The Archdiocese of Washington’s Office of Social Concerns is hosting the first archdiocesan Green Mass on Saturday Oct. 3 at 5 p.m. at St. Joseph Church in Largo. Washington Auxiliary Bishop Roy Campbell Jr., the pastor of St. Joseph’s, will be the main celebrant of the inaugural Green Mass.
“The Green Mass is a celebration of God’s creation to all,” said Genevieve Mougey, the director of the archdiocese’s Office for Social Concerns. She added, “We are called to intentionality and responsibility around issues of stewardship through the lens of an integral ecology; care for creatures, care for the earth, care for water, and care for each other. Pope Francis convened a celebration of the Season of Creation from Sept. 1 through Oct. 4 (the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi), and we join with the universal church in this celebration.
Five years ago in 2015, Pope Francis issued his landmark encyclical on ecology, “Laudato Si’, On Care for Our Common Home,” emphasizing that the world’s environmental and social challenges are interconnected, and that people of faith are called to take action to protect God’s creation.
Earlier on Saturday Oct. 3, 2020 Pope Francis is scheduled to travel to Assisi to celebrate Mass and sign his new encyclical, “Fratelli Tutti, on Fraternity and Social Friendship.”
According to the Catholic News Service, the new encyclical is expected to echo many of the themes Pope Francis has been discussing in his general audience talks on Catholic social teaching in light of the pandemic: human fraternity, the equal dignity of all people, the preferential option for the poor, the universal destination of goods and the obligation of solidarity. Care for the environment and the virtue of peacemaking also are expected to be part of the encyclical. After Pope Francis signs the document on the eve of the feast of St. Francis, the text is expected to be published in a variety of languages the first week of October.
St. Joseph Parish, which is located at 2020 St. Joseph Drive in Upper Marlboro, has pre-registration for people attending its Masses during the coronavirus pandemic. The Green Mass will be live streamed at:
