Pope's encyclical ignored?

The alleged rape of the Wilpattu National Park by the Chilaw Diocese of the Roman Catholic Church comes without heeding the encyclical of Pope Francis who has fervently urged his flock to ‘take good care of creation’, lamented many a Catholic.

“Just do a Google search for the Pope’s views on the destruction of the environment,” suggested one devotee who dealt at length with the Holy Father’s encyclical, which is a letter sent directly by him in Rome to all the Catholic churches worldwide.

This was while another was quick to point out that ‘care for creation’ is very close to the heart of the Pope, for he chose to be called Francis after St. Francis of Assisi, who is a saint well-known for his love of nature. The Pope is also of the strong belief that the “significant” ecological problems of this era need to be addressed.

While pointing out that the Pope has mentioned ‘integral ecology’ which includes both ‘human ecology’ and ‘natural ecology’, another Catholic says that Pope Francis has referred to many themes including pollution and climate change, the issue of water, loss of biodiversity (the extinction of plants, animals, etc.), decline in the quality of human life and the breakdown of society.

“Don’t we have enough shrines to St. Anthony across the country? Should we in his name destroy what little of nature we have left in our Protected Areas, questioned another furious Catholic. into focus the need to take a good look at shrines within all Protected Areas, said an environmentalist, a view echoed by many others.