Preliminaries:
One hundred twenty-nine years ago, on May 15, 1891, Pope Leo XIII published the encyclical Rerum Novarum which is considered the beginning of what is known today as the Social Doctrine of the Church. The focus of that document 
was the labor issue, the dignity of the human person, the right to unionize and to own private property and the superiority of the human person over ideology (superior to the Marxist ideology that viewed the individual as one more cog in the state apparatus and superior to the capitalist ideology which viewed the person as part of the production system, as capital).
The situation in which that encyclical was written was that of the industrial revolution. Therefore, the encyclical reflected upon “the costs” of that revolution. No one can deny that Rerum Novarum marked a milestone not only within the Catholic Church, but also at the level of Christian humanist thought. That document created ripples in the political world and today is often referenced when speaking about the relationship between labor and capital.
Therefore, when I sat down to reread Laudato Si, I began to realize that beginning with the very first lines of this document, those people who take seriously the Social Doctrine of the Church, humanist thought, and the dignity of the human person … such individuals cannot ignore this document. Indeed, it should be seen as the beginning of a new era in the Church’s relationship with the human person not only in terms of the economic, political and social situations that impact men and women throughout the world, but also from the perspective that a new element now becomes part of the discussion: ecology and the manner in which men and women must become part of the environment and also take responsibility for the environment.
It is true that some previous encyclicals and other ecclesial documents developed our relationship with nature, but those documents did so from an anthropocentric perspective. Laudato Si is the first encyclical that addresses the issue of the environment as a primary theme, highlighting the planet and the human person as part of the environment and responsible for the environment. If before it was said that God is not indifferent to anything that happens to the human person, then this document assumes a new perspective: God is not indifferent to anything that happens to the environment. In other words, this encyclical broadens the horizons and helps people to look beyond themselves. This document opens people to the grandeur of creation and, from there, it enables individuals to understand that they are a part of the environment and therefore, what affects the environment also affects them, individually and collectively.
It was not by chance that Francis wrote this encyclical. From the beginning of his pontificate (March 13, 2013), he has shown the world a different face, one that all Catholics need to see. Being a pope from the lands of Abya Yala (land in its full maturity), that would naturally make him different. This Pope looks at the world from the perspective of the American continent, but not just any part of the American continent … he looks at the world from perspective of the southern part of the American continent which has given him a different sensitivity for the Pachamama, Mother Earth. This southern part of the continent has seen its resources over-exploited by the rich and industrialized north. This southern part of the continent has engaged in great struggles over the issue of the right to water, over the issue of retaining the natural resources that are part of its very soil. Here in the southern part of the continent people have learned to listen to indigenous people, to mestizos, and to their African brothers and sisters who were brought here by the Spanish, English and Portuguese conquerors and then sold as slaves. On this southern part of the continent people have experienced a history of suffering and blood that flowed from the likes of Oscar Arnulfo Romero and Enrique Ángel Angelelii … individuals who followed in the footsteps of Bartolomé de las Casas and others who watered this flowering garden with the blood of 
martyrdom.
It is no coincidence that the name that Cardinal Bergoglio has taken for his pontificate is that of a saint who sang to nature … the title of this wonderful encyclical (Praise be to You, my Lord) is extracted from the Canticle of Saint Francis of Assisi. It is quite natural that Pope Francis should write a document that addresses the issue of the environment, nature, the relationship between humankind and the environment, the impact of neglecting our environment especially the impact on those persons who are poor. It seems that people who are poor always pay a high cost for the overexploitation of the seas and rivers, the deforestation of the forests, the overexploitation of mineral resources, global warming.
In the same manner that Leo XIII situated people in the context of the Industrial Revolution, Pope Francis places us within the context of the existing globalization. He analyzes the positive and negative aspects of this reality as well as new problems arising from biotechnology and nanotechnology, the economy of the free market, the presence of large economic consortiums and their exploitative practices (on the five continents) with regard to hydraulic resources, extraction of mineral resources and destruction of forests.
Biblical Context:
The starting point of this document is God’s sensitivity to nature (a sensitivity that is seen in the text of Genesis when God saw that everything that was created was “good”). Then, as the human person is brought into existence, they are commanded to care for and to protect creation. The book of Deuteronomy provides people with an understanding of the Sabbath … just as the earth needs to be renewed every seven years, so also men and women need to be renewed and the sabbath should be viewed as a time of renewal. The Jubilee Year is a time of grace for everyone and everything … a time for justice to be reestablished and renewed. Pope Francis also refers to the psalms and reminds us when people praise creation, they are also praising God who reveals his love for humankind through nature.
In the New Testament, Jesus Christ fills all of creation with his presence (not just humankind). Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, God’s commitment to creation is highlighted, since it is from that perspective that all things are made new. When Jesus states that Solomon in all his array could not be compared to the flowers or the fields or the birds of air, he is revealing his empathy with creation and at the same time, highlights the importance of nature for men and women. In both the Old and the New Testaments, the concept of creation is universal … God does not separate men and women from the rest of creation but rather integrates them into the universe.
The ecological problem today
Leo XIII led the world to reflect on the human person and the dignity of the human person, revealing the errors of the various ideologies (the manner in which the human person was dehumanized from an economic perspective). Francis
places us in a new ideological context. He reminds us that, as people of faith and good will, we are called to create a true social, integral ecology which is able to overcome a radical ecologism in which the human person has no place … a perspective that is very prominent in well-accommodated groups where people speak about respect for the earth, the forests and water but speak from the perspective of social class and the first world. They give no consideration to the poor who dwell in other parts of the world (places where there is no water and where the land has been exploited and where people lack food and other resources). This is a perspective from a position of privilege which only a few have while the vast majority of people are crying out for a more equitable distribution of goods, crying out for work and just wages and health care and education and better housing and recreation centers, etc. On the other hand, there are environmental entities that speak about progress and the economy, but are unmindful of the thousands of men and women who are exploited, used and then discarded by a system that engulfs people and then throws them away as some useless object. Pope Francis invites us to search for a balance that allows us to create dignified situations for all people without neglecting nature … he calls us to live in accord with a sustainable economy (learning to appreciate the meaning of the permanent nature of resources and thus, learning to give greater value to permanence rather than to the transient nature of so many material things). We are exhorted to become more aware of the three R’s that have been introduced by the ecological model but which we, as Christians, have not often integrated into our lives: Reuse, Reduce and Recycle.
Something new and novel about this encyclical is that Pope Francis recognizes that people should not see themselves as the only ones who possess the truth … rather it is necessary to learn from specialists in environmental issues (something which is not an easy undertaking), to support the initiatives of men and women of good faith (even non-believers) and, finally, to look at the other sciences as a means of contributing to the common good and therefore, not a threat. The Pope also invites the world to value the ethical contribution that Christians, from the perspective of their faith, can provide to the development of a transparent ecology and that enables them to be present in the midst of this system that God has give to us as our only home, namely our planet, Earth. It is there that we learn how to live and develop in harmony with all people and nations of the earth.
Conclusion
In my opinion, Laudato Si is the starting point for a new relationship between human beings, God and creation. As believers, we are invited to accept, in a responsible manner, that which corresponds to us in caring for the environment. As Vincentians, this encyclical should guide our pastoral planning and our daily work. We are to be leaders in bringing about change in our local communities, our provinces and our congregation. We still have time to make the much-needed changes … tomorrow may be too late!
By: Alejandro Fabres, CM
Province of Chile
