Laudato Si'! Or Laudato Si' mi' Signore, as the Umbrian dialect flew from Saint Francis' lips to praise God for his creatures, especially the sun, the moon, the stars, the wind, the water, the fire and our sister, mother earth! According to Franciscan scholars, the Poverello composed the first part of 'The Canticle of the Creatures', which is also known as 'The Canticle of Brother Sun', when he fell sick and was being cared for by Saint Clare and the Poor Sisters at San Damiano.
Eight centuries later, a Jesuit Pope, who willingly chose as the patron saint of his Petrine ministry Saint Francis of Assisi, wished to name his first encyclical, which talks about the care for our common home, Laudato Si'. Thus, taking the very words with which the great saint starts his 'Canticle of Brother Sun and Sister Moon', Pope Francis explains why he chose Saint Francis' words to start his first encyclical that deals specifically with caring for our world.
"I do not want to write this Encyclical without turning to that attractive and compelling figure, whose name I took as my guide and inspiration when I was elected Bishop of Rome. I believe that Saint Francis is the example par excellence of care for the vulnerable and of an integral ecology lived out joyfully and authentically. He is the patron saint of all who study and work in the area of ecology, and he is also much loved by non-Christians. He was particularly concerned for God's creation and for the poor and outcasts. He loved, and was deeply loved for his joy, his generous self-giving, his openheartedness. He was a mystic and a pilgrim who lived in simplicity and in wonderful harmony with God, with others, with nature and with himself. He shows us just how inseparable the bond is between concern for nature, justice for the poor, commitment to society, and interior peace" (10).
While following Saint Francis, Pope Francis tells us, through Laudato Si', that "our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, and who produces various fruit with coloured flowers and herbs" (1) is precisely our common home! It is home not only for us human beings, created in God's image. It is also home for Sister Moon and the stars, Brother Wind, Sister Air, Sister Water and Brother Fire! It is home to every living creature! "Because all creatures are connected, each must be cherished with love and respect, for all of us as living creatures are dependent on one another" (42).
Because our Sister and Mother Earth is our common home we are all called to show a "tremendous responsibility" (90) for her! Pope Francis tells us that "the natural environment is a collective good, the patrimony of all humanity and the responsibility of everyone" (95). Hence, even when doing business we should keep "our unique place as human beings in this world and our relationship to our surroundings" (15).
What makes a home is not only the physical environment we live in. It is also the quality of relationships we have with each other. In his Canticle, Saint Francis sings: "Praised be You, my Lord, through those who give pardon for Your love, and bear infirmity and tribulation. Blessed are those who endure in peace for by You, Most High, shall they be crowned". Likewise, Pope Francis writes: "Concern for the environment thus needs to be joined to a sincere love for our fellow human beings and an unwavering commitment to resolving the problems of society" (91).
Lord, endow all politicians with your divine and far-sighted wisdom so that their decisions concerning the environment respect the unique place we human beings have in this world as well as our relationship to it. Help them put the preferential option for the poorest of the poor at the top of their political agenda. Lord, empower us all with the virtue of sobriety in order for us to realize that we truly need one another. That we, in fact, have a shared responsibility for others and the world, and that being human means being good and decent. Does this not mean, Lord, to live fraternally in our common home? Amen.
Fr Mario Attard OFM Cap
Paola