A Search for the Spiritual Roots of Sustainable Development …
323
beings with disease by contaminating the earth’s waters, its land, its air, and its life, with
poisonous substances—all of these are sins. (Chryssavgis 2012)
The environment is not only a political or a technological issue; it is, as Patriarch
Bartholomew likes to underline, primarily a religious and spiritual issue (Ejdersten
2016). Environmental protection is intimately connected to and dependent on numerous other social issues of our times, including war and peace, justice and human rights,
poverty and unemployment. We have, in recent years, become increasingly aware
of the effects of environmental degradation on people, and especially the poor. The
term ‘eco-justice’ has been used in religious circles to describe this interconnection.
Also in the Catholic Church a concern for the environment and sustainable development has risen to a main position. In his encyclical Laudato Si (“Praised Be”) from
2015
5 Pope Francis strives to “enter into dialogue with all people about our common
home.” The encyclical has the subtitle “On Care For Our Common Home”. In the
text the Pope criticizes consumerism and irresponsible development, environmental
degradation and global warming, and argues that these are the result of the developed world’s indifference to the destruction of the planet in its pursuit of short-term
economic gains, and calls all people of the world to take “swift and unified global
action”.
Pope Francis sees the warming of the planet as a symptom of a greater problem:
that humans no longer see God as the Creator but rather consider “other living beings
as mere objects subjected to arbitrary human domination”.
Also in the Catholic Faith one may trace the roots of concern about Nature and the
environment back to Biblical times.
6 Francis argues that “caring for creation is as old
as Genesis, as clear as the Sermon on the Mount, as transformative as St. Francis” (of
Assisi of the thirteenth century). His pledge for a moral and spiritual transformation
in our connection to Earth’s ecosystems is not new. In our times Popes John Paul
II and Benedict both spoke frequently about the Christian requirement to tend the
garden and protect the poorest. Caring for the creation is one of the seven tenants of
Catholic Social Teaching.
Pope Francis had an education as chemist before becoming a priest, and probably
understands the situation more than most religious leaders. He knows that all life
depends on clean air and water, and a stable and reliable climate and that the poor
suffer the most from economic and environmental injustice. He knows that climate
change is the greatest threat life our Earth has ever seen and that it is caused by
humans. Still he emphasize that the ecological crisis is a spiritual one. An important
focus of the encyclical is “the relationship between global poverty, catastrophic
inequality, and worship of the golden calf of consumerism that leads to environmental
destruction.” (see footnote 6).
5 Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’ (“Praised Be”) of the holy father Francis on the care for our
common home. http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_
20150524_enciclica-laudato-si.html.
6 Earth Ministry. http://earthministry.org/advocacy/pope-francis-encyclical-on-the-environment/.
323
beings with disease by contaminating the earth’s waters, its land, its air, and its life, with
poisonous substances—all of these are sins. (Chryssavgis 2012)
The environment is not only a political or a technological issue; it is, as Patriarch
Bartholomew likes to underline, primarily a religious and spiritual issue (Ejdersten
2016). Environmental protection is intimately connected to and dependent on numerous other social issues of our times, including war and peace, justice and human rights,
poverty and unemployment. We have, in recent years, become increasingly aware
of the effects of environmental degradation on people, and especially the poor. The
term ‘eco-justice’ has been used in religious circles to describe this interconnection.
Also in the Catholic Church a concern for the environment and sustainable development has risen to a main position. In his encyclical Laudato Si (“Praised Be”) from
2015
5 Pope Francis strives to “enter into dialogue with all people about our common
home.” The encyclical has the subtitle “On Care For Our Common Home”. In the
text the Pope criticizes consumerism and irresponsible development, environmental
degradation and global warming, and argues that these are the result of the developed world’s indifference to the destruction of the planet in its pursuit of short-term
economic gains, and calls all people of the world to take “swift and unified global
action”.
Pope Francis sees the warming of the planet as a symptom of a greater problem:
that humans no longer see God as the Creator but rather consider “other living beings
as mere objects subjected to arbitrary human domination”.
Also in the Catholic Faith one may trace the roots of concern about Nature and the
environment back to Biblical times.
6 Francis argues that “caring for creation is as old
as Genesis, as clear as the Sermon on the Mount, as transformative as St. Francis” (of
Assisi of the thirteenth century). His pledge for a moral and spiritual transformation
in our connection to Earth’s ecosystems is not new. In our times Popes John Paul
II and Benedict both spoke frequently about the Christian requirement to tend the
garden and protect the poorest. Caring for the creation is one of the seven tenants of
Catholic Social Teaching.
Pope Francis had an education as chemist before becoming a priest, and probably
understands the situation more than most religious leaders. He knows that all life
depends on clean air and water, and a stable and reliable climate and that the poor
suffer the most from economic and environmental injustice. He knows that climate
change is the greatest threat life our Earth has ever seen and that it is caused by
humans. Still he emphasize that the ecological crisis is a spiritual one. An important
focus of the encyclical is “the relationship between global poverty, catastrophic
inequality, and worship of the golden calf of consumerism that leads to environmental
destruction.” (see footnote 6).
5 Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’ (“Praised Be”) of the holy father Francis on the care for our
common home. http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_
20150524_enciclica-laudato-si.html.
6 Earth Ministry. http://earthministry.org/advocacy/pope-francis-encyclical-on-the-environment/.