7 years after ‘Laudato Si”: How Catholic universities are amplifying Pope Francis’ call to heal our common home

By Michael Schuck and Nancy Tuchman
America: The Jesuit Review
May 23, 2022

Seven years ago on June 18, Pope Francis inspired the world with his sweeping encyclical, “Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home.” The passionate encyclical focuses on the environment and our human relationship to it, and to each other. As the pope writes, “the earth herself, burdened and laid waste, is among the most abandoned and maltreated of our poor” (No. 2).

Laudato Si’” reveals global ecological challenges that threaten our very existence. “We have forgotten that we ourselves are dust of the earth; our very bodies are made up of her elements, we breathe her air, and we receive life and refreshment from her waters,” Francis wrote in his introduction. The encyclical balances heartfelt calls for a fundamental re-evaluation of our place in the world with messages about concrete steps we must take to reverse the “extraordinary” effects of climate change and ecosystem damage that disproportionately impact the poor.

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