Daily Visual 18.06.15: Pope Francis’ Environmental Encyclical

Today Pope Francis issued his eagerly awaited encyclical on the issue of the environment, ‘Laudato Si’ (Be Praised), On Care for Our Common Home’. Its opening passages read:

‘1. “LAUDATO SI’, mi’ Signore” – “Praise be to you, my Lord”. In the words of this beautiful canticle, Saint Francis of Assisi reminds us that our common home is like a sister with whom we share our life and a beautiful mother who opens her arms to embrace us. “Praise be to you, my Lord, through our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, and who produces various fruit with coloured flowers and herbs”.

2. This sister now cries out to us because of the harm we have inflicted on her by our irresponsible use and abuse of the goods with which God has endowed her. We have come to see ourselves as her lords and masters, entitled to plunder her at will. The violence present in our hearts, wounded by sin, is also reflected in the symptoms of sickness evident in the soil, in the water, in the air and in all forms of life. This is why the earth herself, burdened and laid waste, is among the most abandoned and maltreated of our poor; she “groans in travail” (Rom 8:22). We have forgotten that we ourselves are dust of the earth (cf. Gen2:7); our very bodies are made up of her elements, we breathe her air and we receive life and refreshment from her waters.

Nothing in this world is indifferent to us

3. More than fifty years ago, with the world teetering on the brink of nuclear crisis, Pope Saint John XXIII wrote an Encyclical which not only rejected war but offered a proposal for peace. He addressed his message Pacem in Terris to the entire “Catholic world” and indeed “to all men and women of good will”. Now, faced as we are with global environmental deterioration, I wish to address every person living on this planet. In my Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, I wrote to all the members of the Church with the aim of encouraging ongoing missionary renewal. In this Encyclical, I would like to enter into dialogue with all people about our common home.’

The document comprises six chapters, with sections on everything from ‘The issue of water’ and ‘Loss of biodiversity’ to ‘Decline in the quality of human life and the breakdown of society’ and ‘Global inequality’, ‘The message of each creature in the harmony of creation’ and ‘The gaze of Jesus’, and ‘Dialogue and transparency in decision-making’.

Across its 184 pages, Pope Francis criticises relentless environmental exploitation undertaken by wealthy corporations in pursuit of profits. He stresses that the burden of climate change often falls upon the poorest members of society living in the most hazardous regions of the world, and emphasises the need for a global political solution while encouraging every individual to show concern and take action.

Pope Francis argues that ‘our immense technological development has not been accompanied by a development in human responsibility, values and conscience’; and he warns ‘If present trends continue, this century may well witness extraordinary climate change and an unprecedented destruction of ecosystems, with serious consequences for all of us.’

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The encyclical was published online at noon today, in five languages. It was launched by the Ghanaian cardinal Peter Turkson, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace since 2009, and a close ally of the pope. Turkson’s office was responsible for a draft of the encyclical earlier this year. Alongside Turkson sat metropolitan of Pergamon John Zizioulas, who became the first high-ranking Eastern Orthodox official to co-present a papal document.

In the encyclical, Pope Francis draws in two passages from the leader of the Eastern Orthodox Church, Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople. Among other religious figures, he cites John Paul II and Benedict XVI, Saint Thomas Aquinas, and the ninth-century Sufi-Muslim mystic poet Ali al-Khawas.

The release of ‘Laudato Si’‘ comes ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference to be held in Paris later this year, from 30 November to 11 December. Bringing together international political leaders, the conference is aiming – for the first time in over 20 years of UN negotiations – to produce a binding and universal global agreement on climate.

Papal encyclicals are the second-highest-ranking documents issued by popes – behind only Apostolic Constitutions, which are issued as papal bulls and addressed to the public, and can define dogma or modify the rules governing the Church. Encyclicals may cover a wide range of subjects, and may be sent only to a select group of bishops, or issued to a wider public.

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‘Laudato Si’‘ published in full: http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_20150524_enciclica-laudato-si.html

The full two-hour presentation of ‘Laudato Si’‘: