Pope Francis is set to release his first encyclical, a major teaching letter, Thursday as he tackles the moral component involved in climate change.
By turning protecting the environment a moral imperative, Pope Francis has the power to spur 1.2 billion Catholics around the world to lobby for environmental issues, most especially climate change. He is hopeful that the encyclical, known as "Laudato Si (Be Praised), On the Care of Our Common Home," will be used as part of the discussion at the climate change conference to be held by the United Nations in Paris later in the year.
Addressed to everyone, the encyclical was created in such a way that it aims to bring attention again to environmental decline and recovery as well as to lead to a greater acceptance of the responsibility that has been entrusted to Catholics by their God.
According to people familiar with the contents of the encyclical, the document will highlight how the poor is greatly affected by climate change, wealth inequalities and population issues. The encyclical will also be targeting rich nations, asking them to re-examine the kind of exorbitant lifestyles they've been living.
L'Espresso, an Italian magazine, however, leaked a copy of the 192-page document, breaking an embargo set in place for the encyclical. In the document, Pope Francis warns that failing to act to address environmental concerns will have grave consequences for everyone.
The Vatican has shot back at the leak, saying that it is not the final text.
"We ask journalists to respect professional standards, which call for waiting for the official publication of the final text," it said in a statement.
Not all believe that Pope Francis should be participating though in a debate over a highly secular topic given he is a religious leader. However, Laurent Fabius, France's foreign minister, defended the pope's participation in the climate change debate, saying: "If you are concerned about God, a creator and his creation, then you have to be concerned that his creation is not destroyed."
After the encyclical is published, the Vatican will be holding a private meeting with ambassadors from over 150 countries. According to one ambassador, they have been given strict orders to pass along the papal document immediately to their governments.
Environmental activists are hopeful that Pope Francis' words will give them a significant push to further the goals of climate negotiations and ultimately come up with a global agreement for all nations to fight not just global warming but climate change in general.
The encyclical is part of the pope's teaching function so it is considered to be authoritative. However, it is not infallible. Instead, it is a clear example of Pope Francis' competence and authority towards calling the attention of everyone around the world to their duties and responsibilities to the environment as guided by the best possible scientific theory.
Pope Francis has talked about climate change before. Hinting at what the encyclical may contain, he said that man has continuously slapped down nature, possibly acknowledging the idea that climate change is brought about by human activity despite natural causes also in place.
Photo: Republic of Korea | Flickr
