Laudato Si' Animators embrace Pope Francis' Legacy

Animators at the Salford Laudato Si Centre, Credit: John Woodhouse

The Laudato Si' Movement grew out of the Global Catholic Climate Movement, to further the aims of Pope Francis' groundbreaking Encyclical Laudato Si'. It aims to activate the world's 1.4 billion Catholics to tackle environmental crises.

Laudato Si' Animators are people, mainly Catholics, who have graduated from the Laudato Si' Movement's Course, which is set up to educate and enable participants to inspire others, in parishes, schools and in the world at large, to engage in dialogue and action on the current environmental crises. We do this under the aegis of the 2015 Laudato Si' Encyclical.

Animators are dedicated to encouraging the growth of the roots planted by Pope Francis. We do this through the varied actions and groups we have established as permanent tributes to the Encyclical and reminders of the urgent call for action on the environment that the Encyclical puts before us. The primary focus of the Animators' Course is for us to strive to live Laudato Si' in our own lives. The secondary focus is to animate others to live Laudato Si'.

In the ten years since Pope Francis published his Encyclical, the number of Animators has steadily grown. In the UK there are over 100 who are active. Worldwide, there are thousands. We encourage our dioceses to inform and educate about Laudato Si' in their parishes. If more Catholics knew about it, more would take the Animators Course.

Perhaps the most important contributions to promoting Laudato Si' are the green groups that Animators have set up in their parishes. These green groups are active in advocating for our common home, for example by organising actions such as a Sharing Fair initiative, which asks parishioners to offer their unwanted possessions to others instead of binning them. And David Ryan's St Paul's & St Timothy's Parish Laudato Si' Group's initiative of setting up recycling bins in both parishes.

Other examples of green groups are Animator Martin Davis's ecumenical Cheltenham Laudato Si' Circle which has a Facebook page and arranges prayers, walks, talks and discussions, often with shared meals. The Laudato Si' Circle in Oxford, based at Blackfriars, which Animator Anna FitzPatrick attends, includes parishioners but has a wider base than just the parish, and collaborates with Christian Climate Action every year during the Season of Creation to organise an ecumenical Pilgrimage for the Planet through Oxford.

Animators regularly attend pilgrimages and protest marches for the environment. Oxford-based artist and Animator Helen Elwes has painted a banner 'Mother of Mercy', inspired by Pope Francis's words in Laudato Si'. It is a contemporary icon of Mary kneeling in the burning Rainforest with figures from all nations and endangered animals taking shelter under her blue protecting cloak. Helen has carried this banner on pilgrimages, vigils and protest marches around the country, including walking 200 miles on the 'Camino to Cop' to the International Climate Conference in Glasgow in 2021.

Facebook pages have been set up by individual Animators or by their parish group. Some Animators have set up parish websites. Laudato Si' Animators in the UK also have a general website.

The UK Animators have regular meetings, convened by John Woodhouse, to which Animators can bring any matter that they want to discuss, and during which we plan activities such as Season of Creation actions, retreats, parish events and so on.

We have a Network of Animators in England and Wales, with a contact in almost every Diocese. There are also active Animators in Scotland who are part of the Network. The contacts keep in touch with the Animators in their diocese, for mutual support, information, resources and to plan actions.

We also provide comments on news, views, events etc through our Writing Group, which can be called on to write articles as required.

We get together every year at the Laudato Si' Centre in Salford Diocese, to celebrate past actions and to discuss future actions. The Laudato Si' Centre is the Diocese of Salford's response to the LS Encyclical. It aims to be a place of education, inspiration and hope for those who visit. Animators have felt the benefit and have discussed the idea of more such centres being established in other dioceses. Some Animators have approached their bishops to see if a similar centre could be set up in their own diocese.

Animator David Jackson has had his book 'Realising the Sacred' published this year. In it he imagines a Church committed to synodality in its worship, buildings and mission. And he stresses the need for contemplative or mystical prayer to bring it about.

Animator Menchu collaborated with iMision to produce, in September 2025, a 32-page resource explaining and promoting Laudato Si' and the Laudato Si' Movement, to give to students and digital missionaries. iMision Institute is a Catholic, global community of digital missionaries and evangelizers which collaborates with the Holy See to address contemporary issues in the digital environment, to support nonprofit organizations and to promote the Church's presence in society.

These are just a few examples of the actions taken, groups set up and initiatives created by Animators in the UK. Through these efforts, Animators are ensuring that the legacy of Pope Francis will never be forgotten and will continue to inspire future Animators to advocate for the natural environment.

Virginia Bell is a Laudato Si Animator in the UK

LINKS

Laudato Si Animators https://laudatosianimators.org/

Laudato Si Centre in Salford Diocese https://laudatosicentre.org.uk/

Cheltenham Laudato Si' Circle www.facebook.com/groups/449497646814960/

Laudato Si' Encyclical www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_20150524_enciclica-laudato-si.html