Laudato si

By: Beatrice E. Rangel - 22/04/2025

Share:     

Laudato Si, My Lord! With these words from the beautiful hymn to Brother Sun by Saint Francis of Assisi begins the encyclical left to us by Pope Francis.

Laudato Si' is perhaps the most profound reflection ever made by any protagonist in our universal history on the relationship between nature and humanity. Because for the first time, this relationship is defined as a ring of identities that complement and enrich each other, but which also run the risk of degenerating into a destructive plasma when the rings separate. The encyclical continues the Franciscan thought that states that life is one, with diverse and very rich manifestations that are expressed in flora, fauna, and humanity. And being part of this vital ring, human actions can be enriching or destructive. And in both cases, humankind must choose between enriching their own nature by caring for sister earth or degrading themselves to the point of annihilation by breaking the bond between their existence and that of the earth. In the language of St. Francis, "Praise be to you, my Lord, through our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, and who produces various fruits with colorful flowers and herbs."

This description of man's relationship with nature is diametrically opposed to the one that predominates in all treatises on environmental protection. Because most of these treatises are based on the erroneous idea that the environment is a human possession that should be treated as all other possessions are. But the Franciscan view holds that since man is part of nature, there is no room for possession, but rather for mutual enrichment. Therefore, treatment should be the same as man gives himself. And here the Christian circle closes, because the dilemma is placed within Jesus' commandment: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

Placing the environmental dilemma within these dimensions makes it easier to protect it. Because by considering it part of the human being, its protection is similar to that we accord to children, and therefore it becomes a natural behavior that defines human beings and does not require regulations and norms because it is their natural behavior. Only through this interpretation of the relationship between man and the earth is it possible to avoid conflicts between people and nations, natural disasters, and the depletion of our human essence. In the words of Pope Francis, “Sister Earth now cries out to us for the harm we have inflicted upon her through 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, with the right 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 land, in the water, in the air, and in all forms of life. Therefore, the earth itself, burdened and devastated, finds itself among the most abandoned and mistreated of our poor.”

Solutions to environmental care must be humane, not merely technological, as we seem to insist on applying. A change in humanity is required so that each individual sees their fellow humans and the flora and fauna as links in a chain called creation, which, when one link is lost, self-destructs. Seeking answers in technology only serves to treat the symptoms. We must think as Saint Francis did, replacing consumption with sacrifice, greed with generosity, waste with a spirit of sharing. It is liberation from fear, covetousness, and coercion that makes us human. And Francis urges us as Christians to "embrace the world as a sacrament of communion, as a way of sharing with God and with our neighbors on a global scale. In the conviction that the divine and the human meet in the smallest detail, in the seamless garment of God's creation, in the last speck of dust on our planet."

These were the ideas that inspired Francis's papacy and for which he fought daily. These ideas today inspire many young people who mourn his passing, bidding him farewell with a Laudato Si!

«The opinions published herein are the sole responsibility of its author».