By Christina Bagaglio Slentz
Just one month before the publication of Pope Francis’ encyclical “Laudato Si” (On Care for Our Common Home), Cardinal Robert W. McElroy was installed as the sixth bishop of San Diego on April 15, 2015.
Ten years later, he leaves behind an incredible legacy of caring for creation as he departs for his installation as the archbishop of Washington, D.C. There, he will undoubtedly continue to stress that creation is a gift to humanity and that we are responsible for preserving this gift for future generations.
As the Creation Care Ministry formally established under his leadership, we bid him “fair winds and following seas” on his new adventure and offer in gratitude this brief review of the landmark actions taken here during his tenure.
‘Integrated Prism of Analysis’
One of the main things that Cardinal McElroy did throughout his time as bishop was to revive and elevate our ancient Church teachings on creation care through homilies, speeches, interviews and articles. A consistent theme has been his characterization of today’s environmental crisis as a complex, multifaceted challenge, demanding a sophisticated and collaborative response from the whole human family to restore the integrity of creation and ensure human flourishing for all people.
Shortly after his arrival, he launched just such a response, solarizing the Pastoral Center and encouraging parishes to follow suit. Today, with over 55% of parishes having solarized, the diocese as a whole is tracking very close to the Paris Climate Agreement, which calls for a 50% reduction of carbon emissions by 2030 to prevent average global surface temperatures from rising above 2 degrees Celsius. 195 countries, including the Vatican, are signatories to this international treaty.
Another collaborative action was the development of a diocesan Creation Care Ministry, which started with a multidisciplinary committee of expert volunteers. This team produced and presented eco-education and spirituality workshops and, at the cardinal’s request, launched a tree-planting program. To date, over 200 trees have been donated for planting at our parishes and schools, and we now own a “crop” of over 500 young oaks.
Drawing inspiration from the Archdiocese of Atlanta, the committee also published one of the first diocesan Creation Care Action Plans in the country, explaining global environmental and energy dynamics and identifying local actions that can be taken. This plan can be found on the Creation Care diocesan webpage and still serves as a valuable menu from which parishes, schools and households can develop their own plans.
In his welcoming remarks to the plan, Cardinal McElroy wrote, “We as the Catholic community of San Diego and Imperial Counties must adopt a radical new commitment to such goals if we as a planet are to survive meaningfully and hand on a life-giving existence to the coming generation … We must work closely with science and recognize the immensely vital role that children and young people will have in transforming our mindsets and our choices that despoil the earth. And we must reject complacency, the greatest foe of all.”
At the behest of this volunteer committee, in the summer of 2022, Cardinal McElroy approved the institution of a formal associate director in the Office for Life, Peace and Justice to lead the ministry. Shortly after, the diocese enrolled in the Vatican’s “Laudato Si” Action Platform, pledging to take action every year for seven years or more. The following year, the Diocese of San Diego was recognized by the Catholic Climate Covenant as the national “Laudato Si Champion.” And in 2024, the diocese became the first in the U.S. to announce successful divestment from fossil fuels.
Dignitatis Humanae
Cardinal McElroy’s coat of arms includes the yellow field representative of the Diocese of San Diego as well as his own personally chosen blue and green fields. The missions of San Francisco and San Diego are set against the blue while the images of a dove, an oak leaf, and a set of scales inhabit the green, symbolizing peace, life and justice. “DIGNITATIS HUMANAE” declares his motto.
Ultimately, it is human dignity at stake as we hear the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor and marginalized. Cardinal McElroy has argued repeatedly that today’s crisis is the result of our estrangement from God, born of selfishness, a thirst for control, and radical individualism. To return to right relationship with our Creator and each other, he contends that “Laudato Si” shows “the pathway forward for us to move from alienation toward healing and the renewal of the earth.”
He has set a profound example for us all. We will miss him.
