Ten years ago, Pope Francis released Laudato Si’, a written work that changed how many people understood the relationship between faith, ecology, and justice. This document served as a warning and a profound call to hope in the face of growing climate disruption, global inequality, and a general lack of connection to the land. It challenges us to change the way we look and feel, to see the Earth as a shared home to love and care for rather than as a resource to be exploited.
What makes Laudato Si’ so powerful is its simplicity. At its core is the idea that everything is connected. How we treat the Earth, how we treat the poor, how we live in relationship with each other and the natural world—these are not separate issues. When we pollute a river, it’s not just an environmental concern; it’s also a spiritual one and a social one.
The hope that Laudato Si’ invites us into isn’t grounded in blind optimism but in the steady work of courage and commitment. Hope, in this context, might look like tending a garden. It might look like choosing simplicity, resisting waste, or showing up for your neighbour. It looks like recognizing that our personal lives and choices are bound up with broader systems and that change begins with intention.
This September, a decade after Pope Francis shared this message with the world, Ignatius Jesuit Centre is hosting a retreat that brings the words of Laudato Si’ to life. Rather than just studying the text, participants will explore its spirit through shared reflection, time in nature, hands-on ecological practice, and community. Led by Greg Kennedy, a poet, theologian, and long-time advocate for spiritual ecology, the retreat offers a chance to pause and ask: What does this call to care for creation really look like in my life? What does it ask of us now? This isn’t a silent retreat, nor is it a lecture series. It’s something more embodied. Through daily rhythms of reflection, conversation, creative practice, and physical engagement with the land, participants are invited to experience Laudato Si’ not just as a text, but as a way of being.
Greg Kennedy has spent years exploring the themes of Laudato Si’ through writing, farming, theology, and lived experience. He brings not only knowledge of the text but also a deep commitment to helping others find their own response to its call. His facilitation will weave together personal reflection, theological insight, ecological engagement, and creative practice—all grounded in the Ignatian tradition of discernment and care.
This retreat is for anyone feeling the weight of the world and longing for a more meaningful way to engage with the world. You don’t need to be Catholic or religious at all. If you care about the Earth, if you feel the tension between the beauty of creation and the reality of its destruction, if you want to explore what it means to live a more grounded, purposeful life, this retreat offers space to do that in community. In a world that often asks us to move faster, consume more, and numb ourselves to crisis, this retreat offers a different path: slow down, pay attention, and return to what’s essential. Whether you are already familiar with Laudato Si’ or encountering it for the first time, you are welcome. The door is open.
The retreat runs from the evening of September 23 through the afternoon of September 28 at Loyola House, with options for private rooms (standard or ensuite). More information and registration details are available at https://ignatiusguelph.ca/events/laudato-si-2025/.
