Francis, the pope who put the Church in green mode

 

ACI Prensa Staff, May 2, 2025 / 12:46 pm (CNA).

“Everything is connected,” Pope Francis wrote — five times — in his encyclical Laudato Si’. Since its publication in 2015, this text has become a reference for environmental protection and an uncomfortable reminder for many others: The earth is wounded, and humanity with it.

With Laudato Si’: On the Care of Our Common Home, Pope Francis echoed the words of St. Francis of Assisi, who considered all of creation “like a sister with whom we share our life and a beautiful mother who opens her arms to embrace us” (LS, 1).

The Holy Father deemed it opportune to raise his voice in defense of the planet, “because of the harm we cause it through the irresponsible use and abuse of the goods with which God has endowed her” (LS, 2). The violence within the human heart, wounded by sin, is also manifested in the damage to the earth.

Welcomed by some and rejected by others, both within and outside the Catholic world, Laudato Si’ emerged as one of the most important documents of Francis’ pontificate.

Its detractors have criticized the encyclical for downplaying other concerns for Catholics, such as working directly with the poor. They have also expressed their disagreement with the pope’s proposal to eliminate fossil fuels.

The Catholic Church in green mode

Based on his “ecological” magisterium, Francis adopted practical measures to align the Catholic Church with environmental protection and the fight against climate change.

In 2021, the Laudato Si’ Platform was launched as a concrete action for Christian communities to apply the teachings of the encyclical. The Vatican also committed to reducing emissions to net zero in its territory by 2050.

In 2023, the Holy Father declared plastic “banned” in Vatican City and emphasized that the pollution caused by this material is a threat to life.

More recently, and among many other projects, the Vatican received a series of electric cars to promote sustainable mobility and reduce pollution. Two of them were specially adapted for Pope Francis.

Legacy of Laudato Si’

“It has permeated not only the discourse but also the praxis of Christian communities,” said Jesuit Father Jaime Tatay, who holds a doctorate in moral theology and is a professor at the Pontifical University of Comillas in Spain.

Although it is the first encyclical on care of the environment, Laudato Si’ actually includes “many references to other documents and pastoral letters from bishops’ conferences that had already been written on this topic,” Tatay pointed out in an interview with ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner.

“Pope Francis collects, compiles, structures, and synthesizes all of that previous teaching. So, on the one hand, it’s true that it’s new, but on the other, it’s also true that it’s not so new, in the sense that he simply shapes and elevates it, thanks to the authority with which he speaks on these issues,” said the Jesuit, who received a Vatican award for his work on integral ecology and sustainability.

For the Spanish priest, the legacy of Laudato Si’ can be broken down into three areas: an ethical dimension, an ascetic dimension, and a sacramental dimension. The ethical dimension, according to Tatay, is evident in Pope Francis’ constant critique of the social crisis facing human communities, which then inevitably lead to environmental crises.

The Holy Father spoke of human greed, a condition that worsens as the modern world promotes self-referentiality and collective selfishness, neglecting concern for the most vulnerable, which includes our common home.

“Our concern cannot be limited merely to the threat of extreme weather events but must also extend to the catastrophic consequences of social unrest. Obsession with a consumerist lifestyle, above all when few people are capable of maintaining it, can only lead to violence and mutual destruction,” (LS, 204) he added.

Tatay also highlighted an ascetic dimension, through which Pope Francis called for the recovery of “a sober, simple life, a critique of waste and the throwaway culture.”

In addition, the Jesuit referred to a sacramental dimension, with which the Holy Father sought to demonstrate “that the created world is not only matter and energy but is a gift, a gift from God.”

“Typically, we approach nature with the typical tools of the natural sciences. That’s why physics, chemistry, and biology are very important, but also important is this theological-sacramental view of reality: Creation is something we are called to care for sacramentally,” Tatay noted.

Laudato Si’ and ideological conflict

Although many believe that climate change and environmental activism have historically been linked to the political left, for the Spanish expert it is important to highlight that this “is not entirely true” and that, on the contrary, these issues “are neither right-wing nor left-wing.”

“Drinking clean water, eating quality food, breathing pollutant-free air, having a stable ecosystem, having predictable weather patterns — these are neither right-wing nor left-wing issues but matters for any human being who cares about where they live,” the Jesuit pointed out.

For Tatay, the Catholic Church can help alleviate political polarization “not only on environmental issues but on many others” and be a space where reconciliation can be achieved, “a meeting place for different positions.”

“I’m not saying that the Church doesn’t have its tensions and trends like any human group, because otherwise it wouldn’t be human, but we Catholics must be very cautious and not identify the legitimate schools of thought within our own house, within our tradition, with political parties,” the Spanish priest commented.

Laudato Si’ and Christian hope

In the midst of the Jubilee of Hope, for Tatay, it is important to remember the concrete actions that emerged from the ecological teachings of Pope Francis, which are very varied “depending on where we are in the world.”

“There have been bishops’ conferences, congregations, dioceses, parishes, and schools that have taken this issue seriously and have launched, for example, integral ecology teams. Dioceses and congregations have also made a commitment to incorporating all these issues into their education, into the management of their buildings, and into the management of resources,” the Jesuit said.

Due to the broad scope of the Catholic Church, the priest finds it difficult to gain a clear picture of the encyclical’s implications. However, he said he believes that “we are on the right path… We have become increasingly aware that caring for creation, caring for our common home, is part of our mission.”

The ecological action to which Pope Francis calls, he said, becomes much more complicated in the poorest countries and the neediest regions. This “highlights the obvious: that the human, social, and environmental aspects are closely connected.”

“The Church has been fighting against injustice, poverty, and misery for 2,000 years, and these realities continue to exist, so we must not lose hope. Pope Francis teaches us that we cannot be blind, ignore, or run away from these realities, but neither can we fall into despair,” Tatay noted.

In this sense, the Holy Father’s legacy “is an important one that will remain with us forever,” he concluded.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.