Italian version of eco-encyclical leaked; Vatican says it’s only a draft (Updated)

Leading Vaticanista Sandro Magister has posted on the website of Italian magazine L’Espresso what appears to be the complete Italian text of Pope Francis’ widely anticipated encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si (the PDF can be found here).

The Vatican Press Office was quick to respond to the leaking of the document, which is under embargo until Thursday, and maintained that the published version is a draft and not the final text.

Laudato Si is Pope Francis’ second encyclical; the first, Lumen Fidei, was published just over three months after his election as pope in 2013, and was largely built upon the work of his predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.

It will be officially released on Thursday, June 18.

UPDATE 6/16: The Vatican Press Office has suspended Magister’s press accreditation because of the leak. John Allen has more context on the leak and Magister’s role in it over at Crux.


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About Catherine Harmon 577 Articles
Catherine Harmon is managing editor of Catholic World Report.