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If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we also guide their whole bodies. It is the same with ships: even though they are so large and driven by fierce winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot's inclination wishes. In the same way the tongue is a small member and yet has great pretensions. Consider how small a fire can set a huge forest ablaze. The tongue is also a fire. It exists among our members as a world of malice, defiling the whole body and setting the entire course of our lives on fire, itself set on fire by Gehenna. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings who are made in the likeness of God. From...

The Holy Father once again has brought ecological issues squarely into the conversation about morality—about our relationship with God, His creation and with each other.

As reported by the Vatican Information Service,

Benedict XVI affirms that "the first step towards a correct relationship with the world around us is the recognition by humans of their status as created beings. Man is not God; he is His image. For this reason he must seek to be more sensitive to the presence of God in his surroundings. In all creatures, and especially in human beings, there is an epiphany, or manifestation, of God".

"The human being will be capable of respecting other creatures only if he keeps the full meaning of life in his own heart. Otherwise he will come to despise himself and his surroundings, and to disrespect the environment, the creation, in which he lives. For this reason, the first ecology to be defended is 'human ecology'. This is to say that, without a clear defense of human life from conception until natural death; without a defense of the family founded on marriage between a man and a woman;

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With Ash Wednesday comes the Lenten Season, a time of sacrifice and penance in preparation of the great celebration of the event that changed human history: Easter.

For Catholics, Lent means many things (or should, anyway). From those cardboard “rice bowls” to collect our spare change for charity, to abstaining from sweets, or wine, or what have you. But the biggest Lenten observation is giving up meat on Fridays (and, technically, on Ash Wednesday and other days, too.)

The history of giving up meat is a long one, and it's often a cause for not-so-friendly jokes aimed at Catholics. But behold, Catholic abstinence of meat not only helps us control our appetites, but it helps the planet, too.

A recent report published in Environmental Science and Technology dissects the damage of the beef industry to the ecology of South America, and, by extension, the globe. The study looked especially hard at how changes in land...

St. Augustine suggested that we be wary of cities of men and trust only in the City of God. But to watch some industrial giants portray their works—good ones for sure, and perhaps some not so good—you'd think that the solution for all human suffering is in their products and the skillful engineers who created them.

The Siemens ad below does just this. But remember the words of our Holy Father; true salvation comes not from science, but from love. (Spe Salvi, section 26.)

It sounds like something out of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, but sadly it's yet another study showing what happens when a climate changes. This latest news comes from the Arctic Sounder


A new study released in the scientific journal Ecology Letters offers one of the first confirmations of a wholesale shift in the boreal forest ecosystem due to climate change.

Among the findings, researchers said, is increased tree growth in the Western Alaska tundra margin.

Collaborators on the study, which compared three-ring data to satellite images, include Glenn Juday, a professor of forest ecology at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and co-author of the article.

"This is one of the first extensive analyses of annual growth and climate response of black spruce in Alaska," said Juday, who collaborated on the UAF research with Valerie Barber, Patricia Heiser and Emily Sousa.

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As reported in the Economic Times, a clash between security forces and local residents protesting the construction of a power plant resulted in two people shot dead and more injured.

Here’s some of the story:


NEW DELHI: A day after a violent protest by local farmers, Environment Ministry today ordered suspension of construction work of a power plant in Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh.

The Ministry sought a report by March 6 from the company East Coast Energy Pvt Ltd on compliance of conditions for environmental clearance.

The ongoing construction work related to the project should be "suspended forthwith", the Ministry said in its order with regard to the power plant.

It said the 2,640 MW Super Critical Coal plant was being constructed on wetland and cited recommendations of the Expert Appraisal Committee of the Ministry as a reason for order to suspend work.

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About the Blog

Catholic Ecology posts my regular column in the Rhode Island Catholic, as well as scientific and theological commentary about the latest eco-news, both within and outside of the Catholic Church. What is contained herein is but one person's attempt to teach and defend the Church's teachings - ecological and otherwise. As such, I offer all contents of this blog for approval of the bishops of the Church. It is my hope that nothing herein will lead anyone astray from truth.