Pope Francis’ Laudato Si calls for an integrated, spiritually based approach to address the interlinked crises of global poverty and environmental catastrophes. Laudato Si has advanced Catholic social teaching about the environment but has a more audacious scope than prior encyclicals: it calls for the cultural, educational, moral, and religious renewal of all humanity. This is an important dimension of what Pope Francis means by “integral ecology,” especially for audiences outside of the Catholic Church. The ambition of its scope makes Laudato Si seem foreign or removed from the perspective of many ordinary Catholics, who for the most part remain disengaged from its call to action.
Laudato Si can best be presented to Catholics as a guide for evangelization, faith formation, and conversion considering our planetary crises. Catholic audiences will be more likely to respond to its call to “the long path of renewal” if this can be presented in the context of a pilgrimage journey of renewal and conversion, as Laudato Si’s chapter 6 proposes.
Speaker Bio: Keith Douglass Warner OFM serves as Director of the Franciscan Renewal Project at the Franciscan School of Theology, at the University of San Diego. As a practical social ethicist in the Franciscan tradition, he teaches classes and leads educational initiatives to advance the Franciscan identity of the school and the vision of Pope Francis. He teaches, writes, and leads presentations on Franciscan eco-spirituality and the encyclical Laudato Sí. He also serves as Director of Renewal of the national province of Franciscan Friars, Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Introduction by: Sr. Juliet Mousseau, RSCJ - Vice President for Academic Affairs, Franciscan School of Theology
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