Reverend Joseph E. Kurtz, D.D. Bishop | Archdiocese of Louisville

The Earth is ailing and requires the prayers of Catholics as well as their personal commitment to caring for creation, Pope Francis stated.

“Let us pray that each of us listens with our hearts to the cry of the Earth and of the victims of environmental disasters and climate change, making a personal commitment to care for the world we inhabit,” the pope said in a video message released on August 30 by the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network.

The network posts a short video of the pope offering his specific prayer intention each month, and members of the network pray for that intention daily. Pope Francis’ intention for September is: “For the cry of the Earth,” which coincides with the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation on September 1 and its inauguration of the monthlong “Season of Creation.”

“If we took the planet’s temperature, it would tell us that the Earth has a fever,” said Pope Francis in his video message. “And it is sick, just like anyone who’s sick. But are we listening to this pain? Do we hear the pain of the millions of victims of environmental catastrophes?”

The first victims and those who suffer most, he noted, are “the poor, those who are forced to leave their homes because of floods, heat waves or drought.”

To combat poverty and protect nature simultaneously, people must change their personal habits, according to Pope Francis. However, since climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss are “caused by humans,” social, economic, and political responses are also necessary.