PowerPoint Presentation

THE ECOLOGY ENCYCLICALof Pope Francis

An Inspiring Callto Contemplation and Action

BEECHWOOD, 20 October 2015

Donal DorrBACKGROUND It is good to be the PopeA Man with a Mission to offera more balanced and credible presentation of the challenging message of JesusA Radical Change of Emphasis in Catholic teachingThree Aspects1. LIBERATION: Active Encouragement and Support for Activists Struggling for Justice in Society- see Franciss Speeches to Activists3. HIS TEACHING ON ECOLOGY spelled out in his encyclical Laudato si2. Faith of Poor People as a Key Way of Hearing What God is Saying to Us see The Joy of the GospelRadical Development both in Catholic social teaching and inCatholic SpiritualityAbandons the former Vatican Suspicion of an Ecological SpiritualityOffers a Spirituality which is both Active and Contemplative The Ecology EncyclicalA BREAKTHROUGH DOCUMENTCOMPARABLE to Vatican II Document on The Church in Modern WorldPope Francis: Ecology Encyclical (LS):Loving awareness that we are not disconnected from the rest of creatures, but joined in a splendid universal communion (LS 220).

WEB OF LIFE & THE COSMOSA CONTEMPLATIVE SPIRITUALITYA Radical Alternative to much of Western Spirituality which is unduly Activist Be fully Present to Natureto scenery, the seasons, to the flowers, birds, animalsSerenely present to each reality ( 222)Relationship of St Francis with naturelike when we fall in love with someone ( 11)A CONTEMPLATIVE SPIRITUALITYNot just standing around, but standing around as though with your arms open and now I will tell you the truth:Everything in the world comesAt least, closerand, cordially (Mary Oliver)Deep communion with the rest of nature cannot be real if our hearts lack tenderness, compassion and concern for our fellow human beings ( 91)A Kind of Nature-MysticismLifts us out of Everyday Preoccupations: Gratitude for Gifts, Wonder, Harmony with Nature, no Frenetic Activity ( 225)Loving awareness that we are not disconnected from the rest of creatures, but joined in a splendid universal communion ( 220). Web of LifeNot Worried. Trust. Less is more ( 222)Further LevelExperience God in the GiftsMechtild of Magdeburg: The day of my spiritual awakening was the day I saw and knew that I saw God in all things and all things in GodI have seen the sun break throughto illumine a small fieldfor a while, and gone my wayand forgotten it. But that was the pearl of great price, the field that had the treasure in it. I realise nowthat I must give all that I haveto possess it. Life is not hurryingon to the receding future, nor hankering after an imagined past. It is the turningaside like Moses to the miracleof the lit bush, to a brightnessthat seemed as transitory as your youthonce, but it is eternity that awaits you.The Bright Field, by R. S. ThomasOur Call to Protect Creation not an optional or a secondary aspect of ChristianityPrayerful holy people who remain passive on ecological issues are not truly ChristianThis conversion brings about a Link between their Relationship to Jesus and their relationship to Nature, the Web of LifeWhat they need is an ecological conversion 217Francis Moves beyond a Human-Centred View of the World 116We are Close Kin to Other Speciessharing DNAHumans are an Integral Part ofthe Web of Life and the Web of the Cosmos Integral Ecology a Major Developmentin Catholic teachingWrong to view other living beings as mere objects subjected to arbitrary human domination ( 82)Wrong Interpretation of Bible TextsDominion Domination, Exploitation ( 67)Other Creatures have Intrinsic Worthnot dependent for their Value on Humansnot Resources to be Exploited by us 33Francis recognizes that the words in the Book of Genesis in Bible were wrongly interpreted at times in the pastThe Gift of the Earth with its Fruits belongs to Everyoneso share with the PoorTill and Keep the Garden of the World (cf. Genesis 2:15). ( 67)Sabbath and Jubilee: Rest for Animals and for the Earth as well as for HumansJesus lived in full harmony with creationJesus worked with his handsEnsure balance & fairness in relationships between the human inhabitants and in human relationship with the Land

Rest on the seventh day is meant not only for human beings, but also so that your ox and your donkey may have rest (Ex.23:12). Continuing Revelation 85 = Universe is Continuing to Evolve ??Evolution over 13,700,000,000 years,ever-increasing complexityNot Deterministic, not Predictable, Lonergan: Emergent ProbabilityThe New Story - Thomas Berry New Story Supplements and Enriches the Biblical Genesis StoryExperience Awe before the Complexity and Beauty of multiform creaturesWonder before the Process of Evolution: Emergence of Successive Levels of Complexity and Beauty.Experience the Universe as a Cosmic SymphonyTheology and Spirituality can be Enriched by taking account of Evolution revealed by modern science

Rather than a problem to be solved, the world is a joyful mystery to be contemplated with gladness and praise.Where do I find myself nourished in body and spirit by my relationship with nature?

2. Do I experience God in Nature? 1. Climate ChangeComprehensive Account of the Main Environmental IssuesMain Cause is Human ActivityChallenges Climate-Change Deniers and Sceptics 2. Pollution (and Waste) 3. Loss of Biodiversity

Turkana, in far north of Kenya

For human beings to degrade the integrity of the earth by causing changes in its climate, by stripping the earth of its natural forests or destroying its wetlands;

for human beings to contaminate the earths waters, its land, its air, and its life

- these are sins.

Amukoko on outskirts of Lagos, Nigeria

The Poor are the ones who suffer first and mostHear Both the Cry of the Earth and the Cry of the Poor ( 49)Soon: not thousands but millions of migrants due to climate change increasing deserts, storms, uncertain rains.

become painfully aware, to dare to turn what is happening to the world into our own personal suffering 19 THE WAY FORWARDTOWARDSAN INTEGRAL ECOLOGYWHICH RESPECTS THE EARTH AND HUMANS - ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO ARE POORSmall-scale Local Eco-friendly CooperativesECOLOGICAL ECONOMICSOur Life-styles: - Food - Transport - Energy Generation and ConservationFuture GenerationsWarning re Genetic Modification 1315Enforcement: National & International - to Prevent Free-Riding by Some Countries or Some IndustriesCampaigning Groups (including Church Groups) to Put Pressure on PoliticiansInternational Governance of the Global Commons (174)Ecological PoliticsPressure on Exploitative Companies: BoycottDivestment? Ecological Debt ( 51) = Restorative Justice Present Model of Business based on Technocratic Paradigm 101 - and Deified Market 56 A Challenge to Politicians but also to Us who Vote for Them Need Involvement and Consensus of All the StakeholdersECOLOGICAL CULTUREDont Let Special Interests Trump the Common Good 54Formal Education in Schools, Colleges210. Critique of Myths: Individualism, Unlimited Progress, Competition, Consumerism, Unregulated Market Role of Christian Communities 214ECOLOGICAL EDUCATION Learn to Appreciate Beauty, Art. Cultivate Good Habits and VirtuesInformal Education in Family and through the MediaAs Lived: All of the Encyclical -Active Aspects: Economic, Political, Cultural, EducationalCommitment, Passion, Hope, JoyECOLOGICAL SPIRITUALITY - Sacramental and Liturgical AspectAnalytically: - Contemplative AspectAnd for all this, nature is never spent;There lives the dearest freshness deep down things;And though the last lights off the black West wentOh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs Because the Holy Ghost over the bent World broodswith warm breast and with ah! bright wings. (Gerard Manley Hopkins)

1. What can I personally do in my family or community to live in a more ecologically respectful way in my personal lifestyle?2. How can I link up with others to get the message through to our politicians that the Irish government, Irish business, and the Irish style of farming needs to change quite radically if our world is to survive?3. In my area of work (e.g. as a student, a teacher, a member of a religious community, a priest, a person whose work is in the home, etc.), how can I cooperate with others to ensure that the Earth is respected?