Pope Francis releases ecology encyclical
People need an “ecological conversion” from a throwaway mentality that has turned the earth into a dumping ground, Pope Francis said in a landmark teaching document Thursday that some see as a “game-changer” in pushing for action on climate change.
Fossil fuels need to be “progressively replaced without delay,” Francis said in the highly anticipated encyclical in which he affirmed the science of humancaused global warming and warned it is aggravating poverty, creating climate refugees and will likely spawn wars over water and other resources.
Addressing his document not only to his Catholic flock but all of humanity, the pope said humans
have become so self-focused they don’t understand their interconnection with nature or their reliance on it.
People need to reject a “magic conception of the market” in thinking that what’s good for business is good for the environment, the pope said, and instead recognize that “responsible stewardship” for the planet is not an option but is central to a life of faith.
He said people have misunderstood the biblical notion of human dominion over the earth, acting like the “master over the world, which gave the impression that the protection of nature was something that only the faint-hearted cared about.”
Although previous popes have often lamented ecological degradation in their talks and documents, this was the first papal encyclical — a high form of teaching document — to address the topic exclusively. And it was also unprecedented in that it was anticipated months in advance, with people on all sides of the climate debate trying to influence reaction to it.
The encyclical is named “Laudato Si,” or “Praise to You.” It comes from opening to “The Canticle of the Sun,” a classic hymn in celebration of creation composed by the 12th century St. Francis of Assisi, the patron of the environment from whom the current pontiff took his name.
Today, the pope lamented, “The earth, our home, is beginning to look more and more like an immense pile of filth.”
Pittsburgh Bishop David Zubik called the document a “pastoral reflection” that is well within the purview of the pope’s office.
Although Bishop Zubik said he’s concerned some will spin it politically, the pastoral message is that “we have to take care of creation,” beginning with one’s own consumption.
And Francis’ concern for the impact of environmental degradation on the poor is “an important gospel theme, and an important theme of his papacy,” the bishop said.
Bishop Zubik distributed a question-and-answer sheet to priests in advance of the encyclical, defending the pope against those who contend he lacks authority on such topics.
The science of humancaused climate change, Bishop Zubik wrote, is as solid as the link between cigarettes and cancer, but he said even those who disagree should take up the pope’s message of respect for creation.
“We’re not called to live our faith grudgingly or to assent to its teachings as minimally as possible,” Bishop Zubik wrote, but rather “to overflow in our love and generosity towards others, and in our humility and docility to our church.”
The implications of the pope’s call for a switch from fossil-based to renewable energies would be profound, not least in Pennsylvania with its boom in natural gas drilling and its longstanding coal industry.
Industry groups responded by saying such fuels can be used safely and in fact benefit the poor.
“There’s a direct correlation between low-cost reliable energy and quality of life,” such as clean water and food refrigeration, said John Pippy, chief executive officer of the Pennsylvania Coal Alliance.
“I’d be happy to share, with the pope and others, success stories about how we can take this resource and use it in a way that’s environmentally sustainable and provides low-cost energy.”
But others applauded the document.
John Smetanka, assistant professor of physics and a vice president at Saint Vincent College, a Catholic school in Latrobe, said the pope was right to embrace the scientific consensus on human-caused climate change.
“The pope’s calling for conversion, for us to really change the way we’re thinking about the way we’re affecting the world,” he said. With all the talk about whether the climate is nearing a tipping point toward irreversible catastrophe, “the pope is calling on us to get to the tipping point in our souls where we’re called to action.”
Saint Vincent student Jennifer Urban of Glassport said the pope’s encyclical encouraged her in her environmental activism, which has included work to combat overconsumption of goods and volunteering at local nature programs.
She said her faith motivates her to “to be a servant not only to one another but to animal species and the natural habitat around us.”
Bishop Zubik said individuals could take first steps by getting more energy efficiency in their homes, schools, vehicles and elsewhere.
The encyclical draws from a wide range of sources, including statements by bishops’ conferences around the world, historic saints of the church and recent popes, including his predecessor, Benedict XVI, who installed solar panels at the Vatican and was known as the “green pope.”
“This document is not the voice of Pope Francis alone,” said Janet Puppo, adjunct theology professor at Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio. “He speaks with the voices of all those who speak the truth of the Catholic faith.”