Laudato Si’, Pope Francis’s encyclical on caring for all creation, was published 10 years ago. It is among the most powerful and profound faith-based documents calling all humanity to recognize that the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor are the same cry.
In Laudato Si’, Pope Francis wrote, “Many things have to change course, but it is we human beings above all who need to change.” (#202)
Some of those changes are very practical: for example, driving fewer miles and eating less meat are two of the most effective changes individuals can make in terms of decreasing negative impacts on earth and the poor.
Some of those changes are profound, touching on the way we see the world and on our theology. Franciscan spirituality offers a great deal here as Saint Francis considered all of life to be his kin. Wolves and birds, the sun and moon, flowers and trees, all were brother and sister. And we naturally seek to love and care for our siblings.
