Tag: cop21

Lent Cookbook Now Available

Lenten Cookbook

Thank you to all who contributed a recipe (or two!) to our new vegetarian cookbook, which is now available to order in time for Lent. Eating meat puts a huge strain on the Earth’s resources, and also contributes a large number of carbon emissions to the atmosphere. Therefore, we suggest going veggie for Lent. The 40 recipes in this book are a good place to start.

Also available are our ‘Paris Diaries’, a photo journal of our exciting cycle ride to Paris for the UN conference on climate change. It features a written account of the ride as well as an in depth reflection written by our chair Fr Joe Ryan.

Get the books for £3 each or £5 for both. Download an order form here.

Go Veggie For Lent

Fattoush salad

Now that the dust has settled after our 150 mile cycle pilgrimage to Paris for the climate talks, it is important that the pace is not lessened in the fight for climate justice. World leaders must be held accountable to the promises made in Paris, and we should take action in our own lives to reduce our carbon footprints.

The rearing of livestock is a huge environmental burden, not only because of the huge amounts of land required to house animals or to grow the grain to feed them, but also because of the emissions generated by their slaughter, packaging and transport.

Lent is usually a time when we think about giving something up, such as alcohol or chocolate, so why not meat? At Justice and Peace, we thought about ways we could continue to pray and fast for the climate, and came up with the idea of producing a Lenten vegetarian cookbook featuring 40 tasty veggie recipes.

However, we need your help!

If you have a vegetarian recipe you would like to share with us then download the form here, fill it out including the ingredients, method, backstory, any credit if necessary, and a photo (of the dish or yourself or both), and send it back to us at justice@rcdow.org.uk no later than Monday 17 January.

Happy eating!

The Paris Diaries – Cycling Pilgrimage

Danny Bonnett, a wind turbine engineer from Bristol and a cycling pilgrim, shares his experiences of the road to Paris.

London Victoria

The group get ready to take the train to Newhaven

Day 1 – Newhaven to Dieppe

Mileage: almost nil.

Events: a few episodes of queasiness, great hospitality in Dieppe, and a great tour of historic churches – if only we had known how cold it was going to be!  Our hosts were so welcoming it was lovely. Continue reading →

Green Party MEP gives support to Paris cycle ride

Jean Lambert MEP

Barbara Kentish and Fr Joe Ryan with Jean Lambert, MEP

Barbara Kentish and Fr Joe Ryan met with Jean Lambert, London’s Green Party MEP, on Friday 13th November at her London offices to discuss our pilgrimage to Paris as well as our hopes for the climate change talks.

She was very helpful and supportive, giving guidance and providing us with excellent background knowledge of the conference: Continue reading →

Cycling pilgrimage to Paris is just around the corner

Phase 1 of cycle ride

Barbara Kentish and Fr Joe Ryan in front of Westminster Cathedral at the launch of the pilgrimage

With only two weeks to go until our small band of intrepid cyclists pedal to Paris, we are making our last minute preparations, oiling our bike chains and stocking up on puncture repair kits.

There are 17 cyclists in total who will be making the journey, and they represent a diverse group of people of all ages and from different walks of life. We have Catholics, Anglicans, Baptists and Quakers, who have all been inspired to show their support for the upcoming UN climate talks and to lend their voices to the thousands of people who will converge on France’s capital to call for action to lower global carbon emissions. Continue reading →

Westminster Justice & Peace Annual Day 2015

Laudato Si’ – On Care for our Common Home

Fr Joe with J&P supporters

Fr Joe Ryan with J&P supporters

Nine  years after  Columban theologian Sean McDonagh first addressed the Diocesan Justice and Peace Commission he returned to give a wonderfully enriching overview of Pope Francis’s letter, Laudato Si’.  Over seventy people from across the diocese attended the occasion at St John Vianney Parish Centre In Tottenham, as Father Sean rolled out gem after gem of the encyclical, published in May, with illustrations from his own observations and experiences of over 40 years speaking out for the environment.  Continue reading →

Our next Pray and Fast for the Climate Vigil !

Next vigil: July 1stOver 6 months since we took on our pledge to Pray and Fast for the Climate and with 6 Vigils behind us, we approach the next 6 months with hope and enthusiasm! We mark the 1st of each month with prayer and fasting in solidarity with Yeb Sano, leader of the Filipino climate delegation who during the UN interim Climate talks 2013 promised to fast on the 1st of every month until some decision was taken over climate change.

Our next Vigil is set to be one of the most diverse, moving and inspirational yet! Taking place at Our Lady Queen of Apostles Church in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire. The evening will include parish representatives from Australia, Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and South America. We will hear first hand of how Climate change is damaging some of the poorest and most neglected parts of our world and how we as a community and as a Church can work to stop it. The evening will conclude with a chance to break our fast together over a simple meal.

The evening will take place on Wednesday 1st July and starts at 7:00pm (finishing at around 9:00pm) in the Parish Hall at Our Lady of Apostles, 141 Woodhall Lane, Welwyn Garden City, Herts AL7 3TP. Please join us in this important act of solidarity and prayer.

Please see below for a map of the area.