/

Chapter 1 - What ls hqppenlng to our common home

The first chapter presents the most recent scientific findings on the environment as a way to
listen to the cry of creation, "to become painfully aware, to dare to turn what Is happening t9 the
world Into o.ur own personal sufferl ~g and thus to discover what .each of us can do about It" (19) . It
thus deals with "severc!I aspects of the present ecologlcat~rlsls"· (15) ..
Po/fut/on ancf climate change: .'.".Climat~ change Is a global problem with serious lmpllcatlons,
environmental, social, econo.mlc, polltlcal and for the distribution of goods; It repre$ents one of the
principal challenFJeS facing humanity In our day'; (25). If "the climate Is a common good, belonging
to all and meant for all" (23), the greatest Impact of thl$ change falls on the poorest, but "many of
those who posses$ mor~ resources and economic or political power s:eem mostly to be concerned
with m~~klng the prohlerns or concealing their symptoms" (26). At the same time, "our lack.. of
response to these tr~gedles Involving our brothers.and ·sisters points to the loss of that sense of
responslblllty for our fellow men and wo~e.n upon '-:Jhlch all civil society l_s founded." .(25 ).
The 1$su~ of water: the Pope clearly states .that "access to.safe drinkable -water ls _a basic and
. universal human right, since It Is essential to human survtval and, as
such, Is a COJldltion for the
exercise of other human rights" . To deprive the poor of access to water means to deny "the right to
a fife consistent with their Inalienable dignity'' (30).

Loss of blod}verslty: "Each year jees ·the ,dl5appearance oJ thousan~s of plant:and ~nlm~I
Sp()cfes whlct, we ·wnLn,e.~er kf1<>w,.wt,Jch~uuhU~rerl wm never see, b_Etcause they ha\,i b~eri lost
fore~f!('-(3~). Theyate·-- nbt J~st ;ny'~~ploltabJe ''r:~sourcg", q:ut have avalUEl 'r and 'o(:t~emsl~lves.
In this p~rspectlve ,,;-~ mus_ t ~e gratf f~I forthe pralsew9'>hY ~ftprtf:~flng ma9~ by_sde'ntls_ts and
e·nglneers -dedicatedto.:'findlng so_lu,tlqhs to ·man-made probh?ms", but when human lnt~!Yentlon Is
atthe service of fln~nce and consum_erlsm, "It Is actually making our earth less rich aRd beautiful,
ever more llmlt~d and grey" (34).

Decllne In tht:qµa/lty qf huiJ}an life and the brea~d_own o{ soc/ety: In th~·fraJTie~Qt~ofan

ethics of fnternatlona {relatlonshlps~the Encycllcal Indicate~ a "true •~e~logl'c:~~:_de~.t'.~' ~Sl),
ex Ist s In th e World
. , a bove all In the North with respect to the .South. In the
. f~,-. C\8, of clJma.~e
_ . -c~ange
.,
there are "differentiated responslblllt!es ·• (S2), and that of the developed coun~ les I~ great'er.
Aware of the profo.und dlffer~.~C;'!S over these Issues, P.ope Fr~~cl~ shows ~lrnself ~q:~e·de.eply
. . . .·· " . • f he drama besetting rrnany peoples.~n~ populatlo"s.
ff t d by the: ''weak responses In the race o t . . .·, ·,. - . . .. , . . . . ·1,. ,. .k·.,. . . . ,,
a ec e. . . · mples
. · are not 1.ac·kt ng {5.8) ".
• , ·.a · complacency and .a cheerfu . re~ ..
· . essn~ss
11
Even th~,~gh p~s t ve (~xa . • . . .. 53 a~ ls ·a wllllngnes-s to change llfe,:style,:pr()ductlon
prevail (59). An adequate culture Is ,Jading ( ) b 1· . . d "to establish a leRal frameworkwhlch
·
and consumption (59 ), 0ut f.o rt un ately efforts are e ng ma e " , )
53
can set clear boundaries and ensure the protection of ecosystems ' . .

3
 ,, . .I

.Cha.Pt.er·Two ;_ h .. .
To face the prob! · •· · i e Gospel of Creation .
off I .. erns Illustrated ·In th e previous.chapter, Pope Francis selects Blbllcalaccoun~,
. er ng a comprehenslv
1
"tremendous resp·onsl,bll~t;,e;:; h:t comes from the Judea-Christian ·tradition and articulates the
creatures a·nd -the f h · ) f huma_nklnd for creation the Intimate connectlon :among all
act t at "the I . . .
humanity and the . . na t ural environment Is a -collect Ive good, the patrimony of all
I .

. .responsl_blllty of everyone" (95). ' , . ·. . .

In.the- Bible -· "the.G 0. d· ·h . .
"th . . ' .·
.· · -· ,· .. _
W · 0 liberates and ·saves Is the same God. who created the. unlvcrse,
flti:
a nd esetwodlvlnew . . ·
'f . . · •. ·. -··_ . . · ...
ays O ,acting are intimately and Inseparably connected" ·(73). The story. of
•

creation is central for r~flecUng,on the relatlonshlp between human .beings and other cre·a tures and
on how - sin-breaks
· .. th
,. 8 equ 111-b·. rlum
. . · in· its entirety:
of all cr~atlon · "These accounts suggest that-h_u man--
·
llfe Is· grounded In three fundamental and closely Intertwined relationships: with God:, with our
neighbour and.with the earth Itself, According to the Bible, these three vital relationships have been
broken, both outwardly and within us. Thi; ~pture Is sin" (66). ·
_ ·For thl~, je;,,,en if."weCh_rlstlans hav,~at l lmes -lncorrectly Inter preted t_heScrlptur~s,..'~1o~ a}lays .
. we must forcef~lly r~ject the notlqn that oµr: belng:cre~t~d In G~d 's lm~g~ and glven ,~omlnl~:r ~ver
the earth justifies ~bsolute . dprnlnatlon· over. pthe( ~reatures'~ (67)'. Human b~lngs ~ hav,~\tti.e
responslbtllty to "'till and k~ep~tlie·, garq~;rL~f'thewp~ld,:(~f.~,Gen _ 2-:'iSY' {67), knowing _ttlaf~tne
ultimate purpose of_·other creatures -ls nofto ba '. found in us. :Rath~r; all creatures ~removl_n~
forward~ with ·u~ and througt{us, toy.'atds a·comrnort pcilnt o'f a'rr.btal; whfoh ls.;God" (83),< : __ :.,. .
That.the -h_urn~m being ls ,n9U he mai ter (?f,_the·u~lv~r~e ",d9es._not meaA to put.all llv-lqg h~_l ngs.
on the 'same le~el. and ·to ,d.epr:lye, -human ·beln.gs ~f -t heir 'unlq,u e ·worth and th·e t·rJifte~-d~ ~t~s .
re~ponslblllt~· 1;_enta1is>Nor do~s 1£· rm'p1v. ·~~dlvl ~li atlo11 :ofthf e~rt-h
whfth ·w~uld.~re~~~,t'-~{I r~~ .
working on lt~nd protecting ;'t In lts'fraglllti .(-90)::ln this perspective, "e-verf
act of cruelty,t,o~~'rds
any creature 1s/ c~ntrary -to ~~r,n~n ,dlg~lty'·'; (92).Ho~ever, "a sense o:f'd-~ep·comm~ni.o n,w1th~th-e:~ .. .
rest of nature cannot be·'r eil lt:ou~·, heartslackt~nderness, compassion a·nd,concern;for ~ur-• fellgw. .. ,
human b:elngs'~ i(.9.:1). What is 'needed.If the awareness <?f universal communlon: ·AH of us are;"~; lie-a,.
Into being ,by the -one Father. All df us are Unked by unseen· bonds and together tdrm a' klm!,-7of -
universal .family, -a.·sublime communion which fills us with' a sacred, affectionate . cmd -h,um·ble .
respect" (89).
The chapter ·concludes with the he.a rt of Christian revelation: "The earthly Jesus" with "his
tangible and loving r~l~tlonshlp ~l~h the world" ·1s "rlsen._and :glorlous, .and Is present thro~gh~ut .
creation by his universal lordship" {100). . ,
 . '
. .
Chapt.e~ ,t hree - The._:human roo-t~ of
{~\i :
th~}ic]1&:1ca1 . l I
Thi h . . ,.._ ""'•-,,,• - -· . er s s
. s _ c apter gives at) analysl_s of the curr:~nt .. · " . :·'.j.i' }·}:_/. . . •. .
butalso'. ltsJ-J~epest causes" (15) In a:di . I . . . situation, so as tt:;i consld_ernot·o.nly 1;s symptoms
. . . . •· _< . · . .. . ' . a ogue with phllo-sophy a,nd,the human sciences. · . .
· · · -Refl-e~tloris on~techribl6 . · ; ;' · • · : . . . · ·· · . • •
: t 1.. ·. · · · gy are .an Initial focus of. the chapter. The great contrlb_utlon of
ec1-1no1ogles -to the lrnprovern t f .11 1 . . . · .
.- .. " · , . - en o · v ng conditions Is acknowledged with gratitude: However It
gives . · .. · :with th~ .knowled
· · · . those . . ~e, -·an~ri espec I.aIIy t he economic
·· · · resources · · to l.lse ·th~m,
· · ~"
lmpre~~,v~ dominance over the whole o.t humanity .and the entire world" (104). It Is prQcl.selv the
me~~allty of.technocratic domlnatlon:thatle~ds to the qes,tructlon of nature and the explo.ltatlon of e ,
peop_le, e~peclaUy .the m(?St ,vulnera-bl_e 'popul~ilons .."The t'echno.cratl~ paradlg.m also tends to
domlnat~ ecoriomlcs an;d polltlcal llfe:·· (i09), -k¢eplng us from recognizing that "by lt5c;l fthem:arket
can~ot guaran.tee
. .. .
lntegrathuman develop.menta~d sodalJnduslon"
' , . - . .
-(109). .
. . •. ,.
"Modernl_ty has been mark~:d by an ei,:c~sslv~ a.nthropocentrlsm" .(116): hum an beings no.long
recognize their right place with resp~ct to the world and take on a self-centred position, ,focused
exclusively on themselves and on their own power. This.results In a ''use ~ricl throw away" logic that
Justifies every typ·e o.f w~ste, -eiwlronmental or hum~n; th~t treats both the other and Rature as .
simple. ol:>j~cts a'nd 'i eads. to {~ myriad pf(o~ms 9( domlnatl<;m. It ,~ thlf mentality .that ,lea.~s'. to
exploltln_g chltqren,' ab~ra~hn:lr.1gJ he i~Jge_r,ly,:ffi!~Clf:!:g;~(h~rs .lnto,slav.~ry; pr~c,tlclng:_ hum~n tr affl~klng
and:throwing' away un~Orn 9ables 0¢.c~frse\ fy~y'&,.- h,o,t;Jor:r,esp911cfto what the par~nts want, of
selllng l'blood dla.ri1onds"·/andJhe p~lt's:;qf a'.n:lri{~ls!lri danger o.f,extlnctlon, and of over.:eJaluatlng
the capacity:$( the~(llcir:ke't"t~rregu;l~t~;1t}~'lf! J;hl~ ~l,sAlso :th,:e:.menfalltyof:tbe 'rna ny m-a;fj.~s. 11:1volved
In drug-traffltklnfand traffld<'lng.,af~o;rg?:~s(:123}: :
· - In this light, the Encycllcal.addreS'ses'two crJcl~I problems of:tod,ay's world. Abovf! :~ll work:
•
,,
1

!~'any ap~roach to an lntegf a{e~oiogy,,whl·ch b_y_:de'frrjltlon do·es h,o t,-exclude hum~Fl,:belrigs;p.,ieqs_to

of
take ·accounr'of the value f'abour" ·(124),· becaus·e "to ,st_op.lnvestlng In peopl·e, In or_ der to g;1ls:1
gr'eater ,hort~term ·flnanclal·galn, Is bad .buslnes$ for sodety" (t28). -~

.· The second problem· rega rds the ·11mltatlons of sclentlfl~ progress, with dear r;efer.e,hce :to
GM Os (1~2~.136). This Is .a ~complex envlronmenta nssue" (135) ..Even though 'fin some rei1d'ns
th'elr
use 'has brCJ~ght about ec~nbmlc gro.wth which has helped to resolve prphlems, th~r.e_; .r;~~ln a
number of slgnlflca·n t dlfflcultles whlc~ -shc;iu,ld not be underestlmate-d'' ' {134), sta-r:t,ing ·frhm-the
. ''productive ' land being: co~cenfrated: In ' th~ 'hands of a.few : ownets 11 ·.(.134). Po,pe ·FranctL thl~ks .
part/cul;}rly of small' pr_o_du_c~rs and rqra,i_workers, (?f biodiversity, and the network of eco~y~tems.
Ther~fore '~o broad, respon$lble sclentlflc:and saclal.debate n·eed-$ to,- take place,.o.ne cclpa.bl~ of
~on~lderfnfpilf the av~Uri~,l~ :lnf.ormatlon ,nd of .callfng things by their name" starting from "11:nes
of Independent, lnt"erdlsclpllnary res ear-ch'.'.(135) ; .. ;

• :, +.:,,
 C~apt~r four - ln.tE?.gr:a/ Ecology
. The heart of the Encyclical's proposals Is lnte I I .
ecology "which respects our unique I h gra eco ogy as a new par<!dlgm of Justice, an
P ace as uman beings In thl Id ·
surroundings" (15). In fact ,~ . 't . . . .. . s wor ~nd our relatlonshlp to.our
. . . ' na ura ,c.-nnot be regard d . . h . .
8$ "' mere se3ttlf'\g lh Whl~:h we live" 13 . e as somet In~ sepc,1rate from Qur~elves Qr
different cultu I I . .( 9.). This holds true In .all fie Ids: In economy and politics In
· res Pel rt cu arly In those ni t th · ·'
. . os reatened, and even In every moment of o.ur dallyllves.
The Integral perspective I · b 1 · , . ·
1 d
th · . a so r ngs the ecolo£y ·of Institutions· Into play: "if ev~rythlns is
re ate .· ' th en- e ~ea Ith of a society's Institutions affects the environment and th~ quality of human
fife. 'Every vlolatlpn-of s.~llda_rlty and civic frlends~lp harms the envlronm!3r'lt"' (.142).
· .. With m~ny concrete examples, Pope Francis confirms hi~ thln~lng that f'the analysts J1,f
envlronmental problems cannot be s~parated f~om the analysis of ·human, f~mlly, ~ork-r~late~ and
urb~n contexts, and of how Individuals relate to themselves" (141). "We are not faced with two
separatti crises, one environ mental and the other·soclal, but rather one complex crisis which, Is both
social and environmental'~(139). · · ·

·. "Human ecology -ls ·lnseparable ·from the·· notlon ofthe common good" (156), but Is to be
understood In a concrete 'way: In.to.day's context, In which, "Injustices abour,d and gr,owlng t)_urnbers
of people are deprived of basic hu111an rl~htsri,nd;;<sonsldef:ed ,expendaple" .(158), commi:ttlng oneself
to th-e common _good means.to n:iake -f h\j-lcet)n·. s9Ud~r,ity,.based on _"a ·pr,.ferentlal opt,Joirfor_the
~rt' t:is,s,t'. ;J~·i.s;Ji :lts·oJhe:Pft~t ~ayt~'leave,;:1 s~s1.a1n'a~t9'-; Qr:td for
. poQr~~t of our .,br.o.thers ,and $;1s.t~
tu{ur-e ·g,m~rati<ms, not-Ju{Prt pr9s1.a1ni1'i1.8 fo;§{l\tr,uths,;buf alse _by _co.rnmlttlng tq C~J.ecfe~thi po?r
of .todqy; B·eJledlct_)(VLalread:Y:. ~mpha:~1.ze~, .this ciearly:_"In ,addition to a fairer -sen.~:~: ~:f.:.ln{er•
gemmdlgn~, :soi{dadtY, the.~e 1$ ,atici ,a·n urgent. moral . need for a renew~d ,~~se oflnt'r~-
·,en~ratlon~f $olld~rlty" (162). - ·

lntegr~I ecology also Involves-everyday llfe. The Encyclical gives specific attentlqn to th~ ~rb~F)
envlronm~nt. The human_being has a great c,a,pa.clty for adaptation-and ·"an ~drnlrabfe cr~atlvlty
and. g~n,rosfty 1$ shown by penonl ~nd Jroups-who respond to ·envl·ronrn•mt;ll llmlt~·t'lons by
allev,i~tlng th;e adverse effec'ts of thelr :surroundlngs and te·arnlng,to live ·productlvely a·mlcfdisord~r
and uncertainty" (148}. Neverthelessi agreat deal of Integral Improvement in t~e qualityof:h.u ~.an
life ·.... public :space, hol!s.lng, transport, -.etc. ;:_ Is stlll needed In. 'ord:er to achieve authentic
·' .

development (150-154).
I '.

f.lso "the acceptance of our bodla~ as God's gift Is vital for wekomlng and accepting the
. . • • :. - I..:

entire wwld as a .gift from the Father and qur common _home, whereas thinking that we· ~:nJqy
. absolute power over our own bodies turns, often subtly, lntothlriklng that we enJorabsolute:power
over creation" (155). '
 ChapterJlv~ .... Ll . · f
, · . · nes O approach -and action
This chapter aqd~ess ~.$-the que_~l lon .of . . . .
We need proposals "for dia.lo - ·' · " , wpat we .can an~. mu_s.t do. Analyses are not enough.
. .- . . g.ue and action Which WO l·d I I . . . . ·• .
lntern"tlonal policy'' (lS}.The, will ·,; · .'_ •... u _ rwo .ve each of us lndlv1duaHv:no·less-tha1'1
engulfs us'' (lfi ) F ·- · _1 _he_lR;:US to escap.e the .spiral of self..- destr.uctloA,whlch·cur:rently
3
· lde·ol
0 1 1
· or P_ope Francis It Is Imperative that pradlcal'proposals are not developed an In
f ~_ca 'supe_ rficlal or reductionist way; Fodhl_s, dla_lo~ue Is es:se;ntli:tl, a term present in the title
Q every s_ ectlon of this ch_apter .. ''The r'e ar-e certain .envlronmef)tal Issues whe.r.e It Is not ~asy to •
achieve a broad consensus •[·· ) th · - ch . . -. -._ ·_ : ·
I . . . _ _ • .:·· · e . · urch do_es -not presume to settle_sclen:tlfl~ ~u.es~IQrs :or to
rep ~c,;t PQlltlcs. 8,ut I w;1nt to encourage an honest an~ open·debate, so -that-partk.til~rc: l~tert$ts
o-r ld~ologles WIii not prejudlcg the com·m6n good" {.188) • .
·,
On this basis, Pope ·Francis Is . not afraid .to Judge International dyn~mlcs severely: "Rtac,.nt
-
World Sµmmlts on th~ envlronme·nt haye faJled. to llv4i up to expectotlons be~at.ise, ;due to lack of
polltlc@J wm, .they were unable to reach trul.y meanlngful arid ~ffectlve globaLugreemerits :oo th~
~rivlronm~nt". (166). And ·.he "Wh1 twoul.d'· lnd~ce aoyone,.at thls sta:ge, to hold or:d o,-p:ower
to
0

..only pe remembered,for their lnabUlty to take ~ctlpn .when It was urgent and nec:essa7Y fo Q,0°So7"
0

(57); lns~~ad, whatls n~edeq, ;Ji P-o_~~:s f1ave.'r:ti1/eat~~(sev.e~ai times -st.a rtlng with Paaenf /n:: terrls,
are forms anq Instruments fo~:glob ~l.g_o,v~rn~nce'(J75): 11 an ·agreement on -systems of•g:ov.ernance
0

·tor thQ whql~ ra'.ng·e 'ilf 'the · sd::C~:ifijd .;glob;a( co~mon~"' (i'74), '.seel~g that "en~ir~~mental
-protection tanriot be assured .solely-~-hJ he basis of fl nariclal .calcu.la.~lons of ·costs and ben~fits.;The
envlronm~nt ls--0ne ~t ~ho., ,. go:ods fti~ t c,inFot·b,e·ad~qu·~'.t,e{ysaf.e:guftr<:f ~cf or prpmdtcd'.:bv nl,rket
·forc~s" (l:90, .citing -fhe -C~~pen:dlqm_ o_f th~ :Soc.lafDoctrine of the Ch.~rch). . . _ : .·:. :·· •.·:'. _
In thl~ .fifth cha·pt,e~; Pope Frands._lnslsH·on d,evelo;prne-nt of-tioA.es.t·arrd·- transp~re·nt:d~tlsl;n-
dei'· to ;,dls'cern" -,w~lch polldes ·_and .busl:n~ss lnltlatlv.es ·, can ~-b:rl_~f "a~o.u t
m~kl_n~ processes, ·1n .of_
_ . Hgenuln_e int~~ral d~velop'rnent" {185).-. In paqlcular~ 'a, proper _~nvlronmental lmpa,ct ~1u:~v.:~ofn.ewo
. "busln~ss:v~niures ?h~ projects demandstr.~'nsparent poll~lca! processes· lnvolvlng.:a,fi~e:~::excll~n~e
. -~ , views:· O;n th'e otheiha·n:d, the ferm~ o( corruptlon wbtcti C~Ac.ea.l: th~,:~ctJ.1,al ~i(lylr,;qhin~~nt~I ,

im:~a¢t ~fa,: glven project ln'. exchang.a for fa,VJH~rs,u·sually prQduce ;sp;e~lou~-agr-~tfme~'t f w~feh fall ..
to lnform·- pd~quately arjd do not ;illow _for f~II debate" (182). · ·
. The most ·significant ~ppeal Js. ~~ctre~s~d :to .tt10se_~h-o ,hold ::poll ti ca I .office, ~amri~_' t:h~im to
avoid "a ·mentallty'. of.'efflclency' and 'lmmedlac'( ~' (.181) ~h~t Is so prevalent tocfay: l/butlf-1~ey ar-e
courag~o4., .they wfJI ;ltte-s t to thcfr ~od-glvch ·dignity and; leave behind testl~ony:-o( self\ess
responslbllltV' (181). . . . . . - -, . " -
 Cha 11ti;r $Ix - Eco/o alcaf educ~tl;n and splr,ltua//ty

Tne final ·chapt~·r lrwiteS' ·evinyone.·to 'th~'he'art of .e·c·o1oglc'·a··,.. c

· on· v·e .-, - Th · - .. : ,.,,:. -.. .•
, . _ _ . . . . .. . . . _ rs on. e ·roots o the
cultural ~rl,s1~ ar~ dee~,,;and ltJs ,not e·asy ~·o,res&
a:pe hahlts ·and b~·havl'o~r.' ,Educatlon and .'.fralhJ~g
0

are the key challenges. chanJe ls lmposslb_f•e w_lthout motivation and a proces, of educ:atlon" (lS).
All educational sectors.are lnyolved, Pflinarl!y "atscnool, In famlJles., 11_1 the rnedla, In catechesls.and
~sewhcre" {_213). · · ·. _:_., · · · ·· · · · ·

The st_,utlrig_~point Is "to 11h11 for a n~wJIJi~;ltf' (203;.208), which :~lso opens the posslblllty o·f -
"bringing he~lthy pressure to bear.oif those who.wteld· po!ltlcal,. ecoriomlc an~;ocl.al power;, '(206:}'.
This Is :what happens when 'consumer ·choices ar~.'.able to "i:hang~ the.' way businesses 'Operate, ·"#C

forcing them to consider their environmental footprint ,fnd their patfems :of produ~lon" (206-).
The Importance -of ~nvlr~nmental educ~tlon ~annot be overstated. 'It Is able to. affect actions-
,md daJly :h~blts,
-

tn~ ~· . ' . . . .
reductlQIY of.water c,on~umptlori,lhe sorting ·of waste and even ''t_urnfng off C:
-. ,

unn.e~essary:llghtsH (211)_: HAri 'in_tetra,1·,..:cdi~g,y,l~ )ilso' rna:(#e up 9t slmpl~ dally _g~~tur-~$ Wl'llch
~r,~I< wt~h th~ Iogle of ylohm_ce, e:~R!oi.tatro:o_~nd·sefr1shness" (230). Everything will b~ easle_r when .
starting w.1:th ,a con~~mplatlve o:utio(}k .th~t :c~m.esJr?ry, f~lth: _;~:as beUev~rs, w-~. do not ,look a.t the
world from ~wlthou:t but from -with_tn,:·co,rucJpµs ~f ~h.,~~bonc,is »'.IJh which Jhe _.Fa~her has llnk~d us .
with all beings; B.y ;developing o'.1.Jr) ndiyldual~~~~o,~~J1ven :ct1p.~c§ltles, ·an .ecologlcal converslori .c::~n
Inspire us tp great~r cr~~tlylty~~nd~~r.ltnu; la,s:~:'; _ (2-~0;). -_: _. .- : , . _ _ _
r~
As prbposed. ivange:l,it.c;~,ui li/fr,::;1s,ok'r:(~ty~ ,~h~O 11_~:e~ fr~t!ly,11nd ~-~nsclousl-y, lst:11b·er~i1h1( ·_.,·. ·
(223), ju~t as ~'h~p:pfn~s s mean.s·-~Aq~--ln~-h~;V,~~ _1_{rri'it}b0:~_-n.eeds which only dlm.lnlsh us, and ~efo"g'
0

open t 9 th~ mahy different" possibilities which llJe can:offer" (223). In,this way "_we must regain the
conviction :th;it we need one anothe{; th:atwe ba~e-~·s·hared respohslt>lllty for others and the world,
and thc;1t being go~ifand decent ,are W<Jrth It" (229). · · ·· ; ,_:•- -· · · · -· -,
- Th~ saints accompany us .on·tni~ Jin~rney.'-.s~lnt '~~,ncls: 'cite~ s.evera·I tlr11es,°',1s "the. exafu:pJe .·
par excelle_nce ofc~re for the .vuln·~-rable ,·ancf_o(fn_lnte_gral 'eccflogy Uve~ ouf Joyfully a~d >
auth~ntlca'11y" (10) / He ·1s the~mddei hf "the lnse.p~rah'1e bond between concern 'for na.tlilr~, just!~~ _·•
for the poor, corjimitment :to society, ·arid Interior pe'a~e,,,(10). The Encyclical also mentions s~int-_
Ptmedlct,.S~lnt Tere$a -dl Ll;leux (lnd Bl~ssed Charle$ de Foucauld.
Inspired by Laµdato sl', the r~gu.l1:1r ~xamln~tlqn ·of conscience - a practice that t:he-_Church - \;
has always re·commended to orient on~!s llfe-ln flghf'of the ~elatlon·s_hlp ·with the Lord· - _shb_ uld --
Include a new dlmens·li:m: one ovghtfo-reflectserlously on how one has lived In communion, nof
only with G'od, wlth•9th·ers -and-with oneself, 'b-ut also' with all creatures and with nature.
'.' ' - •r