Pope Veritaspac I
If not out of a sense of journalistic responsibility, then self-flagellation, we downloaded and printed Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si.’ It is about 76 pages formatted as a typical Word page. Eleven pages of that consists of references /footnotes. The length makes it larger than other encyclicals we have reviewed in our Papal Pages. It is over twice as long as Pope Leo XIII’s Rerum Novarum and substantially longer than Pope Pius XI Quadragesimo Anno.
Reading the first five pages we noticed Pope Francis is not shy about using the “I ” word. Maybe we are being picky, but at ten or eleven times, even given that it is the introduction, we do not remember seeing it being used at all in the other encyclicals we reviewed. As a double check we glanced through his lengthy exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, and did notice it’s use there as well, The I word use by this most humble of Pope’s surprised us. We take it to mean he is speaking for himself.
Anyway, the first two paragraphs were far more startling to our theological sensitivities:
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”.[1]
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. Gen 2:7); our very bodies are made up of her elements, we breathe her air and we receive life and refreshment from her waters.
Simply a mimic of St Francis anthropomorphizing? Perhaps — but we think it unnecessary and theologically disconcerting. It smacks of an animist appeal or dialogue. Indeed what is next . . . In the name of the Father, The Son, The Holy Spirit, and Sister Gaia??
We will offer some more extensive excerpts and comments in coming days but for today the articles linked below by astute observers of the papal seen serve very well..
Howie Carr at the Boston Herald writes: Encyclical a lot of papal hot air
Strief writing at Red State opines: The Environmental Encyclical and the assault on Faith and Reason . . . the Gnostics have finally won
DLH and R Mall
