnessing the ritual, Francis set aside his prepared remarks.

Instead, he prayed the Lord's Prayer without comment.

One of the statues presented to Francis was referred to as "Our Lady of the Amazon."

He blessed it.

The synod on the Amazon began on Sunday and will continue until 27 October.

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Image: Catholic News Agency

The Global Catholic Climate Movement says the news shows the growing strength of the divestment movement within the Catholic Church.

"When it comes to protecting our common home, we have not a moment to lose," Tomas Insua, executive director of GCCM which co-ordinated the action, says.

Pledges to take money out of fossil fuels were made by 35 religious orders, lay organisations and social justice movements.

Those signed up to the move include the Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund (Sciaf), humanitarian aid organisation Caritas Internationalis, three Catholic banks and several dioceses.

Caritas Internationalis is one of the largest humanitarian organisations in the world. Several members of its executive board are directly appointed by the Holy See.

Caritas Internationalis president, Cardinal Luis Tagle, says "The poor are suffering greatly from the climate crisis and fossil fuels are among the main drivers of this injustice."

Sciaf director Alistair Dutton echoed Caritas's view.

"The world is facing ecological, humanitarian and moral crises as we approach the point of no return from irreversible global warming and climate chaos," he says.

"Highly polluting fossil fuels are a major driving force behind this.

"The communities Sciaf works with in developing countries are already struggling to cope with the impact of climate change."

Leading Catholic banks pledging to divest include Pax Bank, Bank Im Bistum Essen eG, and Steyler Ethik Bank.

In addition, the archdioceses of Luxembourg and of Salerno-Campagna-Acerno, along with the diocese of Communauté Mission de France are announcing divestments.

It is understood Secours Catholique in France plans to divest an estimated €10m, while the Catherine Donnelly Foundation will be divesting around CAN$800,000.

Several US parishes are dropping an estimated US$400,000 from their total $3m assets.

The Archbishop of Luxembourg, Jean-Claude Hollerich, says bishops are increasingly committed to making financial decisions "in line with our moral values.

"Divestment is an important way for the Church to show leadership in the context of a changing climate," he says.

"Praise be to all those who serve 'the least of these' by protecting the environment."

The 35 institutions made the pledge to coincide with international Earth Day on 22 April.

They are joining 60 Catholic organisations that have previously decided not to invest in fossil fuels.

Source

• businessGreen
• Herald Scotland
• Image: Blandford Nature Centre

The institutions which have joined a global faith-based environmental movement located on five continents include the Franciscan convent in Assisi, the Belgian bishops' conference, the Archdiocese of Cape Town, Newman University in the UK and two major financial institutions - one each in Germany and Belgium.

Although the value of the divestment in coal, gas and oil has not been revealed, the number of organisations behind the pledge is nearly four times bigger than it was in May when nine institutions announced a similar divestment.

The Global Climate Movement says it timed its announcement about the new signatories to coincide with the anniversary St. Francis of Assisi's death (4 October).

St Francis, the patron saint of the environment, inspired Pope Francis's landmark social encyclical in June 2015, Laudato Si': On Care for Our Common Home.

In the encyclical, Francis calls for investments in "production and transportation which consume less energy and require fewer raw materials, as well as in methods of construction and renovating buildings which improve their energy efficiency."

Attempts at promoting a sustainable use of natural resources "are not a waste of money, but rather an investment capable of providing other economic benefits in the medium term," he says.

"More diversified and innovative forms of production which impact less on the environment can prove very profitable."

The announcement was welcomed by Christiana Figueres, the former executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

"I hope we'll see more leaders like these 40 Catholic institutions commit because, while this decision makes smart financial sense, acting collectively to deliver a better future for everybody is also our moral imperative," she said.

Source

• Crux
• Vatican Radio
• CNBC
• The Guardian
• Image: SlideShare

Signatories agree to pray with and for creation, live more simply and to advocate to protect the environment - our common home.

Francis has given the "Laudato Si‘ Pledge Campaign" his tick of approval.

The campaign has also been endorsed by Cardinal Peter Turkson, who is the head of the Vatican's new dicastery for integral human development and by Cardinals Reinhard Marx of Munich and Blase Cupich of Chicago.

The Global Catholic Climate Movement is a community of hundreds of thousands of Catholics who are responding to Pope Francis's call to action in the Laudato Si' encyclical.

"We are lay people, priests, religious, bishops and a global network of member organizations working together to tackle the climate change crisis," their website says.

Source

• Vatican Radio
• Catholic Culture
• Image: Tweetlz