SHU Theatre Screens The Letter, an Environmental Film
Documentary, inspired by Pope Francis, urges citizens to take steps toward sustainability
Sacred Heart University’s Laudato Si’ Action Platform (LSAP) recently presented The Letter: A Message for Our Earth, a documentary inspired by writings from Pope Francis. The screening took place at the SHU Community Theatre.
The pope wrote Laudato Si’ (Praise Be to You), an encyclical—or message—warning of humans’ impact on the Earth and its inhabitants. With the subtitle “On Care for Our Common Home,” the papal statement is directed to all people, not just Catholics, and outlines the environmental and social issues facing the world.
Award-winning documentary filmmaker Nicolas Brown directed The Letter. Laudato Si’ Movement, a Catholic organization dedicated to environmental causes, produced the 2022 film with Off the Fence Productions, which has created a host of feature-length documentaries.
The Letter follows four individuals—from Senegal, the Amazon, India and Hawaii—who travel to Rome to meet with the pope and share their thoughts about poor, indigenous and young people, as well as wildlife. Emotional personal stories unfold, along with the latest information about the planetary crisis.
Sacred Heart’s LSAP is particularly focused on the pope’s seven-year action plan to implement environmental sustainability and social justice both on campus and the neighboring communities.
Chelsea J. King, assistant professor in SHU’s Catholic studies department and the University’s LSAP chair, moderated a panel discussion after the film screening. She said she was thrilled with the opportunity to present such an important documentary—the Sacred Heart LSAP’s first public event.
“Last year, Pope Francis sent out a call to all Catholic universities to become members of a platform that would be charged with living out some of the main objectives of his Laudato Si’. At Sacred Heart, LSAP is made up of faculty, students and staff, and we are committed to organizing various events and initiatives that can help SHU live out this call. Screening The Letter was our chance to directly engage with the public,” she said.
Panelists included Ashley Stoehr, biology department assistant professor; Ilona Farkas, a SHU marine science student and environmental club member, and LSAP committee members June-Ann Greeley, languages & literature and Catholic studies professor, and David Loranger, fashion marketing assistant professor.
Each panelist shared their thoughts after the screening. Stoehr said she recognized hope for the world but cautioned, “It’s difficult for scientists to communicate data in the big picture, and we need to give people the space to get engaged. Simply, strive to be the change you want to see in the world.”
Farkas was pleased to see that “faith and science aren’t exclusive.” Greeley said it was a “joy to hear the peripheral voices,” adding that people need to think of themselves as “part of an orchestra to forge innovative plans” and to be more contemplative of what they do with their lives each day.
Loranger believes mankind’s biggest challenges will be considering each individual’s consumption of resources and rethinking the importance of profitability in light of the planet’s health. “It’s important to step back and see our grounding in nature,” Loranger said.
The film was presented as part of SHU’s Human Journey Colloquia Series. Matt Oestreicher, SHU Community Theatre director, said presenting the screening and discussion was a perfect way to incorporate environmental issues into the programming.
“We aim to present a diverse palette of programming at the theatre that provides entertainment and education to our community. We wanted to start a series on climate change that would inspire people to make small changes that could help contribute to sustainability,” said Oestreicher. SHU’s LSAP, focused on following the pope’s seven-year environmental initiative, “presented a natural alignment,” he said.
From left, are Ashley Stoehr, Ilona Farkas, June-Ann Greeley, David Loranger and Chelsea King