On the 4th of October, the Holy Father published the apostolic Exhortation “Laudate Deum” which completes and details the 2015 Encyclical, “Laudate Si”. The Pope justifies the name (“Laudate Deum” – to God be praise) in the following way: “because the human being who intends to take the place of God becomes the worst danger to himself”.
With this new exhortation, the Pope wants to make an appeal for co-responsibility in the face of the emergency of climate change, because the world “is falling apart and perhaps approaching a breaking point“. It is one of the “greatest challenges facing society and the global community”, “the effects of climate change always fall on the most vulnerable people“, “Within a few years, many thousands of people will have to move their homes“. Africa, for example, that “is home to more than half of the world’s poorest people, is responsible for only a tiny part of emissions in the past“.
In fact, it is not just about talking about the environmental conservation of the planet and taking concrete actions to preserve this common home, it is also a question of human dignity, of caring for our poorest and most vulnerable brothers.
“I am forced to make these points, which may seem obvious, because of certain ridiculous and non-rational opinions that I encounter even within the Catholic Church.“.Unfortunately, some manifestations of this climate crisis have already been irreversible for at least hundreds of years. AND “a broader vision is urgently needed… all that is asked of us is a certain responsibility for the legacy that we will leave in the wake of our passage here on earth“.
In the second chapter, Francisco speaks of the technocratic paradigm that “consists, essentially, in thinking as if reality, the good and the truth spontaneously blossom from the very power of technology and economics” based on the idea of a human being without limits. “Humanity has never had so much power over itself, and there is no guarantee that it will use it well, especially if we consider the way in which it is doing so… It is tremendously risky that it resides in a small part of humanity“. The world around us is an object of exploration, unbridled use, limitless ambition”
The apostolic exhortation is available for reading at the link above and deserves careful reflection and a much-needed change of attitude.
