Yet all is not lost. Human beings, while capable of the worst, are also capable of rising above themselves, choosing again what is good and making a new start, despite their mental and social conditioning.
Pope Francis
Extreme heat
“Across the United States this week, millions of people are experiencing record-breaking temperatures – again. In cities like Phoenix, Chicago, Detroit and New York, the heat is not just uncomfortable; it’s life-threatening. For unhoused people, for elders without air conditioning, for farmworkers and outdoor laborers and for children in under-resourced neighborhoods where shade is scarce and pavement radiates heat, the climate crisis is not a future threat – it is a daily emergency. This scorching summer is reminding us again that it is our most vulnerable neighbors who suffer the most from extreme heat.
The truth is not all communities are equally equipped to handle this heat. Low-income neighborhoods—often communities of color—have fewer trees, more pavement and less access to cooling centers. This “urban heat gap” is the result of decades of disinvestment and environmental racism.
We believe that no one should die of heat in one of the wealthiest nations in the world. No elder should suffer in a stifling apartment because they cannot afford electricity. No child should play in a yard where the ground is too hot to touch. And no farmworker should collapse in a field due to a lack of water or rest breaks. There’s a lot we can do to protect our neighbors and advocate for a more just, climate-resilient future:
- Check in on elderly or unhoused neighbors. A drink of water or ride to a cooling center can save a life.
- Share your A/C (if you’re able) or if you live in Southeast Michigan, help someone find a nearby public space to cool down.
- Support basic protections like shade, water and rest breaks for those who grow our food here.
- Urge American International Group Inc. to stop insuring fossil fuels and respect Indigenous rights here.
- Urge the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to implement immediate heat standards here.
- Click here to join monthly virtual calls, training sessions and direct advocacy on policies like clean energy permitting and carbon pricing.
- Join Extinction Rebellion, a decentralized, international and politically non-partisan movement using non-violent direct action and civil disobedience to persuade governments to act justly on the Climate and Ecological Emergency.
Did you know?
A new rite, published by the Vatican July 3, 2025, will allow priests to celebrate a Mass to urge Catholics to exercise care for the Earth. For centuries, Catholic priests have been able to celebrate special Masses to pray for their country, give thanks after a harvest or ask God to end a natural disaster. The new “Mass for the care of creation,” prepared by two Vatican offices, allows priests to pray that Catholics will “lovingly care” for creation and “learn to live in harmony with all creatures.” “This new thematic Mass indicates the Church’s recognition of the serious threats human-caused climate change is now fully realizing,” said Rev. Bruce Morrill, a Jesuit priest and expert on Catholic liturgy at Vanderbilt University.
You may find the IHM Justice, Peace and Sustainability Office’s web materials useful for your committee work, presentations, mission units, ministry and other educational purposes. Be sure to check out our regularly updated online resources HERE.