By Lindsay Steele The Catholic Messenger IOWA CITY — A few years ago, a group of St. Patrick Parish members studied Laudato Si’ during Lent. Pope Francis’ encyclical gave the group “a newfound respect for the interconnectedness of everything,” said Diane Platte, the parish’s social action committee chairperson. This Lent, the whole parish is celebrating that interconnectedness through ecological, stewardship, prayer and wellness challenges.

By Lindsay Steele The Catholic Messenger IOWA CITY — A few years ago, a group of St. Patrick Parish members studied Laudato Si’ during Lent. Pope Francis’ encyclical gave the group “a newfound respect for the interconnectedness of everything,” said Diane Platte, the parish’s social action committee chairperson. This Lent, the whole parish is celebrating that interconnectedness through ecological, stewardship, prayer and wellness challenges.

By Barb Arland-Fye The Catholic Messenger COLUMBUS JUNCTION — Bishop Thomas Zinkula met with 15-20 meatpacking plant workers Feb. 27 in a barebones office building to listen to their objections to proposed changes in Iowa’s

By Lindsay Steele The Catholic Messenger Mayra Hernandez is passionate about empowering immigrants and other vulnerable populations as a community organizer for Quad Cities Interfaith, a nonprofit organization funded by the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD). Hernandez, an immigrant and DACA recipient, said the Catholic Church’s work toward justice “really speaks to me.” Her advocacy work began five years ago as a CCHD intern in the Diocese of Davenport. She applied for the internship hoping to learn more about community organizing and working with immigration issues. While finishing her undergraduate degree at the University of Iowa in Iowa City she served the Center For Worker Justice of Eastern Iowa assisting clients with labor, immigration, housing and other social justice issues.

Project Renewal plans to build a new, two-story house in keeping with the neighborhood atmosphere. The first floor will contain a gym/fitness center and an area for arts, such as culinary, visual

By Lindsay Steele The Catholic Messenger Helping ease food insecurity locally and abroad can be as simple as putting loose change into a cardboard bank. “Anyone can do this,” diocesan Social Action volunteer Loxi Hopkins said during a virtual Lunch and Learn session Feb. 2, which highlighted the upcoming Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Rice Bowl collection. “I think it’s great for kids in particular because it gives them an opportunity to learn about what’s happening in other countries and in their own neighborhoods.”

By Barb Arland-Fye The Catholic Messenger When a young adult has needed a place to live temporarily while working at Project Renewal in Davenport, Sister Lynn Mousel, CHM, and her housemates make room in their home. When the 2022 elections approached, Sister Kathleen Henneberry, CHM, worked with Sister Mary Rehmann, CHM, to encourage citizens to vote. When Sister Lillian Stevens, CHM, longed to help protect God’s earth, she found an opportunity to share her ideas serving on the Laudato Si’ Committee of the Congregation of the Humility of Mary (CHM). All of these seemingly dissimilar activities are connected, the sisters say, in the spirit of Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical, Laudato Si’ to build relationships among God and people, people with one another and people with all of creation.

By Lindsay Steele The Catholic Messenger The diocesan Social Action office gave a preview of notable observances in January 2023 during the final Lunch and Learn session of 2022. Deacon Kent Ferris, the office’s director, hoped the presentation would inform Catholics of the various causes on which to focus as the new year begins.

By Father Guillermo Treviño For The Catholic Messenger (Editor’s note: Father Guillermo Treviño wrote the following acceptance speech for his 2022 Cardinal Bernardin New Leadership Award, presented to him Nov. 15 during the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ General Assembly. The award from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development honors young adults “who demonstrate leadership in fighting poverty and injustice in the United States through community.”)

By Barb Arland-Fye The Catholic Messenger Reflecting on his experience at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ fall general assembly Nov. 14-17 in Baltimore, Bishop Thomas Zinkula focused on the value of building relationships.

The Holy Father announced that the upcoming 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops will be held in two sessions, spaced one year apart: the first from October 4 to 29, 2023, the second in October 2024

The 124-year-old St. Vincent Center in Davenport is getting an energy audit as the first step in the Diocese of Davenport’s Laudato Si’ Action Plan launched Oct. 4 on the memorial of St. Francis of Assisi. It is a multifaceted, seven-year plan intended to inspire the people of the diocese to build on their relationship with God, each other and all of God’s creation.

Desiring a bright and abundant future for her grandchildren and all humanity, Jean Simpson prayed, listened to God and found guidance in “Laudato Si’” (subtitled “On Care for Our Common Home), an encyclical by Pope Francis. The Holy Father called for restoring relationships between people and God, people and each other and all of God’s creation.