敬虔守護生態
並讀《受造物頌》與《願祢受讚頌》
Piety Protects the Earth
Read Laudato Si through Canticles of the Creatures
Immanuel Chih-Ming Ke, Associate Professor of Philosophy
Department of Ecological Humanities, Providence University
3 Oct. 2015. “A Symposium on Pope Francis’ Encyclical Letter Laudato Si,” Providence University
Abstract
Pope Francis officially published Laudato Si on 18 June 2015. It calls all
people of the world to care for the Earth, “our common home,” through introspection,
discussions, and taking actions. In this encyclical letter Pope Francis expects
to achieve three goals: First, it assists us to recognize the grave challenges
and difficulties in the present environmental crisis and the urgent need for
solutions; second, it intends to go the root of the ecological degradation, and
it analyzes the deepest cause; third, it provides an enlightening and guiding
principles for human development based on the Christian tradition and
experience of spirituality.
Pope
Francis takes its title “Laudato Si” from the reiterated eight times
praising words “Laudato si, mi signore” in Laudes Creaturarum (or Cantico di frate Sole)
by Saint Francis of Assisi. It is obviously
evident that Pope Francis intends to continue the ecological spirit of Saint
Francis who praises the Creator for the creation. Therefore, it could be said
that Laudato Si is the modern interpretation and
extension of the profound meaning that Canticles
of Creatures implies. Accordingly, I think only through the real understanding
of Canticle of Creatures and the Christian
faith that it is rooted can one read and understand Laudato Si correctly and adequately, and thus can one grasp the insights and profound meanings of eco-Nature,
which can be disclosed only by Christianity.
It is just like what Laudato Si points out: creation comes about as the result of the God’s
free decision and thus all things embody the God’s sublime, profundity,
holiness, good will, above all the nature of His love. It is exactly as Pope
says, “Creation is of the order of love. God’s love is the fundamental moving
force in all created things”; moreover, in terms of the most profound meaning, Pope
points out that the whole creation embodies the profound Trinity of God, and
even each creature bears in itself “a
specially Trinitarian structure.”
Consequently, this is the universe that can
be understood only by person who has “Imago Dei.” What Pope cares about in this
encyclical letter is the created world like this, and that is also the created
world that Saint Francis of Assisi calls other creatures “bothers and sisters,”
but not the no transcendental sense “Nature” called by modern atheists,
materialists, and naturalists. Accordingly, humans are the created beings who
posses a unique nature and a peculiar ecological status, so that they are
responsible for caring the environment of the Earth. Therefore, Pope clearly
indicates, “The human environment and the natural environment deteriorate
together; we cannot adequately combat environmental degradation unless we
attend to causes related to human and social degradation.” Thus, it is as Pope
John Paul II states, “The ecological crisis is a moral crisis,” so that what
modern people need is an “ecological conversion” that is a religious conversion
related to ecological environment.
So far as that is concerned, humans cannot solve the problems of man-made ecological crisis unless they have a right faith. This is why the last chapter of encyclical letter mentions ecological education and spiritual conversion. Obviously, Pope expects that people could cultivate “pietas” toward God, just like the life of Saint Francis of Assisi manifested; people cannot care for all creatures as Saint Francis does unless they have the same piety. Therefore, I think although Pope does not explicitly indicate, his encyclical letter tells us this implicitly: Only Christianity can clearly and completely penetrates and reveals the fundamental degradation of humans and the world. In consequence, only Christianity can penetrate into the roots of the ecological crisis and reveal the solutions; besides, only the person who is like Saint Francis of Assisi, who completely believe in and submits to our Lord Jesus Christ and who is humble and pious, can regardless and selflessly protect “our common home” —the Earth.
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