Pope Francis said Wednesday he will probably be releasing an update to his landmark 2015 environmental encyclical on Oct. 4, the feast of his nature-loving namesake, St. Francis of Assisi.
Francis recently revealed he was writing a “second part” to the document “to deal with current problems.” The Vatican spokesman said the update would have in mind specifically recent climate crises.
On Wednesday, Francis told his weekly general audience that he intended to publish the update on Oct. 4, the feast of St. Francis and likewise the beginning of Francis’ big Vatican meeting on the longer term of the Catholic Church.
The 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si,” or “Praised Be,” is probably Francis’ most well-known and essential document. In it, Francis forged take care of the environment in stark moral terms, calling for a daring cultural revolution to correct what he said was a “structurally perverse” financial system by which the wealthy exploited the poor, turning Earth right into a pile of “filth” in the method.
Citing the deforestation of the Amazon, the melting of Arctic glaciers and the deaths of coral reefs, Francis rebuked “obstructionist” climate doubters and accused politicians of listening more to grease industry interests than Scripture, common sense or the cries of the poor.
The encyclical has inspired ecological movements around the globe, been cited by presidents and patriarchs, and in some ways has formed the bedrock of Francis’ 10-year papacy, which has prioritized the poor and marginalized.
