CNA Newsroom Mapping the Catholic Church, Healing the Earth

Molly Burhans at the Vatican Molly Burhans presents one of her maps to Pope Francis and Cardinal Peter Turkson (center) at the Vatican during summer 2018. / Vatican Media

The Catholic Church is one of the largest non-governmental owners of land in the entire world— by one estimate, the Church owns some 177 million acres. That land includes parish churches, cathedrals, hospitals, monasteries, convents, farms, schools, forests...even a few dubiously-purchased apartment buildings.

But a lot of that land isn’t serving the Church’s mission. A lot of it is underutilized, being used for some purpose that’s not ideal, or harming the environment; or, it’s simply gathering dust.

This week on the podcast, we'll talk to Molly Burhans, a Catholic scientist and mapmaker who is using high-tech maps to make the Church more sustainable, and more effective at Her mission.

Listen here, or on any podcast app:

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