Laudato Si' and Ecology - EATWOTeatwot.net/VOICES/VOICES-2016-2.pdfge of autochthonous theologies, the discord and encounters with theo-logies from the hegemonic North/First World,

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Volume XXXIx Nº 2016/2 New Series July–December 2016

Laudato Si' and Ecology La Laudato Si' y la Ecología

By: Maria Pilar Aquino (coord.), Vélez, Kerber, Snyder, López, irrarázaval, Chepkwony, Chávez, Fung, Chia & Gerrit

Laudato Si' and Ecology

La Laudato Si' y la Ecología

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Laudato Si' and Ecology

La Laudato Si' y la Ecología

Ecumenical Association of Third World TheologiansAsociacion Ecuménica de Teólogos/as del Tercer Mundo

Association Oecumenique des Theologiens du Tiers Monde

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E A T W O TEcumenical Association Of Third World Theologians

Asociación ecuménica de Teólogos/as del Tercer Mundo

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VOICES, Theological Journal of EATWOT, the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians

New Series, Volume XXXIXNumber 2016/2, July-December 2016

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CONTENTS - CONTENIDO

DOSSIER

Laudato Si': Presentation and Critical Conceptual Approach..................11

Laudato Si': Presentación y acercamientos conceptuales........................23

María Pilar AQUINO, San Diego, Estados Unidos.

The Encyclical of Ecological Conversion from the Poor. .........................37

La encíclica de la conversión ecológica desde los pobres...........................51

Olga Consuelo VÉLEZ CARO, Bogotá, Colombia

Ecumenical Background and Reactions to Ludato Si'.............................63

Transfondo ecuménico y reacciones a la Laudato Si'...............................77

Guillermo KERBER, Montevideo, Uruguay

Structures of Vice and Communities of Care............................................89

Joshua R. SNYDER

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Laudato Si': comentarios desde una perspectiva indígena....................105

Eleazar LÓPEZ HERNÁNDEZ, México DF, México.

Trustful Earth and Gospel Claims............................................................117

Diego IRARRÁZAVAL, Santiago, Chile

African Perspective on Environment.......................................................129

Adam K. arap CHEPKWONY, Nairobi, Kenya

Francis of Assisi: The Transgenic and the Syntetics....................................139

Francisco de Asís: los transgénicos y los sintéticos..................................149

Yolanda CHÁVEZ, Los Angeles, Estados Unidos

A Call to Live a Contemplative and Prophetic Mysticism...........................161

Un llamado a vivir el misticismo contemplativo y profético...................169

Jojo M. FUNG, Malaysia

OUT of DOSSIER

Theological Themes of Asian Christianity for the immediate future......179

Edemund CHIA, Australia

Wherever the water lows, life comes into being......................................183

Emanuel GERRIT SINGGIH, Yogyakarta, Indonesia

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DOSSIER

10 ·

· 11

Laudato Si’: Presentation

and Critical Conceptual Frameworks

María Pilar AQUINO

San Diego, USA

For the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians (EATWOT), the theological concern about the environmental crisis and ecological justice, is not new. This has been a constant concern, from its beginnings to the present day. The reasons for this constant have to do with the own configuration of the theological framework developed and promoted by EATWOT, which gives life and consistency to liberation theology in its diverse contexts.

A brief description of the basic components that articulate this theo-logical framework is useful to visualize the conceptual basis and social function of a theological thinking aligned with interests and practices of liberation. As I explain later, this description is also useful for a better understanding of the theme of this issue of Voices, focused on reflective approaches to the encyclical letter Laudato Si’, by Pope Francis.1 The distinctive configuration of this theological framework, as understood by EATWOT from the beginning, requires critical thought based on the stru-ggles of peoples “to build a more just world,” a world in which opportu-nities for actualizing a “new world order a new humanity”2 are increased. This is a thought that affirms the non-neutrality of theology because, as an accepted fact in contemporary theological epistemology, every theology is affected by the conditions of its own social and cultural context.

1 Pope Francis, Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’ of the Holy Father Francis On Care for Our Common Home, 24 May 2015, Vatican City, Online edition, accessed September 8, 2016, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals.

2 Final Statement, “Ecumenical Dialogue of Third World Theologians, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, August 5-12, 1976,” in The Emergent Gospel. Theology from the Underside of History. Papers from the Ecumenical Dialogue of Third World Theologians, Dar es Salaam, August 5-12, 1976, ed. Sergio Torres and Virginia Fabella, M.M. (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1978), 259.

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Recognizing the ambivalent role of religion in the complex of society, EATWOT has maintained its understanding that religion and theo-logy must serve the needs and initiatives of those who aspire to freedom and justice. Therefore, from a global context characterized by structural injustice, resulting in massive impoverishment, human degradation, and destructive violence, the Association collectively enters into a process of theological construction from a clear ethical and political position; that is, from:

an active commitment to the promotion of justice and the prevention of exploitation, the accumulation of wealth in the hands of a few, racism, sexism, and all other forms of oppression, discrimination, and dehumanization. Our conviction is that the theologian should have a fuller understanding of living in the Holy Spirit, for this also means being committed to a lifestyle of solidarity with the poor and the oppressed and involvement in action with them.3

The decision made by EATWOT to develop and promote a theolo-gical framework that has as a starting point “the struggle of the poor and oppressed against all forms of injustice and domination,”4 is supported by at least three convictions. The first conviction is that God’s presence occurs within, and speaks through human experiences and social move-ments working to remove the structures and relationships of iniquity, to make possible God’s purpose for the world. This conviction presup-poses, in the words of S. Torres, a rethinking of the categories of theo-logical knowledge from the struggles of people for their liberation: “To understand revelation means to understand the new existential reality of millions of men and women struggling against hunger and misery.”5 The second conviction is that the participation of social and religious actors in processes of constructive social change is understood, from the reli-gious point of view, as a participation in God’s work of creation, which exalts human dignity and guides creation to its fulfillment according to God’s design. For the Christian tradition, this also means participating in the life and mission of Jesus of Nazareth, the Palestinian prophet who by

3 Final Statement, “Ecumenical Dialogue,” 270.4 Final Statement, “The Irruption of the Third World: Challenge to Theology.

Final Statement of the Fifth EATWOT Conference, New Delhi, August 17-29, 1981,” in Irruption of the Third World: Challenge to Theology. Papers from the Fifth International Conference of the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians, August 17-29, 1981, New Delhi, India, ed. Virginia Fabella and Sergio Torres (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1983), 199.

5 Sergio Torres, “Opening Address,” in The Emergent Gospel. Theology from the Underside of History. Papers from the Ecumenical Dialogue of Third World Theologians, Dar es Salaam, August 5-12, 1976, ed. Sergio Torres and Virginia Fabella, M.M. (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1978), 4.

12 · María Pilar AQUINO

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words and deeds showed that life in abundance for those who lack of it, is possible in this world. The third conviction is that the relevance of a theology comes from the way it builds the relationship between revela-tion and the social and cultural realities of its environment, and from the responses theology offers them. For this, a critical analysis of historical reality is required.

From the outset, the theological framework adopted by EATWOT integrated the critical analysis of historical reality with the understanding that this reality was affected by a “complex system of domination.”6 According to the Final Statement of the first congress in Dar es Salaam (Tanzania, 1976), in this system various mechanisms of colonial, political, economic, cultural, racial, and sexual domination articulate themselves in “interrelated and interwoven”7 fashion moved by interests of exploitation, looting, and egotistical profit. In contexts of domination, a theological reflection motivated by religious visions of liberation, can only involve itself in that reality by adopting a commitment to the promotion of justice, by becoming aware of the role that religions and churches have played and continue to play in that reality, and by contributing actively with a critical reflection for motivating and sustaining those people who are working for radical changes.8 In the diversity of global contexts and in the pluralism of lived experiences, EATWOT has recognized that the criti-cal analyses of reality are interdisciplinary and interrelated in the dialectic “between theology and the social, political, and psychological analyses.”9 This component of the theoretical framework takes into account such diversity, but it understands that the vast majority of humanity shares in common massive problems and deadly plagues; that the struggles of peoples for the transformation of relationships and systems of domina-tion are central sources for theology, and that

social analysis is an indispensable mediation and basic equipment for a liberating theology. It indicates the way in which the values of the kingdom of love, justice, and truth are being realized or denied in diverse situations. Without an adequate understanding of our societies, theologians cannot inter-pret the will of God for our societies and our times.10

6 Final Statement, “Ecumenical Dialogue,” 2627 Ibid.8 Ibid., 264, 268-269.9 Ibid., 269-270. On this, see also Final Communiqué, “Final Communiqué. Pan

African Conference of Third World Theologians, December 17-23, 1977, Accra, Ghana,” in African Theology en Route. Papers from the Pan-African Conference of Third World Theologians, December 17-23, 1977, Accra, Ghana, ed. Kofi Appiah-Kubi and Sergio Torres (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1979), 195.

10 Final Statement, “The Irruption of the Third World,” 198-199.

Presentation and Critical Conceptual Frameworks · 13

14 ·

The analytical framework of EATWOT has exposed with great cla-rity and intellectual richness the roots and effects of the complex systems of domination in societies of the past and present. Through interdiscipli-nary and intercategorical approaches, the Association has presented the-matic constants that include, among others: the dynamics of colonization and decolonial resistance, the mechanisms of global neoliberal capitalism and its imperialistic and militaristic bases, the idolatry of markets, and the persistence of the patriarchal paradigm within these systems, as well as theological analyses on them from the hermeneutical frameworks of liberation. The theological approaches have taken into account initiatives of interreligious and intercultural dialogue, global prophetic ecumenism, the feminist critique and contribution, religious pluralism and the challen-ge of autochthonous theologies, the discord and encounters with theo-logies from the hegemonic North/First World, and the common search for alternatives entailed in the slogan “Another World is Possible” (World Social Forum and the World Forum on Theology and Liberation). Without concealing conflicts, deficiencies, or discrepancies, these approaches have articulated thought in constructive ways guided by the principles of collaboration, dialogue, interdependence, solidarity, and reconciliation.11

For EATWOT, the focus on social and religious practices of trans-formation as starting point for theological construction, and the critical analysis of them in light of critical scientific knowledge and theological hermeneutics of liberation, also articulates another central component of its theological framework. This is the fostering of understandings and practices of constructive transformation infused by a spirituality of com-

11 On this paragraph, to illustrate my reflection, in addition to the final documents already cited, see Final Statement, “Doing Theology in a Divided World: Final Statement of the Sixth EATWOT Conference,” in Doing Theology in a Divided World. Papers from the Sixth International Conference of the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians, January 5-13, 1983, Geneva, Switzerland, ed. Virginia Fabella and Sergio Torres (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1985), 179-193; Final Statement, “Search for a New Just World Order: Challenges to Theology. Final Statement of the Fourth Assembly of EATWOT held at Tagaytay City, Philippines, Dec. 10-17, 1996,” Voices From the Third World, A Special Issue XXII/2 (December 1999): 199- 214; Final Message, “Final Message of the Sixth General Assembly of Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians, Johannesburg, RSA 24-27 July 2006,” Voices From the Third World XXIX/2 (December 2006): 32-34. Regarding the World Forum on Theology and Liberation, in which EATWOT has great presence and influen-ce, see Gerald M. Boodoo, ed., Religion, Human Dignity and Liberation (São Leopoldo, Brasil: Editora Oikos, 2016).


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passion, life, hope, and justice. This component involves the adoption of “praxiological methods which constructively engage the tensions between action on the ground and theological formulations and constructions.”12 A life-giving spirituality is born from, and grows within the global and plural practices of those social and religious actors working for the eman-cipating reconstruction of unjust social systems and relationships.

At the same time, that spirituality nourishes and energizes the con-tinuing tasks for a new humanity and a new creation, as expressed by the struggles for the: respect of dignity and freedom, protection of per-sonal and community security, transformation of patriarchal institutions, elimination of violence, promotion of human rights, defense of decolonial territories, support for the survival of individuals and communities, and many other tasks of resistance and activism for peace, justice, and soli-darity. The Association finds manifestations of life and hope in all these tasks and commitments. It also finds here a spirituality of struggle and resistance, which is likewise radical and revolutionary because it seeks to induce deep constructive transformations. This is a spirituality “of life,” “for life,” and “to life”13 because not only it is expressed in activities that defeat the forces of death, but also makes tangible the link between humanity, the whole of creation, and God.

This very brief description of the theological framework distincti-ve of both, EATWOT and liberation theologies, allows one to frame and value even further the perspectives that the Association has developed in relation to the environmental crisis and ecological justice. In EATWOT, concern about these issues does not come from the ecological emergency sensed in the world today—although it values and embraces it--, but from its continuous concern about the threatened life of the vast disinherited majorities of this world, who greatly suffer the consequences of the environmental crisis. The contemporary ecological theories are not the focus of EATWOT’s interest, but the global social movements working for ecological justice, to which it seeks to contribute and support. The inter-ests, values, and goals of the people involved in these movements give shape to EATWOT’s theological reflection, as they also provide a point of

12 Final Message, “Final Message of the Sixth General Assembly,” 34.13 Final Statement, “The Statement of the Assembly: A Cry for Life,” en Spirituality

of the Third World: A Cry for Life. Papers and Reflections from the Third General Assembly of the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians, January, 1992, Nairobi, Kenya, ed. K. C. Abraham and Bernadette Mbuy-Beya (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1994), 188-206.


16 ·

departure, a point of arrival, and a vision for the future. Consistent with its theological framework, since the last century, EATWOT has externali-zed its sensitivity to the climate crisis and its commitment to ecological justice.

To illustrate this sensitivity, I wish to mention here only a few aspects based on some final documents of the Association. For example, since its foundation in 1976, EATWOT has affirmed “the basic goodness of creation and the continued presence of God’s Spirit in our world and history,” while it also recognizes the commitment it has to this world affected by the “mystery of evil,”14 which expresses itself in unjust social structures, inequalities, and in human degradation. In subsequent years, EATWOT advances further its reflective approaches related to the eco-logical crisis recognizing; on the one hand, the unsustainability of the development paradigm in the contemporary capitalist system focused on massive exploitation of the Earth because of greed, private profit, and rampant consumerism; on the other, the theological response that this reality demands in terms of intervention for the integrity of creation and ecological justice. The ecological movement opens for the Association a space for collaboration with civil society, increasing its awareness about the “inseparable link between the struggle of the poor and ecological issues,” “the interconnectedness between commitment to the renewal of society and the renewal of the earth is clearly seen in the struggle of many marginalized groups all over the world.”15

Such a sense of collaboration has as theological background an understanding of the world and humanity, in which: humanity, men and women, is the architect of its own destiny; the fate of humanity is intrin-sically linked to the fate of the earth and the cosmos; human life and the cosmos possess an intrinsic value, revered in the symbol of Mother Earth; historical liberations effected by humanity embody the life and glory of God in the world; the ethical and religious obligation to eradicate capita-list profligacy because it is hostile to the present and future of humanity and creation; the rejection of religions and theologies that legitimize abuse of the Earth and dishonor the integrity of creation; the religious vision of an alternative world involves the just reconstruction of distorted relationships between humanity and nature, as well as collaboration with

14 Final Statement, “Ecumenical Dialogue,” 270.15 Final Statement, “The Statement of the Assembly: A Cry for Life,” 196.


· 17

international organizations that promote the values of justice, defense of peace, and the preservation of nature.16 With this background, EATWOT is basically issuing a message of hope in its conviction that “the people of the Third World are not resigned to their fate,” and in its declaration of perseverance in a critical and constructive theological work:

Members of EATWOT are seeking alternative communities and sustaina-ble spiritualities of hope. This implies moving forward with a common focus, giving voice to the hope that needs to be realised in inter-faith praxis for justice and peace with an option for the poor, and integrity of creation. This focus on interfaith praxis is inter-cultural, inter-religious and inter-spiritual.17

During the second decade of the twenty-first century, with general editor José María Vigil, the journal of EATWOT, Voices, has done admi-rable work in this field of study. Various issues of this journal have been particularly prolific in their critical-constructive thematic approach to the environmental crisis and ecological justice. The contribution of the jour-nal to this field of study has come to broaden and enrich the theological framework of EATWOT through incorporation of the ethical and political paradigm, known in the journal as ecological paradigm, holistic para-digm, or eco-liberating paradigm. The following titles of several journal issues published by Voices serve me to illustrate the importance that EATWOT has given to the intersection of theology and ecology within a framework of liberation: Eco-Crisis: Theological Visions,18 Ecology and Religion in this Hour of Planetary Emergency,19 Ecological Vision and

16 These understandings can be found in the following documents: Final Communiqué, “Final Communiqué. Pan African Conference,” 194; Final Statement, “The Irruption of the Third World,” 194, 206; Final Statement, “Doing Theology in a Divided World,” 188; Final Statement, “The Statement of the Assembly,” 196-197; Final Statement, “Search for a New Just World Order,” 202; Final Statement, “Message of Hope: Statement of the Fifth General Assembly of the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians, Quito, Ecuador, 2001,” World Council of Churches, Ministerial Formation 95 (October 2001): 82-83.

17 Final Statement, “Message of Hope,” 82, 85.18 See, Voices From the Third World, Special Volume (June 2009), edited by

Rohan Silva, Marlene Perera, and Shirley Lai Wijesinghe, from Sri Lanka.19 See, Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXIV/1 (January-

February 2011), edited by the Latin American Theological Commission of EATWOT.


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Planetary Survival,20 Ecological Vision in a Groaning World,21 Deep Ecology, Spirituality and Liberation,22 and Liberation Theology and New Paradigms.23 I am interested in noting that these journal issues have been published in several languages, including English, Spanish, Portuguese, and occasionally they include essays in French and in German. Also, they can be acquired free of charge at the website: http://eatwot.net/voices/.24

The ecological paradigm, according to EATWOT’s perspective, both criticizes deeply and proposes to overcome the contradictions inherent to the mechanistic socio-technical and instrumental rationalistic paradigm driven by Western European modernity, then inherited and remodeled by the current oligopoly market system typical of global neoliberal capi-talism. The pattern of these systems is the destructive social relations-hip that they establish with nature and humans through exploitation. Moreover, the relationships of exploitation sharpen their destructive impact on women due to the patriarchal hegemony inherent to those sys-tems. In the various theological approaches to the ecological paradigm, the accepted premise is the existing radical incompatibility between the exploitation of nature and people, and the whole flourishing of creation according to the divine purpose, as contemplated by many religions of the world. A religious or a theological understanding of creation rejects remaining indifferent or silent in the face of such systematic exploitation dynamics, which expose a false contradiction between humanity and nature, theological anthropology and cosmology. M. Perera clearly indica-tes that the “philosophies and ways of life that alienate the human from nature”25 must be radically questioned and denounced. On his part, J.M. Vigil states that:

20 EATWOT’s International Theological Commission, “Ecological Vision and Planetary Survival. Concept Paper for EATWOT’s General Assembly at Yoghyakarta, Indonesia, 2012.” Published on-line, this concept paper can be downloaded from the web page of the EATWOT’s International Theological Commission: http://InternationalTheologicalCommission.org

21 See, Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXVI/2-3 (April-September 2013), edited by Adam K. arap Chepkwony.

22 See, Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXVII/2-3 (April-September 2014), edited by José María Vigil and EATWOT’s International Theological Commission.

23 See, Voices of the South, Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXVII/4 (October-December 2014), edited by José María Vigil and EATWOT’s International Theological Commission.

24 I have last consulted and verified this Internet site on September 8, 2016.25 Sr. Marlene Perera, “Editorial,” Voices From the Third World, Special Volume

(June 2009): 2.


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Religions need to feel the ecological kairos of this hour and return towards the cosmos and nature, in order to recognize in them our “sacred history,” overcoming the current divorce between science and spirituality, between reli-gion and reality. Accepting the challenge of ecology does not mean including “the care of nature,” as one more moral imperative. It is something more: it is a complete “ecological reconversion” of religion itself.26

Such ecological reconversion involves long-term processes that produce profound changes in theological epistemology, not only because it requires critical dialogue with the ecological sciences and contem-porary environmental studies, but also because this dialogue demands a holistic-liberating reconstruction of religious languages on God, the cosmos, nature, humanity, and their mutual relationships.27 Certainly, feminist and ecofeminist theologians have advanced theological approa-ches in this direction from the platform of EATWOT,28 even acknowled-ging persistent resistance to feminist conceptual frameworks by male liberation theologians. Nonetheless, the diverse approaches to the envi-ronmental crisis and ecological justice have brought conceptual richness to the theological framework promoted by the Association, they have strengthened its multidimensional view of constructive transformation, and have made more acute its sense of ethical and political responsibility to the world realities. In light of the liberating ecological paradigm, in its response to those realities, EATWOT reaffirms the principle of radi-cal interdependence, it recognizes human diversity and the pluralism of creation, it embraces the vision of indigenous peoples on the integrity of the cosmos, and it strengthens understandings that articulate the intersec-

26 José María Vigil, “Ecological Challenges for Religions,” Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXIV/1 (January-February 2011): 309-310.

27 See, J. M. Vigil, “Ecological Challenges,” 307-309; Birgit Weiler, “Walking the Path of Transformation,” Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXVII/2-3 (April-September 2014): 401-402; Manuel Gonzalo, “Ecología y Cristianismo,” Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXIV/1 (January-February 2011): 137-139.

28 On this, see Final Statement, “The Statement of the Assembly,” 192-193; Final Statement, “Final Statement of the ‘Women Against Violence’ Dialogue,” in Women Resisting Violence. Spirituality for Life, ed. Mary John Mananzan, Mercy Amba Oduyoye, Elsa Tamez, et al. (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1996), 183-184; Ivone Gebara, “Spirituality and Resistance. A Latin American Perspective,” Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXIX/1 (January-April 2016): 61-77; Luiza Tomita, “Feminist Theology on Ecofeminist Practices in Latin America: Problems and Challenges in the 21st Century,” Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXIX/1 (January-April 2016): 207. The issue of Voices number XXXIX/1 was coordinated by Olga Consuelo Vélez Caro.


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tions of ecology, theology, spirituality, and liberation. The many religions of the world, as “the world’s most deeply mobilizing force,”29 have many resources to offer to continue motivating commitments and spiritualities of transformation for global solidarity, peace, justice, and the integrity of creation. As of today, in the words of EATWOT, it remains true that “our ‘method is our spirituality’.”30

Laudato Si’ in This Issue of Voices

I decided to focus the introduction to this journal issue on the core features of the theological method developed by EATWOT because of my desire to substantiate with a logical and coherent argument the great compatibility between this method and the method that articulates the encyclical letter Laudato Si’. With certitude, I am not saying or sugges-ting that Laudato Si’ represents or deliberately expresses the theology promoted by EATWOT, but simply that there is compatibility between them in terms of their conceptual frameworks and their contents. Taking into account the profile of the liberating ecological paradigm articulated in Voices, and the profile of integral ecology as a paradigm articulated in Laudato Si’, one is able to recognize that both paradigms share common interests, values, and goals. This is particularly true when religions and theologies seek to give constructive responses to the cry of the disinhe-rited humanity for a shift in the social complex, as this humanity is the most affected by the climate crisis. Also, an affirmation of hope continues to be true. The new paths toward an ecological spirituality are being laid down by those people who continue in the struggle for ecological justice, often at the expense of their own life, because that is the ground on which the conceptual practice rests. The legacy of Sister Dorothy Mae Stang and of Berta Cáceres, both arbitrarily killed because of their ecological struggles, endures today as an affirmation of hope. Indeed, another world is possible; another revolution, “a bold cultural revolution” (Laudato Si’, 114), social and political, is necessary.

The various articles in this volume illustrate the similarity of the-mes presented in Laudato Si’ and the thematic constants that have accom-panied EATWOT and its journal Voices throughout the years. A thematic similarity in both shows a shared interest in supporting the constructive

29 EATWOT’s International Theological Commission, “Ecological Vision,” 11.30 Final Statement, “The Statement of the Assembly,” 197.


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intervention by social groups motivated by religious convictions as they face the ecological crisis felt in the world. In my opinion, rather than presenting similarity in terms of single-point convergence or situational thematic convenience, both approaches propose the ecological paradigm as a major hermeneutic, or a critical interpretive mediation, within a theological framework of liberation. The reflective approaches included in this volume provide arguments to support my opinion.

In this volume, the first article by Olga Consuelo Vélez Caro pre-sents a global view of the encyclical, highlighting its central affirmations and prophetic summons, including its novelties such as: the proposal of an integral ecology conceptualized from the standpoint of the poor, a methodological structure according to the pastoral method of “see, judge, act,” and the call for an ecological conversion in order to foster an ecolo-gical spirituality for the care of the world. Gillermo Kerber, in the second article, also exposes key points of the encyclical from both, the methodo-logical perspective of the “see, judge, act,” and the global ecumenical movement of the churches. This article notes that the encyclical marks a before and after in the Catholic Social Teaching tradition by giving cen-trality to ecological concerns, which is something that while this tradition has rarely addressed, it has been widely addressed by the ecumenical movement. Interestingly, both articles by Vélez Caro and Kerber show conceptual convergence in their identification of the methodological structure of Laudato Si’, articulated by the “see, judge, act,” which in academic terms they correspond to the method of liberation theology with its conceptual mediations: analytical (see), hermeneutical (judge), and practical-pastoral (act). My reflections above on the theological fra-mework of liberation wishes to give visibility to this convergence.

The third article by Joshua R. Snyder, presents an analysis of the encyclical from the context of Guatemala, with an emphasis on how the understanding of an integral ecology helps to clarify the interconnec-tedness of the ecological crisis and unjust structures in that context, as well as the social and religious practices that may strengthen the moral agency of indigenous communities with sustainable ecological virtues. The direct influence of Teología India (Indigenous Theology) from Latin America on the encyclical’s content is presented in detail by Eleazar López Hernández in the fourth article. The vision and spirituality of indigenous peoples lived since ancient times in harmonious relationship with nature, are espoused by the papal magisterium to enrich a radical ecological perspective with indigenous theological categories. In the fifth article, Diego Irarrázabal expands reflection on the encyclical from the experiences and wisdom of indigenous communities in the Andean


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region. With their challenging reflections and prophetic proposals, the eco-theologies informed by autochthonous traditions of relationship with the Earth are in a process of rebirth, which entails for the Christian com-munities theoretical and practical implications regarding the care of our “common home.” The sixth article by Adam K. arap Chepkwony, presents an exploration of how some peoples of Africa, particularly of Kenya, have followed their religious worldviews to interact with nature, protect and preserve it. Although those ancient worldviews are facing today the threat of loss, with their cultural knowledge and traditional religious practices, people continue contributing to the global efforts in protecting nature in holistic ways.

In the seventh article, Yolanda Chávez addresses the challenges raised by transgenic technologies for an integral ecology, and how to respond to them from an ecological spirituality committed to care of the Earth as our common home. This is a spirituality that includes respon-sibility for the care of the planet, recognition of the interconnection of humanity and the created world, and promotion of transformative prac-tices regarding technologies operated by profit. Taking into account the ecological spirituality adopted by Laudato Si’, and inspired by the spiri-tual traditions of Malaysia, in the last article Jojo M. Fung points out the need to make profound changes to spirituality by means of strengthening eco-sensitive educational processes grounded on a contemplative and prophetic mysticism, as necessary for women and men to exercise today their environmental responsibility and prophetic ecological citizenship.

I wish to close this presentation with a message of affection and solidarity to Rosemary Radford Ruether, a friend of EATWOT since its inception, who has been affected recently by a serious illness. Rosemary has made outstanding contributions to shaping the critical conceptual frameworks of ecological justice and ecofeminism of liberation. With this issue of Voices, I wish to acknowledge her constructive influence on many theologians who continue believing that another world is possible. With prayer and gratitude for her.


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Laudato Si’: Presentación y Marcos Conceptuales Críticos

María Pilar AQUINO

San Diego, Estados Unidos

Para la Asociación de Teólogos y Teólogas del Tercer Mundo (ASETT), la preocupación teológica por la crisis ambiental y por la justicia ecológica, no es nueva. Esta ha sido una preocupación constante, desde sus comienzos hasta nuestros días. Las razones de esta constante tienen que ver con la configuración propia del marco teológico desarrollado y promovido por la ASETT, que da vida y consistencia a la teología de la liberación en sus diversos contextos.

Una breve descripción de los componentes básicos que articulan a ese marco teológico es útil para visualizar la base conceptual y la fun-ción social de un pensar teológico alineado con intereses y prácticas de liberación. Como explico más adelante, esta descripción también es útil para una mejor comprensión del tema de este volumen de Voices, enfoca-do en acercamientos reflexivos a la carta encíclica Laudato Si’, del Papa Francisco1. La configuración distintiva de este marco teológico, como la ha entendido la ASETT desde un principio, exige un pensar crítico basado en las luchas de los pueblos “por construir un mundo más justo”, donde incrementen las oportunidades para que “un nuevo orden mundial y una nueva humanidad”2 puedan ser realizadas. Este es un pensar que afirma

1 Papa Francisco, Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’ del Santo Padre Francisco Sobre el Cuidado de la Casa Común, Ciudad del Vaticano 2015, edición en línea, acceso el 8 de septiembre de 2016, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/es/encyclicals/.

2 Documento Final, “Primer Congreso, Dar Es Salam, Tanzania, 1976”, Asociación Ecuménica de Teólogos del Tercer Mundo, en Teología desde el Tercer Mundo. Documentos finales de los cinco congresos internacionales de la Asociación Ecuménica de Teólogos del Tercer Mundo, ed. Departamento Ecuménico de Investigaciones (San José, Costa Rica: Departamento Ecuménico de Investigaciones, 1982), 11.

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la no-neutralidad de la teología porque, como un dato aceptado en la epistemología teológica contemporánea, toda teología está afectada por las condiciones de su contexto social y cultural.

Reconociendo el rol ambivalente de la religión en el complejo de la sociedad, la ASETT ha mantenido su comprensión de que la religión y la teología han de estar al servicio de las necesidades e iniciativas de quie-nes aspiran a la libertad y la justicia. Por consiguiente, desde un contexto mundial caracterizado por la injusticia estructural y sus resultados de empobrecimiento masivo, degradación humana y violencia destructiva, la Asociación entra colectivamente en un proceso de construcción teológica desde una clara posición ética y política, esto es, desde:

un compromiso activo para la promoción de la justicia y de la prevención de la explotación, de la acumulación de las riquezas en manos de unos pocos, del racismo, del sexismo y de todas las formas de opresión, de discriminación y de deshumanización. Nuestra convicción es que los teólogos deberían tener una mejor comprensión de la vida en el Espíritu Santo, que significa también el compromiso de solidaridad con los pobres y los oprimidos y la participación en sus luchas3.

La decisión tomada por la ASETT de desarrollar y promover un marco teológico que tiene como punto de partida “la lucha de los pobres y de los oprimidos contra todas las formas de injusticia y dominación”4, está apoyada en al menos tres convicciones. La primera convicción es que la presencia de Dios ocurre en, y habla a través de las experiencias humanas y de los movimientos sociales que trabajan por remover las estructuras y relaciones de iniquidad, para hacer posible el propósito de Dios para el mundo. Esta convicción presupone, en palabras de S. Torres, un repensar las categorías del conocimiento teológico desde las luchas de los pueblos por su liberación: “Entender la revelación significa entender la nueva realidad existencial de millones de hombres y mujeres en lucha constante contra el hambre y la miseria”5. La segunda convicción es que la participación de actores sociales y religiosos en los procesos de cambio

3 Documento Final, “Primer Congreso”, 24-25. 4 Documento Final, “Quinto Congreso, Nueva Delhi, India, 1981”, Asociación

Ecuménica de Teólogos del Tercer Mundo, en Teología desde el Tercer Mundo. Documentos finales de los cinco congresos internacionales de la Asociación Ecuménica de Teólogos del Tercer Mundo, ed. Departamento Ecuménico de Investigaciones (San José, Costa Rica: Departamento Ecuménico de Investigaciones, 1982), 88.

5 Sergio Torres, “Discurso Inaugural”, en El Evangelio Emergente. La teología desde el reverso de la historia, ed. Sergio Torres y Virginia Fabella (Salamanca: Ediciones Sígueme, 1981), 30.


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social constructivo es entendida, desde el punto de vista religioso, como una participación en la obra creadora de Dios, que enaltece la dignidad humana y orienta a la creación hacia su plenificación según el designio divino. Para la tradición cristiana, esto también significa participar en la vida y misión de Jesús de Nazareth, el profeta Palestino quien con pala-bras y obras mostró que la vida en abundancia para quienes carecen de ella, es posible en este mundo. La tercera convicción es que la relevancia de una teología viene del modo como construya la relación de la reve-lación con las realidades sociales y culturales de su ambiente, y de las respuestas que les ofrezca. Para eso es necesario el análisis crítico de la realidad histórica.

Desde un principio, el marco teológico promovido por la ASETT incorporó el análisis crítico de la realidad histórica y entendió que esta realidad está afectada por “un sistema complejo de dominación”6. De acuerdo al Documento Final del primer congreso en Dar Es Salam (Tanzania, 1976), en este sistema operan diversos mecanismos de domi-nación colonial, política, económica, cultural, racial y sexual, que se articulan e implican mutuamente7 con intereses de explotación, saqueo y lucro egoísta. En contextos de dominación, la reflexión teológica moti-vada por visiones religiosas de liberación, sólo puede involucrarse en esa realidad asumiendo un compromiso con la promoción de la justicia, ser consciente del rol que las religiones e iglesias han jugado y que juegan en esa realidad, y contribuir activamente con una reflexión crítica que motive y sostenga a quienes trabajan por cambios radicales8. En la diversidad de contextos mundiales y en la pluralidad de experiencias vividas, la ASETT ha reconocido que el análisis crítico de la realidad es interdisciplinario e interrelacional en la dialéctica “entre la teología y los análisis sociales”9. Este componente del marco teórico toma en cuenta dicha diversidad, pero entiende que la gran mayoría de la humanidad comparte en común problemas masivos y plagas mortales; que las luchas de los pueblos por la transformación de las relaciones y sistemas de dominación son fuentes centrales para la teología, y que

6 Documento Final, “Primer Congreso”, 15. 7 Ibid.8 Ibid., 17-18, 22-23.9 Ibid., 24. Sobre esto, ver también Documento Final, “Segundo Congreso,

Accra, Ghana, 1977”, Asociación Ecuménica de Teólogos del Tercer Mundo, en Teología desde el Tercer Mundo. Documentos finales de los cinco congresos internacionales de la Asociación Ecuménica de Teólogos del Tercer Mundo, ed. Departamento Ecuménico de Investigaciones (San José, Costa Rica: Departamento Ecuménico de Investigaciones, 1982), 36.

Presentación y marcos conceptuales críticos · 25

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el análisis científico de la sociedad es una mediación indispensable y un elemento básico para una teología liberadora. Nos demuestra la forma en que los valores del Reino de Amor, Justicia y Verdad están siendo realizados o negados en nuestras situaciones concretas. Sin una adecuada visión de nuestras sociedades, los teólogos no pueden interpretar el plan de Dios para nuestras sociedades y para nuestros tiempos10.

El marco teórico analítico de la ASETT ha expuesto con gran cla-ridad y riqueza intelectual las raíces y efectos de los complejos sistemas de dominación en la sociedad de ayer y de hoy. Mediante acercamientos interdisciplinarios e intercategoriales, la Asociación ha presentado cons-tantes temáticas que incluyen, entre otras: las dinámicas de la coloni-zación y las resistencias descoloniales, los mecanismos del capitalismo neoliberal mundial y sus bases imperialistas y militaristas, la idolatría de los mercados, y la persistencia del paradigma patriarcal en esos sistemas, así como análisis teológicos sobre esos temas desde marcos hermenéuti-cos de liberación. Los acercamientos teológicos han tomado en cuenta las iniciativas de diálogo interreligioso e intercultural, el ecumenismo pro-fético mundial, la crítica y contribución feminista, el pluralismo religioso y el desafío de las teologías autóctonas, los desencuentros y encuentros con las teologías del “Primer Mundo/Norte” hegemónico, y la búsqueda común de alternativas bajo el lema “Otro Mundo es Posible” (Foro Social Mundial y Foro Mundial de Teología y Liberación). Sin ocultar conflictos, deficiencias, o desavenencias, estos acercamientos han articulado el pen-samiento de forma constructiva con los principios de la colaboración, el diálogo, la interdependencia, la solidaridad y la reconciliación11.

10 Documento Final, “Quinto Congreso”, 88.11 Sobre este párrafo, y para ilustrar mi reflexión, además de los documentos

finales ya mencionados, ver: Final Statement, “Doing Theology in a Divided World: Final Statement of the Sixth EATWOT Conference”, en Doing Theology in a Divided World. Papers from the Sixth International Conference of the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians, January 5-13, 1983, Geneva, Switzerland, ed. Virginia Fabella and Sergio Torres (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1985), 179-193; Final Statement, “Search for a New Just World Order: Challenges to Theology. Final Statement of the Fourth Assembly of EATWOT held at Tagaytay City, Philippines, Dec. 10-17, 1996”, Voices From the Third World, A Special Issue XXII/2 (December 1999): 199- 214; Mensaje Final, “Mensaje Final de la Asociación Ecuménica de Teólogos/as del Tercer Mundo, Sexta Asamblea General, Sud Africa, Johannesburgo, 24-7 de julio, 2006”, Voices From the Third World XXIX/2 (December 2006): 28-34. Sobre el Foro Mundial de Teología y Liberación, en el cual la ASETT tiene gran presencia e influencia, ver Gerald M. Boodoo, ed., Religion, Human Dignity and Liberation (São Leopoldo, Brasil: Editora Oikos, 2016).


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Para la ASETT, el enfoque en las prácticas sociales y religiosas de transformación como punto de partida para la construcción teológica, y el análisis crítico sobre ellas a la luz del saber científico crítico y hermenéu-ticas teológicas de liberación, se articulan con otro componente central de su marco teológico. Este es el fomento de comprensiones y prácticas de transformación constructiva infundidas por una espiritualidad de com-pasión, vida, esperanza y justicia. Este componente implica la adopción de “métodos praxiológicos que encaran las tensiones entre la acción concreta y las fórmulas y construcciones teológicas”12. Una espiritualidad dadora de vida nace de, y crece desde dentro de las prácticas mundiales y plurales de los actores sociales y religiosos que trabajan por la recons-trucción emancipadora de los sistemas y relaciones sociales injustas.

Al mismo tiempo, esa espiritualidad retroalimenta y energiza las tareas constantes por una nueva humanidad y una nueva creación, como lo expresan las luchas por el respeto a la dignidad y la libertad, la pro-tección de la seguridad personal y comunitaria, la transformación de instituciones patriarcales, la eliminación de la violencia, la promoción de los derechos humanos, la defensa de territorios descoloniales, el apoyo a la sobrevivencia de personas y comunidades, y muchas otras tareas más de resistencia y activismo por la paz, la justicia y la solidaridad. En todas estas tareas y compromisos, la Asociación encuentra manifestacio-nes de vida y esperanza. Aquí también encuentra una espiritualidad de lucha y resistencia, que es también radical y revolucionaria en cuanto que busca inducir transformaciones constructivas profundas. Esta es una espiritualidad “de vida”, “por la vida” y “para la vida”13 porque no sólo es expresada en actividades que vencen a las fuerzas de la muerte, sino que también hace tangible la vinculación que existe entre humanidad, la creación entera y Dios.

Esta muy abreviada descripción del marco teológico distintivo de la ASETT y propio de las teologías de liberación, permite enmarcar y valorar aún más las perspectivas que la Asociación ha desarrollado en relación a la crisis ambiental y la justicia ecológica. La preocupación por estos temas en la ASETT no viene debido a la urgencia ecológica sentida en el mundo

12 Mensaje Final, “Mensaje Final, Sexta Asamblea”, 31.13 Final Statement, “The Statement of the Assembly: A Cry for Life”, en Spirituality

of the Third World: A Cry for Life. Papers and Reflections from the Third General Assembly of the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians, January, 1992, Nairobi, Kenya, ed. K. C. Abraham and Bernadette Mbuy-Beya (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1994), 188-206.


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de hoy - aunque la valora y abraza-, sino debido a su constante preocu-pación por la vida amenazada de las grandes mayorías desheredadas de este mundo, quienes más sufren las consecuencias de la crisis ambiental. Las teorías ecológicas contemporáneas no son el centro de interés de la ASETT, sino los movimientos sociales mundiales que trabajan por la justi-cia ecológica, a los que busca contribuir y apoyar. Los intereses, valores y objetivos de las gentes envueltas en estos movimientos son los que mol-dean la reflexión teológica de la ASETT, dándole un punto de partida, un punto de llegada, y una visión para el futuro. Consistente con su marco teológico, desde el siglo pasado la ASETT ha externalizado su sensibili-dad hacia la crisis climática y su compromiso con la justicia ambiental.

Para ilustrar esa sensibilidad, menciono aquí sólo algunos aspectos basados en algunos documentos finales de la Asociación. Por ejemplo, desde su fundación en 1976, la ASETT afirma “la bondad fundamental de la creación y la presencia continua del Espíritu de Dios en nuestro mundo y nuestra historia”, y reconoce el compromiso que tiene ante ese mundo afectado por “el misterio del mal”14, que es expresado en estructuras sociales injustas, desigualdades, y en la degradación humana. En los años subsiguientes, la ASETT avanza sus acercamientos reflexivos relacionados con la crisis ecológica reconociendo; por un lado, la insustentabilidad del paradigma de desarrollo en el sistema capitalista contemporáneo enfocado en la explotación masiva de la tierra por la avaricia, el lucro privado y el consumismo desenfrenado; por otro, la respuesta teológica que esta realidad exige en términos de intervención por la integridad de la creación y la justicia ecológica. El movimiento ecológico abre para la Asociación un espacio más de colaboración con la sociedad civil, incre-mentando su conciencia sobre “el vínculo inseparable entre las luchas de los pobres y los temas ecológicos”, “la interconexión entre el compromiso con la renovación de la sociedad y la renovación de la tierra es vista cla-ramente en la lucha de muchos grupos marginados en todo el mundo”15.

Tal sentido de colaboración tiene como trasfondo teológico una comprensión del mundo y de la humanidad, en la cual: la humanidad, hombres y mujeres, es arquitecta de su propio destino; el destino de la humanidad está intrínsecamente relacionada con el destino de la tierra y del cosmos; la vida humana y el cosmos poseen valor intrínseco, reveren-

14 Documento Final, “Primer Congreso”, 24. 15 Final Statement, “The Statement of the Assembly: A Cry for Life”, 196. Mi

traducción del inglés al castellano.


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ciado en el símbolo de la Madre Tierra; las liberaciones históricas efectua-das por la humanidad encarnan la vida y la gloria de Dios en el mundo; la obligación ética y religiosa de erradicar el despilfarro capitalista porque es hostil al presente y futuro de la humanidad y la creación; el rechazo a religiones y teologías que legitiman el abuso de la tierra y deshonran la integridad de la creación; la visión religiosa de un mundo alternativo involucra la reconstrucción justa de las relaciones distorsionadas entre la humanidad y la naturaleza, así como la colaboración con organizaciones internacionales que promueven los valores de la justicia, la defensa de la paz, y la preservación de la naturaleza16. Con este trasfondo, la ASETT básicamente emite un mensaje de esperanza en su convicción de que “los pueblos del Tercer Mundo no están resignados a su suerte”, y en su decla-ración de perseverancia en el trabajo teológico crítico y constructivo:

Lo/as miembros de la ASETT están buscando comunidades alternativas y espiritualidades sostenibles de esperanza. Esto implica que sigamos adelante con un enfoque común, dando voz a la esperanza que necesita ser realizada en la praxis inter-fe por la justicia y la paz, con una opción por los pobres y la integridad de la creación. Este enfoque en la praxis inter-fe es intercultural, interreligiosa e inter-espiritual17.

En la segunda década del siglo XXI, con la dirección general de José María Vigil, la revista Voices de la ASETT ha realizado un trabajo admirable en este campo. Varios volúmenes de la revista han sido particu-larmente prolíficos en su acercamiento critico-constructivo a la temática de la crisis ambiental y la justicia ecológica. La contribución de la revista a esa temática viene a ampliar y enriquecer el marco teológico de la ASETT con su incorporación del paradigma ético y político que en la revista se conoce como paradigma ecológico, paradigma holístico, o paradigma eco-liberador. Los siguientes títulos de los varios volúmenes ya publica-dos por Voices me sirven para ilustrar la importancia que la ASETT ha dado a la intersección de la teología y la ecología en un marco de libe-

16 Estas comprensiones se encuentran en los siguientes documentos: Documento Final, “Segundo Congreso”, 35; Documento Final, “Quinto Congreso”, 81, 99; Final Statement, “Doing Theology in a Divided World”, 188; Final Statement, “The Statement of the Assembly”, 196-197; Final Statement, “Search for a New Just World Order”, 202; Final Statement, “Message of Hope: Statement of the Fifth General Assembly of the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians, Quito, Ecuador, 2001”, World Council of Churches, Ministerial Formation 95 (October 2001): 82-83.

17 Final Statement, “Message of Hope”, 82, 85. Mi traducción del inglés al cas-tellano.


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ración: Eco-Crisis: Theological Visions (Eco-crisis: Visiones Teológicas)18, Ecología y Religión en esta hora de Emergencia Planetaria19, Visión Ecológica y Supervivencia Planetaria20, Visión Ecológica en un Mundo que Grita21, Ecología Profunda, Espiritualidad y Liberación22, y Teología de la Liberación y Nuevos Paradigmas23. Me interesa notar que estos volúmenes aparecen publicados en varios idiomas, incluyendo el inglés, español, portugués, y ocasionalmente incluye artículos en francés y ale-mán, y que pueden ser obtenidos de forma gratuita en el sitio de Internet: http://eatwot.net/voices/24.

De acuerdo a la perspectiva de la ASETT, el paradigma ecológico además de criticar a fondo, propone superar las contradicciones inhe-rentes al paradigma socio-técnico mecanicista y racionalista instrumental impulsado por la modernidad occidental europea, luego heredado y remodelado por el actual sistema de mercado oligopólico característico del capitalismo neoliberal mundial. El patrón de estos sistemas es la rela-ción social destructiva que establecen con la naturaleza y con los seres humanos mediante la explotación. Además, las relaciones de explotación agudizan su impacto destructivo en las mujeres debido a la hegemonía patriarcal inherente a esos sistemas. En los diversos acercamientos teoló-gicos al paradigma ecológico, la premisa aceptada es la incompatibilidad radical existente entre la explotación de la naturaleza y las personas, y el florecimiento pleno de la creación según el propósito divino, como lo contemplan las muchas religiones del mundo. Una comprensión religiosa

18 Ver, Voices From the Third World, Special Volume (June 2009), editado por Rohan Silva, Marlene Perera, y Shirley Lai Wijesinghe, de Sri Lanka.

19 Ver, Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXIV/1 (January-February 2011), editado por la Comisión Teológica Latinoamericana de la ASETT.

20 Comisión Teológica Internacional de la ASETT, “Texto Base para la Asamblea General de EATWOT en Yoghyakarta, Indonesia, 2012”. Este texto-base, publicado en-línea, puede ser recogido en el portal de la Comisión Teológica Internacional de la ASETT: http://InternationalTheologicalCommission.org

21 Ver, Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXVI/2-3 (April-September 2013), editado por Adam K. arap Chepkwony.

22 Ver, Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXVII/2-3 (April-September 2014), editado por José María Vigil y la Comisión Teológica Internacional de la EATWOT.

23 Ver, Voices of the South, Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXVII/4 (October-December 2014), editado por José María Vigil y la Comisión Teológica Internacional de la EATWOT.

24 Sitio de Internet consultado y verificado el 8 de septiembre de 2016.


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o teológica de la creación rechaza permanecer impasible o silenciosa ante tal dinámica sistemática de explotación, que expone la falsa contradicción entre la humanidad y la naturaleza, la antropología teológica y la cosmo-logía. M. Perera claramente indica que “las filosofías y las formas de vida que alienan al ser humano de la naturaleza”25 deben ser radicalmente desafiadas y denunciadas. Por su parte, J.M. Vigil señala que:

Las religiones necesitan sentir el kairós ecológico de esta hora y volver-se hacia el cosmos y la naturaleza, para reconocer en ellos nuestra ‘historia sagrada’, y superar el actual divorcio entre ciencia y espiritualidad, entre reli-gión y ciencia, entre vida espiritual y realidad. Aceptar el desafío de la ecología no es sólo incluir el ‘cuidado de la naturaleza’ entre los imperativos morales; es más: implica toda una ‘reconversión ecológica’ de la religión26.

Tal reconversión ecológica envuelve procesos de largo alcance que producen transformaciones profundas en la epistemología teológica no sólo porque exige un diálogo crítico con las ciencias ecológicas y los estudios ambientales contemporáneos, sino también porque ese diálogo exige la reconstrucción holístico-liberadora de los lenguajes religiosos sobre Dios, el cosmos, la naturaleza, la humanidad, y sus mutuas rela-ciones27. Ciertamente, las teólogas feministas y ecofeministas han avan-zado acercamientos teológicos en esta dirección desde la plataforma de la ASETT28, incluso reconociendo persistentes resistencias a los marcos conceptuales feministas por parte de los teólogos de la liberación. No obstante, los diversos acercamientos a la crisis ambiental y a la justicia

25 Sr. Marlene Perera, “Editorial”, Voices From the Third World, Special Volume (June 2009): 2. Mi traducción del inglés al castellano.

26 José María Vigil, “Desafíos de la ecología a las religiones”, Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXIV/1 (January-February 2011): 325.

27 Ver, J. M. Vigil, “Desafíos”, 322-324; Birgit Weiler, “Nuestro camino de trans-formación”, Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXVII/2-3 (April-September 2014): 409-410; Manuel Gonzalo, “Ecología y Cristianismo”, Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXIV/1 (January-February 2011): 137-139.

28 Sobre esto, ver Final Statement, “The Statement of the Assembly”, 192-193; Final Statement, “Final Statement of the ‘Women Against Violence’ Dialogue”, en Women Resisting Violence. Spirituality for Life, ed. Mary John Mananzan, Mercy Amba Oduyoye, Elsa Tamez, et al. (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1996), 183-184; Ivone Gebara, “Spirituality and Resistance. A Latin American Perspective”, Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXIX/1 (January-April 2016): 61-77; Luiza Tomita, “Feminist Theology on Ecofeminist Practices in Latin America: Problems and Challenges in the 21st Century”, Voices Theological Journal of EATWOT, New Series XXXIX/1 (January-April 2016): 207. El volumen XXXIX/1 de Voices fue coordinado por Olga Consuelo Vélez Caro.


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ecológica han traído riqueza conceptual al marco teológico promovido por la Asociación, han fortalecido su visión multidimensional de la trans-formación constructiva, y han agudizado su sentido de responsabilidad ética y política ante las realidades del mundo. A la luz del paradigma ecológico liberador, en su respuesta a esas realidades, la ASETT reafir-ma el principio de la interdependencia radical, reconoce la diversidad humana y la pluralidad de la creación, abraza la visión de los pueblos ancestrales sobre la integridad del cosmos, y fortalece comprensiones que articulan las intersecciones de la ecología, la teología, la espiritualidad y la liberación. Las muchas religiones del mundo, como “la fuerza más profundamente movilizadora de la población mundial”29, tiene muchos recursos que ofrecer para seguir motivando compromisos y espiritualida-des de transformación para la solidaridad mundial, la paz, la justicia, y la integridad de la creación. En el día de hoy, en palabras de la ASETT, sigue siendo cierto que “nuestro ‘método es nuestra espiritualidad’”30.

Laudato Si’ en este volumen de Voices

Tomé la decisión de enfocar la introducción a este volumen en las características centrales del método teológico desarrollado por la ASETT debido a mi deseo de substanciar con argumento lógico y coherente la gran compatibilidad existente entre ese método y el método que articula la carta encíclica Laudato Si’. Con certeza, no estoy diciendo ni sugirien-do que la Laudato Si’ representa o expresa deliberadamente a la teología promovida por la ASETT, sino simplemente que existe compatibilidad entre ellas en términos de sus marcos conceptuales y sus contenidos. Tomando en cuenta el perfil del paradigma ecológico liberador articulado en Voices, y el perfil de la ecología integral como paradigma articulado en Laudato Si’, bien puede reconocerse que ambos paradigmas compar-ten intereses, valores y objetivos comunes. Esto es particularmente cierto cuando las religiones y las teologías buscan dar respuestas constructivas al clamor de la humanidad deshereda, la mayormente afectada por la crisis climática, por un cambio de rumbo en el complejo social. También sigue siendo cierta la afirmación de la esperanza. Los nuevos caminos hacia una espiritualidad ecológica los trazan quienes siguen luchando por

29 Comisión Teológica Internacional de la ASETT, “Texto Base para la Asamblea General”, 11.

30 Final Statement, “The Statement of the Assembly”, 197. Mi traducción del inglés al castellano.


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la justicia ecológica, a menudo a costa de su propia vida, porque ese es el terreno donde asienta la práctica conceptual. El legado de la Hermana Dorothy Mae Stang y de Berta Cáceres, ambas asesinadas arbitrariamente debido a sus luchas ecológicas, pervive hoy como afirmación de la espe-ranza. Sí, otro mundo es posible, otra revolución, una “valiente revolución cultural” (Laudato Si’, 114), social y religiosa es necesaria.

Los varios artículos que componen este volumen ilustran la simili-tud de temas presentados en la Laudato Si’ y las constantes temáticas que han acompañado a la ASETT y su revista Voices a través de los años. La similitud temática en ambas muestra un interés compartido por apoyar la intervención constructiva ante la crisis ecológica sentida en el mundo, por parte de los grupos sociales motivados por convicciones religiosas. En mi opinión, más que presentar una similitud en términos de convergencia puntual o conveniencia temática situacional, ambos acercamientos propo-nen al paradigma ecológico como una hermenéutica mayor o mediación interpretativa crítica dentro de un marco teológico de liberación. Los acer-camientos reflexivos incluidos en este volumen proporcionan argumentos para apoyar mi opinión.

En este volumen, el primer artículo escrito por Olga Consuelo Vélez Caro presenta una mirada global de la encíclica para destacar sus afirma-ciones centrales e interpelaciones proféticas, incluyendo sus novedades como son: la propuesta de una ecología integral pensada desde el lugar de los pobres, la estructuración metodológica de acuerdo al método pas-toral de “ver, juzgar, actuar”, y el llamado que levanta para una conversión ecológica ligada al fomento de una espiritualidad ecológica para el cuida-do del mundo. Gillermo Kerber, en el segundo artículo, también expone los puntos claves de la encíclica desde la perspectiva metodológica del “ver, juzgar, actuar”, y desde el movimiento ecuménico mundial de las iglesias. Este artículo nota que la encíclica marca un antes y un después en la tradición de la enseñanza social católica al dar centralidad a las preocupaciones ecológicas, algo que escasamente aparece en esta tradi-ción y que ha sido ampliamente abordada por el movimiento ecuménico. Interesantemente, los dos artículos de Vélez Caro y Kerber muestran con-vergencia conceptual en su identificación de la estructura metodológica de la Laudato Si’ articulada por el “ver, juzgar, actuar”, que corresponde en términos académicos al método de la teología de la liberación con sus mediaciones conceptuales: analítica (ver), hermenéutica (juzgar), y práctico-pastoral (actuar). Mis reflexiones arriba sobre el marco teológico de liberación desean dar visibilidad a esta convergencia.

El tercer artículo, escrito por Joshua R. Snyder, presenta un análisis de la encíclica desde el contexto de Guatemala, con énfasis en cómo la


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comprensión de la ecología integral ayuda a esclarecer la interconexión de la crisis ecológica y las estructuras injustas en ese contexto, así como las prácticas sociales y religiosas que pueden fortalecer la agencia moral de las comunidades indígenas con virtudes ecológicas sustentables. La influencia directa de la Teología India desde América Latina en los con-tenidos de la encíclica, es presentada por Eleazar López Hernández con detalle en el cuarto artículo. La visión y espiritualidad de los pueblos originarios vividas desde antiguo en relación armónica con la naturaleza, son incorporadas por el magisterio pontificio para enriquecer con las categorías teológicas indígenas una perspectiva ecológica radical. En el quinto artículo, Diego Irarrázabal expande la reflexión sobre la encíclica desde las experiencias y sabidurías de las comunidades indígenas en la región andina. Con sus reflexiones desafiantes y propuestas proféticas, las eco-teologías iluminadas por las tradiciones autóctonas de relación con la Tierra se encuentran en un proceso de renacimiento que conlleva para las comunidades cristianas implicaciones teóricas y prácticas para el cuidado del “hogar común”. El sexto artículo escrito por Adam K. arap Chepkwony, presenta una exploración sobre cómo algunos pueblos de África, y de Kenia in particular, han seguido sus cosmovisiones religiosas para relacionarse con la naturaleza, protegerla y conservarla. Aunque esas cosmovisiones ancestrales enfrentan hoy la amenaza de pérdida, los pueblos siguen contribuyendo con sus conocimientos culturales y sus prácticas religiosas tradicionales en los esfuerzos mundiales por proteger la naturaleza de modo holístico.

En el séptimo artículo, Yolanda Chávez aborda los desafíos que las tecnologías transgénicas levantan para una ecología integral y cómo responder a ellas desde una espiritualidad ecológica comprometida con el cuidado de la Tierra como nuestra casa común. Esta es una espiritua-lidad que incluye la responsabilidad por el cuidado del planeta, el reco-nocimiento de la interconexión de la humanidad y el mundo creado, y la promoción de prácticas transformadoras ante las tecnologías operadas por el lucro. Tomando en cuenta la espiritualidad ecológica adoptada por Laudato Si’ y con la inspiración de las tradiciones espirituales de Malasia, en el último artículo, Jojo M. Fung señala la necesidad de hacer cambios profundos a la espiritualidad mediante el fortalecimiento de procesos educativos eco-sensitivos asentados en un misticismo contemplativo y profético, como indispensable para que las mujeres y los hombres de hoy puedan ejercitar su responsabilidad ambiental y ciudadanía ecológica profética.

Deseo cerrar esta presentación con un mensaje de afecto y soli-daridad para Rosemary Radford Ruether, amiga de la ASETT desde su


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fundación, quien ha sido afectada recientemente por una enfermedad grave. Rosemary ha contribuido de forma extraordinaria a dar forma a los marcos conceptuales críticos de la justicia ecológica y del ecofemins-mo liberador. Con este volumen de Voices, deseo reconocer su influencia constructiva en teólogos y teólogas que seguimos creyendo en que otro mundo es posible. Con oración y gratitud para ella.


Eatwot's web addresses

All EATWOT's addresses................................Institutional:......................... Journal:...................................................Commissions:....................

Others:..................................

eatwot.nethttps://eatwot.academia.edu/EATWOT

eatwot.net/VOICES InternationalTheologicalCommission.org

www.Comision.Teologica.Latinoamericana.orgwww.Comissao.Teologica.Latinoamericana.org

www.tiempoaxial.org/AlongTheManyPathswww.tiempoaxial.org/PorLosMuchosCaminoswww.tiempoaxial.org/PelosMuitosCaminhos

www.tiempoaxial.org/PerIMoltiCammini

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La serie radial LAUDATO SI' es una adaptación radiofónica de la idea central que atraviesa la encícli-ca del Papa Francisco: el cambio climático está arrui-nando a la Madre Tierra y sus terribles consecuencias perjudican a todos los seres vivos, especialmente a los hombres y mujeres empobrecidos por un sistema que ya no se aguanta.

Francisco de Asís, quien cantó al hermano Sol y a la hermana Agua, que hablaba con las criaturas de Dios, tiene ahora la oportunidad de conversar con el Aire, los Peces y los Pájaros, y también con el Oro, el Maíz Transgénico y la Lluvia Ácida, con las criaturas que se ven cada vez más afectadas por la irresponsabi-lidad de los seres humanos y sus empresas depredado-ras del ambiente.

Son 20 programas de unos 10 minutos cada uno. Todos tienen el mismo objetivo: crear conciencia sobre la indispensable ciudadanía ecológica. Sobre la urgencia de cambiar de rumbo y superar el estilo de vida consumista, la cultura del descarte, un modelo de civilización tecnocrática, mercantilizada y ambiciosa, que no es sostenible.

Una producción de REPAM

Red Eclesial Panamazónicahttp://redamazonica.org

Una serie de audiossobre la “Laudato Si'”

del PaPa Francisco

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The Ecological Conversion Encyclicaland its Accesibility to the Impoverished of this World

Olga Consuelo VÉLEZ CARO

Colombia

Since it was made public on May 24, 2015 --and even before --the Encyclical Letter “Laudato Si”1, issued by Pope Francis, Bishop of Rome, evoked many positive comments. Just a glance at some of the Latin American newspapers can provide an idea of the reception given and ideas that were highlighted.

According to the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, the impact of this Encyclical in secular media press in Latin America can be illustrated in several ways. For example: the newspaper "El País" of Uruguay with the headline: "The Pope calls for responsibility towards our planet which is being destroyed"; the newspaper "El Mercurio" from Chile says: "Papal Encyclical on the environment makes an urgent call to save the planet"; the newspapers "La Nación" of Argentina and "National" of Caracas, spoke of the "vallient cultural revolution of the Pope and his urgent call for a change of mentality in order to protect the human habi-tat "; the editorial comment of the newspaper "El Tiempo" of Colombia writes: "Francisco is back at the game" and states that "the Pontiff points out that it is in politics, and especially in the economy, where are found the causes of global warming". The Pope also points out and strongly cri-ticizes politicians and power groups "for the indiscriminate use of natural resources which primarily affects the most disadvantaged population of the world"2.

1 Pope Francis, Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’ del Santo Padre Francisco Sobre el Cuidado de la Casa Común, Vatican City 2015, online edition, accessed on July 3, 2016, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/es/encyclicals

2 Pontifical Comisssion for Latin America, “Reactions in the secular press of Latin America, to the Encyclical letter ‘Laudato Si’ of Pape Francis”, Roman Curia, accessed March 10, 2016, http://www.americalatina.va/content/americalati-na/es.html

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Although more examples might be cited here, these demonstrate that every newspaper emphasized certain aspects simply because each author wrote from a situation that has its own particular aspects. Faced with such a variety of reactions, what is the perspective that I propose in this article? The title of my contribution to this volume focuses on: raising awareness to the need for ecological conversion, as proposed by the Encyclical and to do it from its accessibility to the impoverished of this world.

The Encyclical consists of 246 paragraphs, divided into six chap-ters, in this order:

An introduction (1-16),

Chapter One:"What is happening to our home" (17-61);

Chapter Two: "The gospel of creation" (62-100);

Chapter Three: "human root of the ecological crisis"(101-136);

Chapter Four: "An integral ecology" (137-162);

Chapter Five: "Some lines of orientation and action" (163-201);

Chapter Six: "Education, ecological spirituality" (202-246)

It ends with two prayers: "Prayer for our land" and "Christian Prayer with creation". Each chapter is divided into several sections to insure grasping it’s precise contents.

A comprehensive look at the Encyclical

In this section, I want to emphasize various aspects. From the beginning, it is important to note how the encyclical appears structured. We can see the use of Latin American pastoral method see-judge-act.3 The first chapter is devoted to "see" reality; the second and third chapters are focused on "judging" that reality from "the gospel of the creation" and from a more scientific view into "the human root of the ecological crisis". From there it goes, chapters fourth, fifth and sixth, into "acting" taking note of the proposal of a comprehensive ecology, orientation lines and action, and a spiritual and ecological education..

In addition, the Encyclical uses expressions very consistent with Latin American thought such as "common house", "Mother Earth," "cry of

3 This method was highly valued by the V Episcopal Conference of Aparecida, Brazil 2007. View, Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, CELAM, V Conferencia General del Episcopado Latinoamericano y del Caribe. Aparecida: Discípulos y misioneros de Jesucristo para que nuestros pueblos en Él tengan vida. Documento Conclusivo (Bogotá: Centro de Publicaciones del CELAM, 2007), §19.

38 · Olga Consuelo VÉLEZ CARO

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the earth and the poor", "care", "the interdependence of all beings" "Poor and vulnerable", "integral ecology", and the like.

As he did in his previous encyclical, the Pope esteems the con-tributions of Episcopal Conferences of each region, as well as of those Popes that preceded him, including several theologians, philosophers, saints and mystics, especially St. Francis of Assisi undoubtedly the prin-cipal inspiration of the entire letter. In my overall view of the encyclical, I quickly highlight several relevant aspects to the prospective reading proposed here..

An integral ecology. The novelty of this encyclical is the proposal of a comprehensive ecology. That is, it is not limited to the environment, as perhaps as we have become accustomed to hearing about it- - but proposes an ecology that assumes the historical reality in all its social, cultural, [scientific], economic, political, religious dimensions, and envi-ronmental ambient. In this sense, we can reafirm the approach adopted by the General Assembly of the Ecumenical Association of Theologians of the Third World (EATWOT)4 in 2012 where it urged the need to link religion to the "green vision and planetary survival "."Our thesis is that neither capital nor politics nor institutional religions alone will be able to remedy the fatal destruction into which we seem to be heading; they will only be able to do so if they unite to reform religious mentalities – which in itself is a task for theology."5.

The centrality of the poor. Promoting an integral ecology goes hand in hand with concern for the poor. The Encyclical uses 57 times the expression "the poor ," showing not only the link between ecological commitment and responsibility with them, but also the claim that the poor are those mostly affected by the depletion of natural resources. It is interesting to note that the real novelty of the encyclical is not an ecologi-cal concern for its relation with religion, but rather an ecological concern and its relation with “the poor”. The new vision is the centrality given to linking nature with “the poor”.

He repeats insistently: "concern for nature and justice for the poor are an inseparable commitments to society and internal peace" (§ 10)6;

4 Known in Spanish as ASETT, Asociación Ecuménica de Teólogos/as del Tercer Mundo.

5 EATWOT, “Ecological vision and planetary survival. Concept paper for EATWOT´s General Assembly at Yoghyakarta, Indonesia, 2012”, in: Servicios Koinonía, accessed March 10, 2016, http://servicioskoinonia.org/relat/425.htm

6 “§” means paragraph or section in the Laudato Si encyclical letter.

The ecological conversion encyclical · 39

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there is an "intimate relationship between the poor and the fragility of the planet" (§16); the poor are those who suffer most from the dramatic consequences of environmental degradation (§13, 48), especially in their health (§20); they are those living in the areas most affected by plane-tary over-heating and consequently suffer the altering of their productive resources, forceing them to migrate which causes serious consequences for their lives and that of their children (§ 25). The poor have less access to good drinking water (§ 28) and, therefore, those who suffer most from diseases caused by their lack (§ 29). Denying impoverished sectors their right to good water is to deny them their right to life and therefore their human dignity (§ 30). The culture of discarding everything particularly affects excluded humans (§ 22), living in hidden areas, far from the green areas of big cities to which they have no access (§45).

There is usually no clear awareness of the problems that particu-larly affect excluded human sectors although they make up the majority of the planet (§49). About a third of the food produced is discarded and wasted and that is like stealing from the table of the poor (§ 50). We have to share the fruits of the earth, especially with the poor, widows, orphans and foreigners (§71). It is true that we aught to take more into account other living beings, but even be more conscious o the huge inequalities between people, even though recognizing that some are more worthy than others (§90). The line of action must be taking care of nature, but at the same time fighting poverty to restore dignity to excluded people.(§139).

Very positive and enlightening is the aspect of a clarion call of attetion to the human ecology of the poor for living well despite their misfortunes. For example, human excluded sectors are able to live an eco-logy that springs from the relationship between themselves; a solidarity that comes from the ability to care for their own environment due to their precarious conditions and poverty (§148, 232).

Along with these and similar references, the encyclical makes a fundamental invocation to a God who is "God of the poor," asking to give us the capacity to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of our country and strive for justice, love and peace .

A prophetic voice. "This Encyclical, is an especially prophetic voice denouncing clearly those who produce this grave ecological crisis as also their methods of doing it. Many of those who have more resources and economic or political power seem to be concentrated principaly in cove-ring up the problems and/or their symptoms (§26); it is expected that the control of water by large global companies will become one of the main sources of conflicts of this century (§ 31);


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Looking at the world, we take notice that this level of human intervention, often at the service of finance and consumerism, makes the land in which we live actually become less rich and beautiful, incre-asingly limited and gray (§34); nor can we ignore the huge international economic interests that under the guise of caring for it, are capable of undermining national sovereignties. Proposals exist to internationalize the Amazon which serve only the economic interests of international corporations (§38) and in which, at the time for concrete action, the poor often are relegaed to last place. This is due partialy to the fact that many professionals, opinion makers, media and power centers, are located away from them in isolated urban areas, without being directly in contact with their problems (§49).

The Encyclical maintains that there is a real "ecological debt" par-ticularly between North and South countries, because of "the polluting activity of companies that do in these less developed countries that which they are unable to do in the countries that furnish their capital." (§51). Faced with this activity seriously damaging the ecological environment of the South, attention is drawn to the weakness of its international political reaction.

The subjugation of politics to technology and finance shows up in the failure of world summits on the environment. Too many vested and economic interests very easily come to prevail over the common good and to manipulate information so that their projects escape being affected (§54). The denunciation of those causing the damage indicates "the most powerful and most polluting countries" as those who have the primary responsibility for "the reduction of greenhouse gases" (§169).

Providing solutions to the problems that have caused implies a radical change much greater than the present strategy of the sale of "car-bon credits" because this "could lead to a new form of speculation, and not serve to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions", and also "could become a diversionary resource that would sustain the overconsumption of some countries and sectors (§171).

An attitude of dialogue. It should be noted that from the beginning the encyclical assumes the stance of being in dialogue with all humanity: this Encyclical especially attempts to enter into dialogue with everyone concerning “our common home" (§ 3). So it is no wonder the world wide reception given to this document, well beyond the ecclesiasticle scope. The Pope recognizes the contribution that "many scientists, philosophers, theologians and social organizations" have supplied, thereby enriching the mind of the Church on these issues (§ 7). He agrees that "science and


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religion, bringing different approaches to reality, can enter into an intense dialogue productive for both" (§62). Even more, he humbily recognizes that the church does not have the final word and therefore must listen to and respect the different views (§61).

Fundamental statements and prophetic interogationsThe aspects mentioned previously do have broader and more

sophisticated development throughout the Encyclical in its six chapters. Referring to these chapters then, I will make a brief summary of each, highlighting the aspects that get reinforced by the papal approach but also emphasizeing the connection between “care for our common home” and the “option for the poor”.

In the Introduction, the Pope makes a call to become aware of two realities. First, our own reality: "We are earth (cf. Gen 2:7). Our body is made up of the elements of the planet: its air is what permits us to breath and its water revives and restores us "(§ 2); secondly, this is a call not only for believers, but for all people who share this "common house" (§3).

He proposes the figure of St. Francis of Assisi as a special patron for an integral ecology for this saint’s ability to live in a perfect harmo-nious relationship with God, with others and with all creation (§10-12). This section closes with a paragraph in which the Pope describes the transverse lines or axes that run through the entire encuclical, such as:

the intimate relationship between the poor and the fragility of the planet; the conviction that in the world everything is connected; criticism of the new paradigm and forms of power derived from technology; the invitation to seek other ways of understanding economy and progress; the real value of each creature; the human sense of ecology; the need for sincere and honest deba-tes; the grave responsibility of international and local politics; the culture of discarding and the proposal of a new style of life. (§16).

The first chapter describes the present historical reality, from which the Pope emphasizes the need to present reality confronting it with the current context to avoid falling into abstract messages that say nothing.That approach to reality is done with the simplicity of one who does not have the complete or definitive word on the subject: "the Church does not have to propose a final word and it understands that it should listen and promote honest debate among scientists, respecting the diversity of opinions" (§ 61). His purpose is “that we become painfully aware and dare to take on the personal suffering that occurs to the world and with this he recognizes the contribution that each of us has to offer." (§19).

The aspects that he highlights are: pollution and climate change, the issue of water, loss of biodiversity, deterioration of the quality of human life and social degradation, global inequity and the weakness of


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reactions and diversity of opinions to respond to this reality. He termi-nates this presentation appealing to Christian hope that "invites us to recognize that there is always a way out -- we can always redirect the course -- we can always do something to solve problems" (§61). All these realities described here refer to the right of the poor to enjoy a creation that belongs to all humanity and that far exceeds the consumer society in its growing tendency to stifle the sense of wonder and enjoy the real wealth given by God always for all humanity.

The second chapter offers from Christian tradition, a believer’s vision of creation. This was called "The Gospel of creation", which implies believing in a Creator God who knows and loves each particular person together with all of his creation. This faith must necessarily lead Christians to recognize ecological commitments flowing from the con-victions of faith (§64). Accepting the fact that not everyone in the world adopts the idea of a Creator God, the Pope invites dialogue between faith and science since dialogue is always fruitful for both (§62).

Biblical texts that point up that personal love of God must lead lead us to see the inseparability of our relationships with nature and "fra-ternity, justice and fidelity to others" (§70). Unfortunately a misreading of the biblical text referring to "subdue the earth" has fostered a practice of savage exploitation of nature. Hence the need for proper hermeneutics (§67) helping us to understand the true meaning of the text certainly does not lead to a despotic anthropocentrism disengaged from other creatures (§68).

The shabbath law and the Jubilee year mentioned in the Old Testament, sought to maintain the balance of nature and of social rela-tions based on the recognition that the gift of the land with its fruits belongs to all the people (§71). The recognition of the divine presence in all creation stimulates the development of "ecological virtues" (§88) and “universal brotherhood”.

All this is not to deny the unique value of the human person amist the whole of creation (§90) but is carefull not to exclude anything or anyone from the universal brotherhood since indifference or cruelty to nature gets transferred "somehow to the way we treat our other human beings" (§92).

In the New Testament, the practice of Jesus includes the invitation to His disciples to "recognize the paternal relationship between God and all creation" (§96), and Jesus is constantly in contact with nature and recognizes her beauty ( §97). Moreover, in Jesus, God Himself is inserted into the created cosmos, taking His luck with Him “even unto the cross”


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(§99); His Resurrection reveals His “Universal Lordship”, directing all rea-lity to its definitive fullness (§100).

The third chapter not only invites a description of the symptoms, but also expounds the human causes for the ecological crisis. It also points up the dominant technocratic paradigm, as well as the position and action of human beings in the world as realities that must be taken into serious consideration.

First, while recognizing all the benefits technical progress has brought to humanity, it warns of the power that mankind has acquired, especially those with economic power and those who have used techno-science negatively, as evidenced by dropping the atomic bomb (§102-104).

Secondly, the current reality is being affected by problems caused by the globalization of the technocratic paradigm, which has set up as a principle that: "the methodology and objectives of science and technology are within a paradigm of understanding that affects the living conditions of people as well as the functioning of society" (§107). This paradigm has become so solidly entrenched that it seems countercultural to choose another lifestyle (§108); it pretends to dominate the economy and politi-cal life, holding them subservient, and leading to a wasteful overdevelo-ped consumerism that flouts a vivid contrast to the dehumanizing misery of so many (§109).

To confront this hegemony of the technocratic paradigm it is insufficient to consider partial answers to problems, but rather involves “changing the chip”, constructing a “new look”, a new way to analyze policies, an educational program, a lifestyle and a spirituality with the capacity to withstand such a paradigm (§111). Although there is still much to be done, but already there are some attempts to alternatives such as for example: producers in small communities who decide to use fewer contaminants in their production systems (§112). Obviously, this is not meant to abandon technology, but rather to recover values to reconfigure it. (§114).

Thirdly, it draws attention to the need to promote adequate anthro-pological conception favorable to an integral ecology. It is possible to go from an anthropo-logical hubris of modernity (§116) to a bio-centrism which denies for human beings the peculiar capacities of knowledge, free will and responsibility (§118).

The lack of an adequate anthropology can lead to falling into a practical relativism (§122) ranging from treating others as objects even to permitting oneself to be carried away by the logic of the market (§123). We need to maintain the dignity of work and its role in the task of trans-forming this world (§125). Innovative and creative research must show


· 45

absolute respect for plants and animals, just as women or men scientists can never stop reconsidering the objectives, results, context and ethical boundaries of their activity (§131).

GM cereals (“transgenic seeds”) have not yet been conclusively proved to be free from causing damage to humans. Effects begin to show up in concentration of lands in the hands of a few, significantly affec-ting small producers (§134). This obvious reality requires a scientific and social debate both wide and responsible, able to consider all available information and call things by their name, without suppressing informa-tion to protect any particular interests (§135).

The fourth chapter proposes a triple ecology: integral, cultural and for everyday life.

"Integral ecology" which relationally incorporates the human with its social dimensions (§137), begins by indicating that "environmental, economic and social ecology" (§138-142) presupposes the intrinsic con-nection of all components -- physical, chemical and biological-- with all living species of the planet (§138).

This raises the consideration that there are no two crises: environ-mental and social, but one only single and complex socio-environmental crisis (§139). The ecosystems advise us of this interdependence and our need to ensure that it survives. (§140).

There can not be an analysis of environmental problems without simultaneously analyzing human contexts: family, work, city and relation-ships of people with themselves with others and with the environment (§141). Therefore, social necessarily implies institutional ecology and covers all dimensions ranging from the family to the local, national and international communities. (§142) Cultural ecology", meanwhile, involves realizing that environmental ecology can not ignore the historical, artis-tic and cultural heritage of every folk (§143). That is why environmental policies can not be enforced uniformly, but require the intervention of the inhabitants of each habitat and from their own cultural riches. Even the notion of "quality of life"can not be imposed because this can only be understood within the universe of symbols and proper habits of each human group (§144).

Hence it is so important to pay attention to aboriginal communities with their cultural traditions and make sure that they do not get pressu-red to abandon their land in order to make way for mining or agriculture projects which pay no attention to the degradation of our nature and cultures (§ 146).


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"Ecology of everyday life" shows that its not necessarily external aspects that determine a good atmosphere, but the influence of nearby warm human relationships as they turn a precarious space into a digni-fied context for life (§148). Achieving a decent house (§152), the use of a human transport (§153), the transformation of the chaos of large cities which prevents dignified life and favors slave labor (§154) are part of a human ecology that also accepts the body as a gift from God and from there makes itself available to meet with those who are different (§155). In other words, what must prevail is the "principle of the common good" (§156-158) that seeks to ensure the common good, -- especially for the poorest, taking into account the common destination of earthly goods (§158) "Justice between generations" (§159-162), which means taking res-ponsibility for the world we are leaving to future generations.

The fifth chapter aims to "delineate large paths of dialogue to help us out of the spiral of self-destruction in which we are submerging" (§163), These paths are: dialogue over the environment in international policies; dialogue over new national and local policies; dialogue and transparency in decision-making processes; dialogue and economic poli-cies aimed at fullness of human life; and religions in dialogue with the sciences.

The sixth chapter stresses the need to correct the direction and hence tremendous challenges -- cultural, spiritual and educational -- that suppose long processes of regeneration (§202). For this it is proposed to choose a different lifestyle contrary to the consumerist style that today has been imposed and which can only generate violence and mutual des-truction, especially when only a few can maintain the style.

Besides an educational alliance is also necessary between humani-ty and the environment, creating an "ecological citizenship" that promo-tes solid virtues that would enable self-giving in favor of an ecological commitment.

Although educational fields are diverse, the family is outstanding because in this setting is built a culture of shared life and respect for what surrounds us (§213); likewise the Church shares the duty of bringing about this conscience awareness in education ( §214).

In addition, we must not forget the relationship between aesthetic education and the preservation of a healthy environment, because paying attention to beauty and love helps us avoid utilitarian pragmatism (§215).

Ecological conversion is a line of ecological spirituality that comes from a faith conviction and can nourish a passion for caring for the world


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(§216). Joy and peace in a lifestyle characterized by sobriety, are fruits of a Christian spirituality. This spirituality "proposes an alternative way of understanding “quality of life”, and encourages a style both prophetic and contemplative, able to deeply enjoy without becoming obsessed by a “consumerist life" (§222). It is a spirituality that broadens the understan-ding of peace, not to be simply the absence of war but includes harmony with creation (§225).

The experience of God as Creator and common father is a civil and political love able to motivate common actions focused on building a better world (§228-231).

Sacramental signs and celebrative repose must be lived as a privi-leged way to express the experience of a God who assumes nature and converts it to become the mediation of a supernatural life (§235). The Trinity speaks of the relationship that must be established between all creatures and the created world, similar to the subsisting relations of the divine persons (§240).

Mary as “Queen of Creation”, takes care of this wounded world and not only understand the meaning of all things, but she can also help us to have a wiser vision of this world (§241) y Saint Joseph can teach us to care for and work with generosity and tenderness to protect this world that God has entrusted to us (§242).

And meanwhile as we walk towards and "beyond the sun" to our “Eternal Sabbath”, towards the “New Jerusalem” towards our “heavenly common home” where every creature -- now luminously transformed -- will occupy its proper place (§243), we have to take care of the house entrusted to us (§244).

The encyclical ends by proposing a "Prayer for our land" and a "Christian Prayer with all creation."

Conclusions and challenges

The overall view of the encyclical and the issues I've In response highlighted each chapter reveal that Pope Francis offers a long, deep, yet simple and clear reflection on the current ecological challenge that con-cerns all humanity alike, believers and non-believers . to this challenge, F. Vidal notes that the encyclical marks a clear agenda of actions needed to extend and deepen the cological culture. “Laudato sí” is not just a decla-ratory but a transformative text.7 Such an agenda can be found in the

7 Fernando Vidal, “Francisco llama a la discusión científica y social. 'Laudato Si', el amor ecosocial,” Religión Digital, retrieved on March 10, 2016, http://www.periodistadigital.com/religion/opinion/


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text of the encyclical, which presents suggestions for actions to be taken from different global contexts. Among these actions can be mentioned the following: more research to understand better the behavior of ecosystems (§42); intervention for the development of appropriate legislation and policies (§53); research to understand better the behavior of ecosystems (§42); intervention in order to develop appropriate legislation and poli-cies (§53); respond to the slow and weak international policy on this issue since global summits on the environment, practically speaking have been a failure (§54, 166, 169); agree governing regimes for so-called 'global commons' (§174); promote transparent dialogue condemning corrup-tion and muddling over the subject (§182); accelerate energy renovation (§165); offer local response to the socio-environmental problems by coo-peratives and communities (§179); change everyday lifestyles (§209) and educate ecologically (§209-211).

From the reading I have presented here this encyclical, the new key that matters is to promote and maintain the reference to the "preferential option for the poor"8, extending the relationship with nature. According to statements of L. Boff: Mother Earth is, indeed, "the Great Impoverished, crucified, and calling for its resurrection."9 Eco-theology10 maintains the dynamism of the struggle against the oppression of the earth understan-ding that

If we do not liberate the Earth we eliminate the real basis for any other liberation. We denounce that the same logic that exploits the worker, classes and countries, also operates against Mother Earth. Powerful minorities are being unlimitedly enriched without the slightest ethical or social equity.11.

In short: What will be the impact of this encyclical? To what extent will it reach? Potential answers to these questions depend on our own ecological conversion and our prophetic word focused on promoting a strong commitment to comprehensive ecology.

In turn, an ecological conversion itself and a prophetic word will open new routes forward to listen to the cry of the earth and of the poor,

8 Benedict XVI, “Discurso Inaugural de Su Santidad Benedicto XVI, Domingo 13 de mayo de 2007”, in V Conferencia General del Episcopado Latinoamericano y Caribeño: Documento Conclusivo: Aparecida, fourth edition (Bogotá: Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, 2007), 13.

9 Leonardo Boff, “Laudato If the Magna Carta of modern ecology in the broadest and deepest sense,” Interview: Benjamin Forcano talks with the theologian of the Church and its challenges in the environmental field, Religion Digital, accessed March 10, 2016, http://www.periodistadigital.com/religion/america

10 For understanding of this theological horizon, cfr. Juan José Tamayo-Acosta, Nuevo paradigma teológico (Madrid: Trotta, 2003), 111-120.

11 Boff, “Laudato Si”, ibid.


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and thus show that our faith is not dead, but becomes concret in deed and truth. An ecological conversion in itself with a prophetic word, in turn will open new paths forward to call attention to the cry of the earth and that of the poor, and in this way prove that our faith is not a cadaver but a moving power that manifests its life through deeds based on truth.


Latin American theology is associated with liberation, basic Christian communities, primacy of the praxis and option for the poor. The present volume shows that Latin American theologians added new themes to the pre-vious ones: religious pluralism, inter-religious dialogue and ma-croecumenism. It is the fruti of a programme of the Theological Commission of the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theo-logians (EATWOT) in Latin Ame-rican, to work out a liberation theology of religions.

This volume summarizes the three first ones of the series of five volumes.

J.M.VIGIL, Luiza TOMITA, Marcelo BARROS (eds.)Foreword: Pedro CASALDÁLIGA

Series : Interreligious Studies, edited by Frans Wijsen and Jorge CastilloPublished by the Chair of World Christianity at Radboud University Nijmegen

Distributed in North América by Transactions Publishers: [email protected] in UK by Global Book Marketing, London, www.centralbooks.co.ukDistributed from Germay: Lit Verlag, Berlin and Münster: www.lit-verlag.de

Along the Many Paths

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La encíclica de la conversión ecológica desde los pobres

Olga Consuelo VÉLEZ CARO

Colombia

Desde que salió a la luz pública el 24 de mayo de 2015 –y aún antes-, la Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’1, emitida por el Papa Francisco, Obispo de Roma, despertó muchos y positivos comentarios. Solo una mirada a algunos de los diarios de América Latina puede proporcionar una idea de la acogida que tuvo y de las ideas que fueron destacadas. De acuerdo a la Pontificia Comisión para América Latina, la repercusión de esta Encíclica en los medios de prensa seculares de América Latina puede ser ilustrada de varias formas, por ejemplo: el diario “El País” de Uruguay titulaba así la noticia: “El Papa pide responsabilidad por el planeta que se está destrozando”; el diario “El Mercurio” de Chile dice: “Encíclica Papal sobre medio ambiente hace un urgente llamado a salvar el planeta”; los diarios “La Nación” de Argentina y “El Nacional” de Caracas, hablaron de la “valiente revolución cultural del Papa y su llamada urgente a un cam-bio de mentalidad con la finalidad de proteger el hábitat del ser huma-no”; el comentario editorial del diario “El Tiempo” de Colombia escribe: “Francisco vuelve y juega”, y planteó que “el Pontífice ubica en la política, y sobre todo en la economía, las causas del calentamiento global”, y tam-bién señaló que el Papa crítica fuertemente a los grupos políticos y de poder “por el uso indiscriminado de recursos que afectan principalmente a los menos favorecidos del planeta”2. Aunque más ejemplos pueden ser

1 Papa Francisco, Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’ del Santo Padre Francisco Sobre el Cuidado de la Casa Común, Ciudad del Vaticano 2015, edición en línea, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/es/encyclicals/.

2 Pontificia Comisión para América Latina, “Reacciones a la encíclica ‘Laudato Si’ del Papa Francisco en la prensa secular de América Latina”, Curia Romana, acceso el 10 de marzo de 2016, http://www.americalatina.va/content/ameri-calatina/es.html

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enumerados aquí, basta con estos para constatar que cada diario enfa-tiza algunos aspectos porque cada autor habla desde un lugar y es más sensible a ciertos aspectos. Ante tal variedad de reacciones, ¿cuál es la perspectiva que propongo en este artículo? El título de mi contribución a este volumen lo señala: concientizarnos sobre la necesidad de una con-versión ecológica, como lo propone la Encíclica y hacerlo desde el lugar de los pobres.

La Encíclica consta de 246 párrafos, divididos en seis capítulos, en este orden: Una introducción (1-16), capítulo primero “Lo que le está pasando a nuestra casa” (17-61); capítulo segundo: “El evangelio de la creación” (62-100); capítulo tercero: “Raíz humana de la crisis ecológica” (101-136); capítulo cuarto: “Una ecología integral” (137-162); capítulo quinto “Algunas líneas de orientación y acción” (163-201); capítulo sexto: “Educación, espiritualidad ecológica” (202-246), y termina con dos ora-ciones: “Oración por nuestra tierra” y “Oración cristiana con la creación”. Cada capítulo está dividido en diversos apartados lo que permite intuir el contenido preciso de cada uno.

Una mirada global a la Encíclica

En esta sección, me interesa destacar varios aspectos. Desde el comienzo, es importante notar la manera en que la Encíclica aparece estructurada. Podemos ver el uso del método pastoral latinoamericano ver-juzgar-actuar3. El primer capítulo está dedicado a “ver” la realidad; los capítulos segundo y tercero están enfocados en “juzgar” esa realidad desde “el evangelio de la creación” y desde una visión más científica en “raíz humana de la crisis ecológica”. De ahí pasa, en los capítulos cuarto, quinto y sexto, al “actuar” señalando la propuesta de una ecología inte-gral, unas líneas de orientación y de acción, y una educación y espiritua-lidad ecológica. Además, la Encíclica utiliza expresiones muy consistentes con el pensamiento latinoamericano tales como: “casa común”, “madre tierra”, “clamor de la tierra y de los pobres”, “el cuidado”, “la interde-pendencia de todos los seres”, “de los pobres y vulnerables”, “ecología integral”, y otras similares.

3 Este método fue altamente valorado por la V Conferencia Episcopal de Aparecida, Brasil 2007. Ver, Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, CELAM, V Conferencia General del Episcopado Latinoamericano y del Caribe. Aparecida: Discípulos y misioneros de Jesucristo para que nuestros pueblos en Él tengan vida. Documento Conclusivo (Bogotá: Centro de Publicaciones del CELAM, 2007), §19.


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Como ya lo hizo en su anterior encíclica, el Papa valora las contri-buciones de las Conferencias Episcopales de cada lugar, como también las de los Papas que lo precedieron, así como las de varios teólogos y pensadores, y santos y místicos, como San Francisco de Asís, sin duda, el inspirador de toda la carta. Dando una mirada global a la Encíclica, destaco enseguida varios aspectos relevantes a la perspectiva de lectura que aquí propongo.

Una ecología integral. La gran novedad de esta Encíclica es su propuesta de una ecología integral. Es decir, que no está limitada a lo ambiental –como tal vez ya nos hemos acostumbrado a oír hablar de ello– sino que propone una ecología que asume la realidad histórica en todas sus dimensiones sociales, culturales, económicas, políticas, religiosas, y el entorno ambiental. En este sentido se puede constatar el planteamiento hecho por la Asamblea General de la Asociación Ecuménica de Teólogos y Teólogas del Tercer Mundo (ASETT)4 en el año 2012, donde se llamó a vincular la religión a la “Visión ecológica y supervivencia planetaria”: “Nuestra tesis es que a este destino de destrucción hacia el que parece que nos encaminamos, no le pondrán remedio, por sí solos, ni el capital, ni la política, ni las religiones institucionales; sólo podrán hacerlo si a ellos se une un cambio de mentalidad religiosa –quehacer propio de la teología-“5.

La centralidad de los pobres. La promoción de una ecología inte-gral va de la mano con la preocupación por los pobres. La Encíclica uti-liza 57 veces la palabra “pobre/s”, mostrando así, no sólo la vinculación entre compromiso ecológico y responsabilidad con ellos, sino también la denuncia de que los pobres son los más afectados ante la depredación de la naturaleza. Es interesante anotar que la verdadera novedad de la Encíclica no es la preocupación ecológica ni su vinculación con la reli-gión, sino la relación naturaleza-pobres. La centralidad dada a la vincula-ción naturaleza-pobres es su novedad.

4 Esta Asociación es conocida en inglés como EATWOT, Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians.

5 Asociación Ecuménica de Teólogos y Teólogas del Tercer Mundo, “Visión ecológi-ca y supervivencia planetaria. Concept paper for EATWOT´s General Assembly at Yoghyakarta, Indonesia, 2012”, Servicios Koinonía, acceso el 10 de marzo de 2016, http://www.servicioskoinonia.org/relat/425.htm

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Así lo afirma con insistencia: “son inseparable la preocupación por la naturaleza, la justicia con los pobres, el compromiso con la sociedad y la paz interior” (§10)6; hay una “íntima relación entre los pobres y la fragilidad del planeta” (§16); los pobres son quienes más sufren las con-secuencias dramáticas de la degradación ambiental (§13, 48), especial-mente, en su salud (§20), son quienes viven en los lugares más afectados con el calentamiento y padeciendo las consecuencias de la alteración de sus recursos productivos, teniendo muchas veces que migrar, con graves consecuencias para sus vidas y la de sus hijos (§25). Los pobres son quie-nes menos acceden al agua potable (§28) y, por tanto, quienes más sufren con enfermedades causadas por su carencia (§29). Negar a los sectores empobrecidos su derecho al agua es negarles su derecho a la vida y por tanto a su dignidad (§30). La cultura del descarte afecta especialmente a los seres humanos excluidos (§22), quienes viven en zonas escondidas muy lejos de esas zonas con espacios verdes de las grandes ciudades a las que no tienen acceso (§45). No suele haber conciencia clara sobre los problemas que afectan particularmente a los sectores humanos excluidos, aunque ellos son la mayor parte del planeta (§49). Por eso es tan urgente escuchar el clamor de la tierra como el clamor de los pobres (§49). Se desperdicia aproximadamente un tercio de los alimentos que se producen y el alimento que se desecha es como si se robara de la mesa del pobre (§50). Hay que compartir los frutos de la tierra, especialmente, con los pobres, las viudas, los huérfanos y los extranjeros (§71). Es verdad que hay que preocuparse de otros seres vivos, pero debería exasperarnos más las enormes inequidades entre las personas, permitiendo que unos parezcan más dignos que otros (§90). Las líneas de acción deben suponer un cuidado de la naturaleza, pero al mismo tiempo, combatir la pobreza y devolver la dignidad de los excluidos (§139). Como aspecto muy posi-tivo e iluminador es el llamado de atención de la ecología humana que viven los pobres muy por encima de sus precariedades. Por ejemplo, los sectores humanos excluidos son capaces de vivir una ecología que surge de la relación entre ellos, la solidaridad y la capacidad de cuidar su pro-pio entorno desde sus condiciones de precariedad y pobreza (§148, 232). Junto a estas y otras referencias similares, la Encíclica hace una invoca-ción fundamental a Dios como “Dios de los pobres”, pidiendo que nos haga capaces de rescatar a los abandonados y olvidados de esta tierra y luchar por la justicia, el amor y la paz.

6 El símbolo “§” seguido por un número, se refiere a un párrafo o párrafos en secciones de la Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’.


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Una voz profética. La Encíclica también tiene una voz profética al denunciar claramente quiénes producen esta grave crisis ecológica, y de qué manera lo hacen: Muchos de aquellos que tienen más recursos y poder económico o político parecen concentrarse sobre todo en enmas-carar los problemas o en ocultar los síntomas (§26); es previsible que el control del agua por parte de grandes empresas mundiales se convier-te en una de las principales fuentes de conflictos de este siglo (§31); mirando el mundo, advertimos que este nivel de intervención humana, frecuentemente al servicio de las finanzas y del consumismo, hace que la tierra en que vivimos en realidad se vuelva menos rica y bella, cada vez más limitada y gris (§34); tampoco se pueden ignorar los enormes intereses económicos internacionales que, bajo el pretexto de cuidarlos, pueden atentar contra las soberanías nacionales. Existen propuestas de internacionalización de la Amazonía que sólo sirven a los intereses eco-nómicos de las corporaciones internacionales (§38) en las que, a la hora de actuación concreta, los pobres quedan frecuentemente en el último lugar. Ello se debe en parte a que muchos profesionales, formadores de opinión, medios de comunicación y centros de poder, están ubicados lejos de ellos, en áreas urbanas aisladas, sin tomar contacto directo con sus problemas (§49). La Encíclica expone que hay una verdadera “deuda ecológica” particularmente entre el Norte y el Sur, ya que “la actividad contaminante de empresas que hacen en los países menos desarrollados lo que no pueden hacer en los países que les aportan capital” (§51). Ante esta actividad que daña gravemente al ámbito ecológico del Sur, llama la atención la debilidad de la reacción política internacional. El sometimien-to de la política ante la tecnología y las finanzas se muestra en el fracaso de las Cumbres mundiales sobre medio ambiente. Hay demasiados intere-ses particulares y muy fácilmente el interés económico llega a prevalecer sobre el bien común y a manipular la información para no ver afectados sus proyectos (§54). La denuncia de quienes causan los daños señala a “los países más poderosos y más contaminantes”, como los que tienen la responsabilidad primaria en “la reducción de gases de efecto invernade-ro” (§169). La aportación de soluciones a los problemas que han causado implica un cambio radical que supere la estrategia de la compraventa de “bonos de carbono” porque ésta “puede dar lugar a una nueva forma de especulación, y no servir para reducir la emisión global de gases contami-nantes”, y además “puede convertirse en un recurso diversivo que permita sostener el sobreconsumo de algunos países y sectores (§171).

Una actitud de diálogo. Cabe anotar la postura dialogante que asume la Encíclica. Desde el inicio, se coloca en diálogo con toda la humanidad: “En esta Encíclica, intento especialmente entrar en diálogo


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con todos acerca de nuestra casa común” (§3). Por eso no es de extrañar la acogida mundial de este documento, más allá de los ámbitos eclesiales. El Papa reconoce el aporte que los “innumerables científicos, filósofos, teólogos y organizaciones sociales” han hecho, enriqueciendo así el pen-samiento de la Iglesia sobre estas cuestiones (§7). Acepta que “la ciencia y la religión, que aportan diferentes aproximaciones a la realidad, pueden entrar en un diálogo intenso y productivo para ambas” (§62). Más aún, con actitud humilde, sabe que la iglesia no tiene una palabra definitiva y por eso debe escuchar y respetar las diversas opiniones (§61).

Afirmaciones fundamentales e interpelaciones proféticas

Los aspectos mencionados anteriormente tienen un desarrollo más amplio y sofisticado a lo largo de la Encíclica en sus seis capítulos. Atendiendo a estos capítulos, a continuación, haré una breve síntesis de cada uno, destacando los aspectos que cobran mayor fuerza en el plan-teamiento papal pero también destacando esa conexión entre cuidado de la casa común y la opción por los pobres.

En la Introducción, el Papa hace una llamada a tomar conciencia de dos realidades. En primer lugar, de nuestra propia realidad: “somos tierra (cf. Gn 2,7). Nuestro cuerpo está constituido por los elementos del planeta, su aire es el que nos da aliento y su agua nos vivifica y res-taura” (§2); en segundo lugar, de que esta es una llamada no sólo para los creyentes, sino para todas las personas que compartimos esta “casa común” (§3). Propone la figura de San Francisco de Asís como insigne representante de una ecología integral por su capacidad de vivir en per-fecta armonía su relación con Dios, con los demás y con toda la creación (§10-12). Esta sección cierra con un párrafo en el cual el Papa describe las líneas transversales o ejes que atraviesan toda la Encíclica, como son:

la íntima relación entre los pobres y la fragilidad del planeta, la convicción de que en el mundo todo está conectado, la crítica al nuevo paradigma y a las formas de poder que derivan de la tecnología, la invitación a buscar otros modos de entender la economía y el progreso, el valor propio de cada criatura, el sentido humano de la ecología, la necesidad de debates sinceros y hones-tos, la grave responsabilidad de la política internacional y local, la cultura del descarte y la propuesta de un nuevo estilo de vida (§16).

El primer capítulo describe la realidad histórica presente, desde la cual el Papa enfatiza la necesidad de presentar esa realidad confron-tándola con el contexto actual para no caer en mensajes abstractos que no dicen nada. Ese acercamiento a la realidad se hace con la sencillez de quien no tiene una palabra completa ni definitiva sobre el asunto: “la Iglesia no tiene por qué proponer una palabra definitiva y entiende que debe escuchar y promover el debate honesto entre los científicos,


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respetando la diversidad de opiniones” (§61). Su propósito es “tomar dolorosa conciencia, atrevernos a convertir en sufrimiento personal lo que pasa al mundo y así reconocer cuál es la contribución que cada uno puede aportar” (§19). Los aspectos que destaca son: la contaminación y el cambio climático, la cuestión del agua, la pérdida de la biodiversidad, el deterioro de la calidad de la vida humana y degradación social, la inequi-dad planetaria, la debilidad de las reacciones y diversidad de opiniones para responder a esta realidad. Termina esta presentación apelando a la esperanza cristiana que “nos invita a reconocer que siempre hay una salida, que siempre podemos reorientar el rumbo, que siempre podemos hacer algo para resolver los problemas” (§61). Todas estas realidades aquí descritas remiten al derecho de los pobres a gozar de una creación que pertenece a la humanidad entera y que supera con creces a la sociedad de consumo en su tendencia creciente a ahogar la capacidad de asombro y de disfrute de la verdadera riqueza dada por Dios desde siempre para toda la humanidad.

El segundo capítulo ofrece, desde la tradición cristiana, una mirada creyente sobre la creación. A esto le llama “El evangelio de la creación”, que supone creer en un Dios Creador quien conoce y ama a cada persona en particular y a toda su creación. Esta fe necesariamente debe llevar a los cristianos a reconocer los compromisos ecológicos que brotan de las convicciones de la fe (§64). Aceptando el hecho de que no toda persona en el mundo adopta la idea de un Dios Creador, el Papa invita al diálogo entre fe y ciencia, diálogo que siempre es fecundo para ambos (§62). Los textos bíblicos nos revelan ese amor personal de Dios que llevan a ver la inseparabilidad entre nuestras relaciones con la naturaleza y “la frater-nidad, la justicia y la fidelidad a los demás” (§70). Lamentablemente una interpretación errónea del texto bíblico referente a “dominar la tierra” ha favorecido una práctica de explotación salvaje de la naturaleza. De ahí la necesidad de una hermenéutica adecuada (§67) que permita entender el verdadero sentido del texto que, sin duda, no da lugar a un antropocen-trismo despótico que se desentienda de las demás creaturas (§68). La ley del Shabbath y el año del jubileo mencionados en el Antiguo Testamento, buscaban mantener el equilibro de la naturaleza y de las relaciones socia-les y un reconocimiento de que el regalo de la tierra con sus frutos perte-nece a todo el pueblo (§71). El descubrimiento de la presencia divina en toda la creación estimula el desarrollo de las “virtudes ecológicas” (§88) y la comunión universal. Todo esto no significa negar el valor peculiar del ser humano en el conjunto de la creación (§90), sino el velar por no excluir a nada ni a nadie de la comunión universal ya que la indiferencia o crueldad con la naturaleza es trasladada “de algún modo al trato que damos a otros seres humanos” (§92).


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En el Nuevo Testamento, la práctica de Jesús incluye la invitación a sus discípulos a “reconocer la relación paterna que Dios tiene con todas las criaturas” (§96) y él mismo está en contacto permanente con la natu-raleza y en reconocimiento de su hermosura (§97). Más aún, en Jesús, Dios mismo se inserta en el cosmos creado, corriendo su suerte con él hasta la cruz (§99) y por su resurrección resplandece su señorío universal, orientando toda la realidad a su plenitud definitiva (§100).

El capítulo tercero no sólo invita a describir los síntomas, sino también a exponer las causas humanas de la crisis ecológica. Señala al paradigma tecnocrático dominante, así como al lugar y acción del ser humano en el mundo, como realidades que deben ser consideradas seria-mente. En primer lugar, mientras que reconoce todos los beneficios que ha traído el progreso técnico a la humanidad, del mismo modo advierte sobre el poder que la humanidad ha adquirido, sobre todo quienes tienen el poder económico y quienes han usado la tecnociencia negativamente, como lo muestra el lanzamiento de la bomba atómica (§102-104).

En segundo lugar, la realidad actual está afectada por problemas causados por la globalización del paradigma tecnocrático, que ha estable-cido “la metodología y los objetivos de la tecnociencia en un paradigma de comprensión que condiciona la vida de las personas y el funciona-miento de la sociedad” (§107). Los efectos negativos de este paradigma incluyen la degradación del ambiente y el reduccionismo de la vida humana a la técnica. A tal punto se ha impuesto este paradigma que pare-ce contracultural elegir otro estilo de vida (§108), ya que persigue ejercer su dominio sobre la economía y la política poniéndolas a su servicio, llevando a un superdesarrollo derrochador y consumista que contrasta con la miseria deshumanizadora de tantos (§109). Afrontar la hegemonía de este paradigma tecnocrático no se reduce a unas respuestas urgentes y parciales a los problemas, sino que implica construir una mirada distinta, un pensamiento, una política, un programa educativo, un estilo de vida y una espiritualidad que sean capaces de resistir a tal paradigma (§111). Aunque todavía falta mucho por hacer, existen ya algunos intentos de alternativas como son, por ejemplo, las pequeñas comunidades de pro-ductores que optan por sistemas de producción menos contaminantes (§112). Por supuesto, no se pretende abandonar la técnica, sino la recu-peración de valores para reconfigurarla de otra manera (§114).

En tercer lugar, llama la atención a la necesidad de promover una concepción antropológica adecuada para favorecer una ecología integral. No es posible pasar de la desmesura antropológica de la modernidad (§116) a un biocentrismo que niegue las capacidades peculiares de conocimiento, voluntad, libertad y responsabilidad de los seres humanos (§118). La falta de una antropología adecuada puede llevar a caer en el


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relativismo práctico (§122) que va desde tratar a los otros como objetos, hasta el dejarse llevar por la lógica del mercado (§123). Es necesario pre-servar la dignidad del trabajo y el papel que cumple en la tarea de trans-formación de este mundo (§125). La innovación y creación investigativa deben mostrar respeto absoluto por los vegetales y los animales, y nunca puede el científico o la científica dejar de replantearse los objetivos, efec-tos, contexto y límites éticos de su actividad (§131). Los cereales trans-génicos, aunque no se haya comprobado contundentemente el daño que pueden causar a los seres humanos, si comienzan a mostrar los efectos en concentración de tierras en manos de unos pocos afectando sensiblemen-te a los pequeños productores (§134). Esta realidad presente exige una discusión científica y social que sea responsable y amplia, capaz de consi-derar toda la información disponible y de llamar las cosas por su nombre, sin esconder información para preservar intereses particulares (§135).

El capítulo cuarto propone una triple ecología: ecología integral, ecología cultural y ecología de la vida cotidiana. La “ecología integral” que relacionalmente incorpora las dimensiones humanas y sociales (§137), parte de señalar la “ecología ambiental, económica y social” (§138-142), presupone la conexión intrínseca de todos los componentes del planeta –físicos, químicos y biológicos- y de todas las especies vivas (§138). Esto lleva a plantear que no existen dos crisis: la ambiental y la social, sino una sola y compleja crisis socio-ambiental (§139). Los ecosis-temas nos hablan de esa interdependencia y la necesidad que tenemos de garantizar la supervivencia de los mismos (§140). No puede haber un análisis de los problemas ambientales sin analizar simultáneamente los contextos humanos, familiares, laborales, urbanos y las relaciones de las personas consigo misma, con los demás y con el ambiente (§141). Por tanto, la ecología social es necesariamente institucional y supone abarcar todas las dimensiones que van desde la familia a la comunidad local, nacional e internacional (§142).

La “ecología cultural”, por su parte, implica darse cuenta de que la ecología ambiental no puede ser ajena al patrimonio histórico, artístico y cultural de cada pueblo (§143). Por eso las políticas ambientales no pue-den ser impuestas de manera uniforme, sino que requieren de la inter-vención de los habitantes de cada lugar a partir de sus propias riquezas culturales. Ni siquiera la noción de “calidad de vida” puede imponerse porque esta sólo se entiende dentro del mundo de símbolos y hábitos propios de cada grupo humano (§144). De ahí que sea tan importante prestar atención a las comunidades aborígenes con sus tradiciones cultu-rales y ha de velarse porque no se les presione a abandonar sus tierras a fin de implantar proyectos extractivos y agropecuarios que no prestan atención a la degradación de la naturaleza y la cultura (§146).


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La “ecología de la vida cotidiana” muestra que no son necesaria-mente los aspectos externos los que determinan un buen ambiente, sino que influyen las relaciones humanas cercanas y cálidas que logran con-vertir un espacio precario en un contexto de vida digna (§148). La conse-cución de una casa digna (§152), el uso de un transporte humano (§153), la transformación del caos de las grandes ciudades que impide una vida digna y favorece trabajos esclavos (§154) forman parte de una ecología humana que también acepta el propio cuerpo como don de Dios y desde él se dispone al encuentro con quienes son diferentes (§155). En otras palabras, se impone el “principio del bien común” (§156-158) que busca velar por el bien de todos, especialmente de los más pobres, teniendo en cuenta el destino común de los bienes de la tierra (§158) y la “justicia entre las generaciones” (§159-162), lo cual supone adoptar la responsa-bilidad sobre el mundo que estamos dejando a las generaciones futuras.

El capítulo quinto pretende “delinear grandes caminos de diálogo que nos ayuden a salir de la espiral de autodestrucción en la que nos estamos sumergiendo” (§163), Estos caminos son: diálogo sobre el medio ambiente en la política internacional; diálogo hacia nuevas políticas nacionales y locales; diálogo y transparencia en los procesos decisionales; política y economía en diálogo para la plenitud humana; y las religiones en el diálogo con las ciencias.

El capítulo sexto señala que es necesario reorientar el rumbo y de ahí el gran desafío cultural, espiritual y educativo que supondrá largos procesos de regeneración (§202). Para esto se propone apostar por otro estilo de vida frente al estilo consumista que hoy se ha impuesto y que sólo puede generarse violencia y destrucción recíproca, más cuando sólo unos pocos pueden sostenerlo.

También es necesaria una educación para la alianza entre la huma-nidad y el ambiente, creando una “ciudadanía ecológica” que promueva sólidas virtudes para posibilitar la donación de sí en un compromiso eco-lógico. Aunque los ámbitos educativos son diversos, la familia es destaca-da porque en ese ámbito se construye una cultura de la vida compartida y del respeto a lo que nos rodea (§213), pero igualmente la Iglesia tiene el deber de la concientización en la educación (§214). Además, no ha de olvidarse la relación entre educación estética y la preservación de un ambiente sano porque prestar atención a la belleza y amarla nos ayuda a salir del pragmatismo utilitarista (§215).

La conversión ecológica supone una línea de espiritualidad ecoló-gica que nace de las convicciones de fe y puede alimentar una pasión por el cuidado del mundo (§216). El gozo y la paz en un estilo de vida caracterizado por la sobriedad, son fruto de una espiritualidad cristiana.


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Esta espiritualidad “propone un modo alternativo de entender la calidad de vida, y alienta un estilo de vida profético y contemplativo, capaz de gozar profundamente sin obsesionarse por el consumo” (§222). La espiri-tualidad amplía la comprensión de la paz, que no es ausencia de guerra sino también armonía con la creación (§225).

La experiencia de Dios, como Creador y Padre común, supone un amor civil y político capaz de motivar acciones comunes enfocadas en la construcción de un mundo mejor (§228-231). Los signos sacramentales y el descanso celebrativo han de vivirse como un modo privilegiado de expresar la experiencia de un Dios que asume la naturaleza y la convierte en mediación de la vida sobrenatural (§235). La Trinidad habla de la rela-ción que ha de establecerse entre todas las criaturas y el mundo creado, a semejanza de las relaciones subsistentes de las divinas personas (§240). María como Reina de todo lo creado, cuida de este mundo herido y no sólo comprende el sentido de todas las cosas, sino que también puede ayudarnos a mirar este mundo con ojos más sabios (§241) y San José puede enseñarnos a cuidar y trabajar con generosidad y ternura para pro-teger este mundo que Dios nos ha confiado (§242). Y, mientras camina-mos hacia el “más allá del sol”, el sábado de la eternidad, hacia la nueva Jerusalén, hacia la casa común del cielo, donde cada criatura, luminosa-mente transformada ocupará un lugar (§243), hemos de hacernos cargo de la casa que se nos confió (§244). La Encíclica finaliza proponiendo una “Oración por nuestra tierra” y una “Oración cristiana con la creación”.

Conclusiones y desafíos

La mirada global a la Encíclica y los aspectos que he destacado de cada capítulo revelan que el Papa Francisco ofrece una larga, profun-da y a la vez sencilla y clara reflexión sobre el desafío ecológico actual que atañe a la humanidad entera por igual, creyentes y no creyentes. En respuesta a ese desafío, F. Vidal señala que “la encíclica marca una agenda clara de acciones necesarias para extender y ahondar la cultura ecológica. Laudato si' no es sólo un texto declarativo sino transforma-dor”7. Tal agenda puede ser encontrada en el mismo texto de la Encíclica, que presenta sugerencias de acciones para ser adoptadas desde contex-tos mundiales distintos. Entre estas acciones pueden ser señaladas las siguientes: Investigar más para entender mejor el comportamiento de los

7 Fernando Vidal, “Francisco llama a la discusión científica y social. 'Laudato Si', el amor ecosocial,” Religión Digital, acceso el 10 de marzo de 2016, http://www.periodistadigital.com/religion/opinion/


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ecosistemas (§42); intervención para el desarrollo de legislación y políti-cas adecuadas (§53); reaccionar ante la lentitud y debilidad de la política internacional sobre este tema porque las cumbres mundiales sobre medio ambiente, prácticamente, han sido un fracaso (§54, 166, 169); acordar regímenes de gobernanza para los llamados ‘bienes comunes globales’ (§174); promover diálogos transparentes que condenen la corrupción y la opacidad frente al tema (§182); acelerar la renovación energética (§165); ofrecer respuestas locales, cooperativas y comunitarias a los problemas socio-ambientales (§179); cambiar los estilos de vida cotidianos (§209) y educar ecológicamente (§209-211).

Desde la lectura que he presentado aquí de esta Encíclica, la clave novedosa que importa promover y mantener es la referente a la “opción preferencial por los pobres”8, ampliándola a la relación con la naturaleza. De acuerdo a las declaraciones de L. Boff, la Madre Tierra es, de hecho, “la Gran Pobre, crucificada, y que clama por su resurrección”9. La ecoteo-logía10 mantiene el dinamismo de la lucha contra la opresión que sufre la tierra entendiendo que

Si no liberamos a la Tierra eliminamos la base real para cualquier otro tipo de liberación. Denunciamos que la misma lógica que explota al trabajador, a las clases y a los países, explota también a la Madre Tierra. Minorías podero-sas se enriquecen ilimitadamente, sin ética ni equidad social alguna en el pre-supuesto de que la Tierra es una especie de baúl con una riqueza inagotable, lo que efectivamente no es11.

En definitiva: ¿Qué repercusiones tendrá esta Encíclica? ¿Qué alcan-ce conseguirá? Las respuestas potenciales a estas preguntas dependerán de nuestra propia conversión ecológica y de nuestra palabra profética enfocada en promover un compromiso decidido por una ecología inte-gral. A su vez, la propia conversión ecológica y la palabra profética abri-rán nuevas rutas hacia adelante para escuchar el clamor de la tierra y de los pobres, y así mostrar que nuestra fe no está muerta, sino concretada en obras y en verdad.

8 Benedicto XVI, “Discurso Inaugural de Su Santidad Benedicto XVI, Domingo 13 de mayo de 2007”, en V Conferencia General del Episcopado Latinoamericano y Caribeño: Documento Conclusivo: Aparecida, Cuarta edición (Bogotá: Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, 2007), 13.

9 Leonardo Boff, “Laudato Si es la Carta Magna de la moderna ecología en el sentido más amplio y profundo”, Entrevista: Benjamín Forcano conversa con el teólogo sobre la Iglesia y sus retos en el campo ecológico, Religión Digital, acceso el 10 de marzo de 2016, http://www.periodistadigital.com/religion/america/

10 Para una comprensión de este horizonte teológico, ver Juan José Tamayo-Acosta, Nuevo paradigma teológico (Madrid: Trotta, 2003), 111-120.

11 Boff, “Laudato Si”, ibid.


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It is true that Pope Francis’ Encyclical Laudato Si’, on “Care for our Common Home”1 had, in 2015, an incredible outreach. Media from diffe-rent parts of the world have commented on it even before it was officially presented. As soon as it was leaked to the Italian media and after its pre-sentation in the Vatican political and religious leaders, scientists and civil society organizations have spoken about it.

Beyond the headlines

It was, indeed, a much expected document from this pope, the first one coming from the Southern hemisphere. As he said when he was elected, “it seems that my brother Cardinals have gone to the ends of the earth to get one (the bishop of Rome) … but here we are.”2

Pope Francis had already signed another encyclical, Lumen Fidei in June 2013,3 but the expectation for Laudato Si’ could have been, on the one hand, because of its subject: the environment. The environment was, in 2015, particularly relevant in international negotiations mainly because

Ecumenical Background and Reactions to Laudato Si’

Guillermo KERBER

Montevideo (Uruguay) – Ginebra (Suiza)

1 Pope Francis, Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’ of the Holy Father Francis On Care for Our Common Home, 24 May 2015, Vatican City, Online edition, accessed July 20, 2016, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals

2 Pope Francis, “Apostolic Blessing «Urbi et Orbi». First Greeting of the Holy Father Pope Francis. Central Loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica, Wednesday, 13 March 2013,” Vatican City, accessed July 25, 2016, https://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2013/march/

3 Pope Francis, Encyclical Letter Lumen Fidei of the Supreme Pontiff Francis to the Bishops Priests and Deacons, Consecrated Persons and the Lay Faithful on Faith, 29 June 2013, Vatican City, Online edition, accessed July 20, 2016, https://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/

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of two events: First, the Conference of Parties (COP) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in December, in Paris, which should have adopted a long awaited “fair, ambitious and binding” treaty to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the atmos-phere; second, the process that led to the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with 17 Sustainable Development Goals, starting with the eradication of poverty and including many environment related goals.4

Together with these two external factors, on the other hand, the encyclical was seen as the first complete document from Francis that would show at least part of his understanding of crucial matters for our time. It is almost certain that Lumen Fidei, had been virtually finalized by the previous Pope, Benedict XVI, and just signed by Pope Francis.

Laudato Si’, from the title itself, shows the pope’s interests and concerns. We know that the pope chose his name because of St Francis of Assisi. With the encyclical he chose as title the beginning of one of the most well-known pieces of the Poverello of Assisi, the Canticle of the Creatures. Saint Francis will, in fact, be a continuous reference along the encyclical. But it is also a personal commitment of the Pope which is expressed in the encyclical (see, §13-16).5

What I argue in the following pages is that Laudato Si’ marks a turning point in the contents of Catholic Social Teaching (CST) by including ecology in its core concerns. As the Pope himself states, the concerns on our common home have previously been addressed by other churches and Christian communities, especially by the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew (§7-9). After making a summary of key points of the Encyclical from the See-Judge-Act methodological perspective, I will respond to the invitation to dialogue that the encyclical conveys and show some examples on how the ecumenical movement have addressed care for creation and for the poorest.

4 United Nations General Assembly, “Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 25 September 2015, A/RES/70/1, accessed July 25, 2016, https://sustai-nabledevelopment.un.org

5 The symbol “§” followed by a number refers to a paragraph or paragraphs in sections of the Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’.

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A methodological option and key contents

If we look at the structure of Laudato Si’, it is easy to recognize the See-Judge-Act methodology6 as the way the Encyclical has been put together.

See: What is happening to our home (Chapter 1)

Judge: The Gospel of Creation (Chapter 2);

The human roots of the ecological crisis (Chapter 3);

An integral ecology (Chapter 4)

Act: Some guidelines and action points (Chapter 5);

Ecological education and spirituality (Chapter 6)

The three parts of the encyclical present key concepts addressing and responding to the ecological crisis. By doing so, Laudato Si’ does imply a turning point in Catholic Social Teaching. Pope Francis explicitly places Laudato Si’ as an integral part of the Church’s Social Teaching (§15). The Church Social Teaching, Church, let’s remind it, is the official teaching of the Catholic Church on social issues. The so-called modern Social Teaching of the Church starts with the encyclical Rerum Novarum: The Condition of Labor by Pope Leo XIII who, in 1891, addressed some of the key challenges of the European society of the time; namely, the challenges society was posing to people and especially to workers in late nineteenth century. Forty, eighty, and a hundred years later other social encyclicals commemorated that date: Quadragesimo Anno: After Forty Years, in 1931 by Pope Pius XII, Octogesima Adveniens: A Call to Action,

6 The See-Judge-Act methodology has been largely used by the Catholic Action movements, such as the workers, the students, intellectuals, and other Catholic movements since the first half of the twentieth century. Cardinal Joseph Cardijn, with the Young Christian Workers (Jeunesse Ouvrière Catholique, JOC) was one of its promoters. This methodology was adopted by Liberation theologies in Latin America in the 1970’s. A very good analysis of the use of the methodology in theology is provided by Clodovis Boff, Teología de lo Político. Sus Mediaciones (Salamanca: Sígueme, 1980). C. Boff presents in this book the three different mediations: socio- analytical (see), herme-neutical (judge), theory-praxis (act). It is interesting to note that beyond the Latin American continent, the methodology has also been used in ecumenical circles. For instance, the South African Council of Churches study on Climate Change: A Challenge to the Churches in South Africa, (Marshalltown: South Africa Council of Churches, 2009), includes the following chapters: Christian responses to climate change (“Acting” and the need for ecclesial analysis), Investigating what is at stake (“Seeing” and the need for social analysis), Identifying the roots of the problem (“Judging” and the need for theological discernment), Responding to this vision (renewed acting).

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in 1971 by Pope Paul VI (quoted in §4), and Centesimus Annus: On the Hundredth Anniversary of Rerum Novarum, in 1991 by Pope John Paul II (quoted in §5).

As Professor Jean-Dominique Durand, from the University of Lyon stressed at a conference in November 2015, Laudato Si’ marked a major inflexion in CST by including (integral) ecology in social concerns.7 As stated several times in the encyclical, “we have to realize that a true eco-logical approach always becomes a social approach” (§49). Next, I am highlighting various key points of the encyclical.

Expressions of the ecological crisis. The first part of the Encyclical will, thus, stress some of the critical expressions of the ecological cri-sis: pollution, climate change, the water crisis, the loss of biodiversity. Pollution is linked to waste and a throwaway culture that is strongly criticized by the Pope (§20-22). Climate is presented as a common good and a reference is made to scientific consensus on a warming climate due especially to human activity (§23-26). Water scarcity and dangers linked to water privatization, as well as the right to safe drinking water are another expression of the ecological crisis (§27-31)

The cry of the earth and the cry of the poor. All manifestations of the ecological crisis are intimately connected with poverty and inequali-ty, which will become a main affirmation throughout the encyclical. The quotation cited earlier continues with the following statement: “… a true ecological approach always becomes a social approach; it must integrate questions of justice in debates on the environment, so as to hear both the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor” (§49).8 The cry of the earth and the cry of the poor, in italics in the text of the encyclical, immedia-tely brought to my mind Leonardo Boff’s book on theology and ecology which was precisely published with this title “Cry of the earth, cry of the poor.”9

7 See, Colloque International, “Les Acteurs Religieux Face Aux Changements Climatiques,” Université de Lyon, l’Institut Supérieur d’Étude des Religions et de la Laïcité-ISERL, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, Lyon, France, 23 novembre 2015, accessed 30 july 2016, http://iserl.fr/index.php/inter-ventions/annee-2015/133-colloque-lyon-nov2015; http://triangle.ens-lyon.fr/spip.php?article5369

8 On this, see also §14, 53, and 117.9 Leonardo Boff, Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Poor (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books,

1997). Original edition in Portuguese: Ecologia: grito da terra, grito dos povres (São Paulo: Attica, 1995).


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Dialogue between science and religion. The ecological crisis is not easy to tackle, as it is complex and has many causes. However, the Pope encourages everyone to seek responses while remaining respectful of the various approaches and wisdoms (Judge). To do so, “science and religion, with their distinctive approaches to understanding reality, can enter into an intense dialogue fruitful for both “(§62).

Theology of creation. Christians need to contribute to this search based on their own convictions, where theology of creation plays a key role (§65-100). An effective response to the crisis needs to address espe-cially the technocratic paradigm (§106ff), the excessive anthropocentrism (§116ff), and the financial and economic system (§189ff) which are deple-ting the earth and deepening inequalities.

Integral ecology. An integral ecology (§137-162) is proposed to res-pond to this crisis. This is based on both, the various dimensions of eco-logy (biological, social, human) and the principle of the common good, particularly taking into account responsibility towards future generations.

Integral ecology refers to a holistic understanding of creation. The Pope mentions the environmental, economic, social, cultural and everyday ecologies (§138-155). Since biologist Ernst Häckel, who coined the term, defined ecology as the science that studies the relationship between organisms and their environment in the late nineteenth century, there has been developments in ecology that allows one to understand more fully a variety of relationships. That is so because ecology is, prima-rily, a science of relationships. While environmental or biological ecology studies the relationship between species in their environment; social, cul-tural, or political ecologies look at humans in relationship to themselves, to social structures, and to the environment. In the second half of the twentieth century, scholars also developed concepts such as “deep ecolo-gy”10 and the ecology of the mind,11 seeking to show a new philosophy (ecosophy) and epistemology, one that takes into account the unity of all nature. In Latin America, there was an interesting development starting in the late 1980’s with the emergence of Latin American Social Ecology.12

10 See, for example, Arne Næss, Ecology, Community and Lifestyle: Outline of an Ecosophy (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989); George Sessions, Deep Ecology for the Twenty-first Century (Boston: Shambhala, 1995).

11 See Gregory Bateson, Steps to an Ecology of Mind (Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1972).

12 See, for example, Eduardo Gudynas and Graciela Evia, La praxis por la vida. Introducción a las metodologías de la ecología social (Montevideo: CLAES-Centro Latinoamericano de Ecología Social, 1991).


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In Laudato Si’, integral ecology has as principle the common good (§156-158) in a world in which inequality strikes the human conscious-ness. All over the encyclical, as I mentioned previously, Pope Francis will continue to stress how the lives of the poor and excluded are particularly impacted by the ecological crisis. An effective response to this crisis must take into account nature and human beings, especially the most vulnera-ble as part of nature.

These perspectives call to urgent action (Act). Action involves chan-ges in one’s personal lifestyle (§203ff), as well as in local, national, and international policies (§164-181). Regarding the latter, while recognizing the advances been made on some aspects, with the Basel Convention on Hazardous Wastes, the Vienna Convention, and the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (§168), the Pope affirms that progress made on the Climate Change Convention is regretfully very limited (§169).

Ecological conversion. The last chapter of the encyclical focuses on education and spirituality. These two social and religious dimensions are crucial to carry out the radical change and ecological conversion (§216-221) that the world needs. In view of developing a deep spirituality of creation, Pope Francis quotes Catholic mystics, such as Saint Therese de Lisieux (§230) and Saint John of the Cross (§234), among others. He has previously quoted Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (note 53), and Saint Francis of Assisi remains as leit motiv throughout the encyclical. Other interesting citations in this chapter include references to the Earth Charter (§207), an international ethical framework on sustainability, and to ninth century Muslim mystical writer Ali-al-Khawas (§233).

Protection of the whole creation. While the encyclical, with its emphasis on the ecological crisis and the needed response, deepens a new concern in Catholic Social Teaching, the preoccupation for caring for creation is not new in Pope Francis. Let’s remember that “protection” was the theme of the homily at the mass when Pope Francis inaugurated his pontificate on 19 March 2013, the festivity of Saint Joseph (who is men-tioned in Laudato Si’, §242). At the homily, he extended this protection to the whole of creation: “let us be ‘protectors’ of creation, protectors of God’s plan inscribed in nature, protectors of one another and of the envi-ronment.” Furthermore, he said, “whenever we fail to care for creation and for our brothers and sisters, the way is opened to destruction and hearts are hardened.” At the homily he also related this protection to his ministry: “to protect the whole of creation, to protect each person, espe-


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cially the poorest, to protect ourselves: this is a service that the Bishop of Rome is called to carry out, yet one to which all of us are called.”13 The two interrelated concerns of the protection of the earth and the pro-tection of the poorest, both present in Laudato Si’, appear clearly at the beginning of the ministry of the bishop of Rome.

Responding to an invitation to dialogue

Several times Pope Francis said that this encyclical is addressed to everyone. It is an invitation for all to dialogue, not just for Catholics, “so that together we can seek paths of liberation” (§64). Responding to this invitation, in the next paragraphs I want to offer a reflection on how some of the key contents of the encyclical have been addressed by the ecumenical movement.

At the beginning of Laudato Si’, Pope Francis recognizes that “outside the Catholic Church, other Churches and Christian communities--and oth¬er religions as well--have expressed deep con¬cern and offered valuable reflections on issues which all of us find disturbing. To give just one striking example, I would mention the statements made by the belo-ved Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew” (§7).

The reference to, and recognition of Patriarch Bartholomew’s contributions to the topic (§8-9) was also reflected in the invitation to a representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate at the official release of the encyclical at the Vatican. At the press conference, Metropolitan John (Zizoulas) of Pergamon, a well-known Orthodox theologian, representing Patriarch Bartholomew, was one of the speakers.14

Metropolitan John of Pergamon started his speech by expressing the Ecumenical Patriarch’s “personal joy and satisfaction for the issuing of the Encyclical.” And continued reminding the audience that

the Ecumenical Patriarchate has been the first one in the Christian world to draw the attention of the world community to the seriousness of the ecological problem and the duty of the Church to voice its concern and try to contribute with all the spiritual means at its disposal towards the protection of our natu-

13 Pope Francis, “Homily of Pope Francis. Mass, Imposition of the Pallium and Bestowal of the Fisherman’s Ring for the Beginning of the Petrine Ministry of the Bishop of Rome, Saint Peter’s Square, Tuesday, 19 March 2013, Solemnity of Saint Joseph,” Vatican City, accessed July 28, 2016, https://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/homilies/2013/

14 John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon, “Metropolitan John Zizioulas: Laudato Si’ give Orthodox ‘great joy’,” Vatican Radio, June 18, 2015, accessed July 28, 2016, http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/06/18/. It is worth reading the whole speech by Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon.


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ral environment. Thus, back already in the year 1989, Ecumenical Patriarch Dimitrios issued an Encyclical to the faithful Christians and to all people of good will, in which he underlined the seriousness of the ecological problem and its theological and spiritual dimensions.15

In 1989, Patriarch Dimitrios established September 1st, the begin-ning of the liturgical year in the Orthodox Church, as a day “when prayers and supplications should be offered for all Creation and for the reparation of the impairment caused to the natural environment.”16 Later, that day became the “Day of prayer for the protection of the whole creation.” The Third European Ecumenical Assembly in Sibiu, Romania in September 2007, took this initiative and called for a Time for Creation, between September 1st and October 4th (the festivity of Saint Francis of Assisi), which was reaffirmed at the global level by the World Council of Churches. Nowadays, in many churches of the world, this time is used to focus on care for creation through special prayers, reflections and actions.

When the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew was elected in 1991 after the decease of Patriarch Dimitrios, he took a leading role in addres-sing the ecological crisis to the extent he has been called the Green Patriarch.17 Among his many statements he has declared, for instance, that “humanity, both individually and collectively… has succumbed to a theory of development that values production over human dignity and wealth over human integrity… This is why nature ‘groans and travails’ in all its parts (Rom. 8:22).”18

Pope Francis quotes Patriarch Bartholomew’s address to the Environmental Symposium in California, in November 1997 (§8). It is worth looking at the whole paragraph by Patriarch Bartholomew:

15 Zizioulas, “Metropolitan John Zizioulas,” Ibid.16 Patriarch Dimitrios, “Message on the Day of Prayer for Creation,” Phanar, 1

September 1989, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, accessed 20 July 2016, http://www.goarch.org/ourfaith/ourfaith8052.

17 An excellent collection of the Patriarch’s ecological writings can be found in John Chryssavgis, ed., Cosmic Grace, Humble Prayer: The Ecological Vision of the Green Patriarch Bartholomew, Revised edition (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishing, 2009), from which most of the following quotations are taken. An updated version of this book is quoted in the encyclical (note 15), see John Chryssavgis, ed., On Earth as in Heaven: Ecological Vision and Initiatives of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew (New York: Fordham University Press, 2012).

18 Message of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew on the “Day of Prayer for the Protection of All Creation,” September 1, 1994.


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To commit a crime against the natural world, is a sin. For humans to cause species to become extinct and to destroy the biological diversity of God's creation; for humans to degrade the integrity of the Earth by causing changes in its climate, by stripping the Earth of its natural forests, or destroying its wetlands; for humans to injure other humans with disease; for humans to contaminate the Earth’s waters, its land, its air, and its life with poisonous substances: these are sins.19

More in particular, in relation to climate change, the Ecumenical Patriarch declared:

Climate change constitutes a matter of social and economic justice. For those who will most directly and severely be affected by climate change will be the poorer and most vulnerable nations (what Christian Scriptures refer to as our “neighbour”) as well as the younger and future generations (the world of our children, and of our children’s children). There is a close link between the economy of the poor and the warming of our planet. Conservation and com-passion are intimately connected. The web of life is a sacred gift of God–ever so precious and ever so delicate.20

For the Ecumenical Patriarch, therefore, there is a strong relation-ship between the protection of creation and the concern for the poor, which, as we showed, is stressed several times by Pope Francis. And this relationship constitutes a matter of social and ecological justice.

Not only many Encyclicals and statements from Patriarch Bartholomew have addressed the ecological crisis. As Metropolitan John of Pergamon reminded in his presentation, the Ecumenical Patriarch has also organized several international scientific environmental sym-posia in Patmos (1995) and on the Black Sea (1997), along the Danube River (1999), on the Adriatic Sea (2002), on the Baltic Sea (2003), on the Amazon River (2006), on the Arctic (2007), and on the Mississippi River (2009). The concern for the scientific, ethical, theological and spi-ritual dimensions of the ecological problems has also been addressed through the establishment of the Institute on Ecology and Theology at the Orthodox Academy of Crete under the auspices of the Ecumenical

19 Patriarch Bartholomew, “Address at the Environmental Symposium,” Santa Barbara, California, November 1997, see Chryssavgis, Cosmic Grace, Humble Prayer, 190.

20 Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, “Statement by His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew for the WCC Working Group on Climate Change,” 12 August 2005, The Climate Change Programme of the World Council of Churches-WCC, Brochure for the Porto Alegre Assembly of the WCC, 2006, 67-68, accessed July 27, 2016, https://www.oikoumene.org/en/resources/documents/wcc-programmes/


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Patriarch which through its many activities has deepened these links.21 If the Ecumenical Patriarch has played a leading role on ecological issues at the global level, ecumenical organizations like the World Council of Churches (WCC) have also for a long time addressed these topics.

The two aspects mentioned by Pope Francis, care for creation and the concern for the poor, have been at the core of the work of the WCC on Care for Creation and Climate Justice. The WCC started discussing sus-tainable communities since the mid-1970’s, addressing at the same time economic and ecological threats. In the late 1980’s and in the 1990’s, the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) conciliar process deepened the relationships between the wholeness or integrity of creation, eco-nomic justice issues, and peace concerns. The JPIC process culminated at a World Convocation in Seoul in 1990, where ten affirmations were adopted together with a commitment and concrete actions. In the Final Document of this Convocation, the preamble of the Act of Covenanting states that participants came

to consider their common response to the threats the present generation faces confronted by new and complexly interwoven threats, among them, the entrenched and deadly forms of injustice, universal violence and the rapid degradation of the environment. The real danger lies in the interaction of these threats. Together they represent a global crisis.22

The notion that “everything is connected, interrelated, interconnec-ted” which appears several times in Laudato Si’ (§ 70, 92, 117, 120, 137, 142, 240) has here a clear precedent. The Final Document of the JPIC Convocation also includes a critique of anthropocentrism:

We will resist the claim that anything in creation is merely a resource for human exploitation. We will resist species extinction for human benefit; con-sumerism and harmful mass production; pollution of land, air and waters; all human activities which are now leading to probable rapid climate change; and policies and plans which contribute to the disintegration of creation.23

21 See for instance, the Orthodox Academy of Crete (OAC) publications on ECOTHEE: Ecological Theology and Environmental Ethics, edited by Lucas A. Andrianos, Konstamtinos Kenanidis, and Alexandros Papaderos, vol. 1-3 (Chania: Orthodox Academy of Crete, 2009, 2012, 2014), and on Sustainable Alternatives for Poverty Reduction and Ecological Justice (Cambridge, MA: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2014).

22 Preman D. Niles, Between the Flood and the Rainbow (Geneva: World Council of Churches Publications, 1992), 164-165.

23 Niles, Between the Flood, 173.


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This statement resonates very close to Pope Francis’ critique to modern excessive anthropocentrism (§115-119). Anthropocentrism has been one of the main critiques to the Jewish and Christian traditions since the publication of Lynn White Jr. famous article blaming Christianity for the domination of the human beings over nature. White stated that “especially in its Western form, Christianity is the most anthropocentric religion the world has seen.”24

Over the years the WCC has continued to address the interrelated-ness of the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor, stressing its justice implications. At the programme level in the last decade programmes such as Poverty, Wealth and Ecology, Care for Creation, and Climate Justice, Economy of Life for All, and currently Economic and Ecological Justice, the Council encourages and inspires churches to develop effective res-ponses to threats to life and to advocate at national and international levels. The theological rationale for these programmes and concrete implications for churches and regions has been published in various books and in the WCC academic journal the Ecumenical Review.25

Given this longstanding concern and commitment, it was not stran-ge to read what the WCC General Secretary, Rev. Dr. Olav Fykse Tveit, expressed when the encyclical was released:

the letter addresses, in fact, one of the more important challenges of our time: the ecological crisis. This has various components, among them, climate change, the water crisis, the loss of biodiversity. As churches have said many times, climate change has to be seen as a global problem with environmental, social, economic, distributive and political implications.26

24 Lynn White Jr., “The Historical Roots of Our Ecological Crisis,” Science 155/3767 (1967): 1205.

25 Among the books, see the collection on Poverty, Wealth and Ecology in Latin America and the Caribbean (Geneva: World Council of Churches, 2009); in Asia and the Pacific (Geneva: World Council of Churches, 2010); in Europe (Geneva: World Council of Churches, 2011); in Africa (Geneva: World Council of Churches, 2012); in North America (Geneva: World Council of Churches, 2012); Rogate Mshana and Athena Peralta, ed., Economy of Life (Geneva: World Council of Churches, 2015); David G. Hallman, Spiritual Values for Earth Community (Geneva: World Council of Churches, 2010). As for the issues of the Ecumenical Review see, for example, “Churches Caring for Creation and Climate Justice,” July 2010; “Peace on Earth, Peace with the Earth,” March 2011; “Ecumenical and Ecological Perspectives of the God of Life,” March 2013; “Economy of Life,” July 2015.

26 Olav Fykse Tveit, Rev Dr., “Statement on the Encyclical Laudato Si’. Statement by the WCC General Secretary, Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, on the Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’ of His Holiness Pope Francis on Care for Our Common Home,” 18 June 2015, World Council of Churches, accessed July 29, 2016, https://www.oikoumene.org/en/resources/documents/general-secretary/sta-tements/


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Aware about the gravity of the situation, the WCC together with other faith based organizations have, in recent years, developed an inter-faith advocacy, especially on the issue of climate change.27 Two recent interfaith statements promoted by the WCC in 2014--responding to the Climate Summit called by United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon in September--, and in 2015--as a contribution to COP21 in Paris--, clearly address the link between ecological destruction, vulnerable communities, and its ethical implications for climate justice. The latter, signed by more than 150 faith and spiritual leaders from all continents states as follows:

Our religious convictions, social codes and customs tell us about concern for the vulnerable: climate change is leading to unprecedented ecological degradation, affecting in particular the lives and livelihoods of the most vulne-rable populations. It is an irrefutable moral duty for all governments to agree on concrete and measurable steps towards global climate justice and partner-ships for climate resilience. Therefore: COP21 is the right time for ensuring climate justice.28

Conclusion

The release of Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si’ provoked many reactions well beyond the Catholic Church. Politicians, scientists, and faith leaders expressed their opinions. While many welcomed the encyclical, others criticized it--largely climate sceptics, from the fossil fuel industries to conservative politicians-- stating, for instance, that it was not up to the pope to address controversial issues of science.

The encyclical implies a turning point in official Catholic Social Teaching by including ecological destruction and its expressions as one of its core concerns. Affirming several times the interconnectedness bet-ween the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor, the pope takes up liberation eco-theology affirmations.

Many key contents of the encyclical have been addressed ear-lier by the ecumenical movement, notably by the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. But the new synthesis proposed by Laudato Si’ enhances

27 I have examined the interfaith action on climate change and climate justice at global level in Guillermo Kerber, “International Advocacy for Climate Justice,” in How the World’s Religions Are Responding to Climate Change: Social Scientific Investigations, ed. Robin Globus Veldman, Andrew Szasz, and Randolph Haluza-DeLay (New York: Routledge, 2013), 278-294.

28 “Statement of Faith and Spiritual Leaders on the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP21 in Paris in December 2015,” 19 October 2015, World Council of Churches, accessed July 29, 2016, https://www.oikou-mene.org/en/resources/documents/


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what churches and the ecumenical movement at large have done to address what has been considered one of the most important challenges of our time.

Beyond the ecumenical movement, interfaith statements have also been produced especially in the contemporary times to express or declare the consensus of faith communities in dealing with these threats. Together with these declarations, concrete actions at personal, commu-nity, national, and international levels are urgently needed to implement the “ecological conversion” called by Pope Francis.


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Getting the Poor Down From the Cross Cristology of Liberation

Getting the Poor Down from the Cross: still on line digital edition, which was printed on paper in many places, 314 pp

Bajar de la cruz a los pobres: edición digital en línea, y también una edición en papel, por Dabar, México 293 pp.

Descer da Cruz os Pobres: edição só em papel, pela Paulinas, São Paulo, 357 ppDeporre i poveri dalla croce: edizione soltanto digitale, nella rete.

More information at the webpage:InternationalTheologicalCommission.org

See also, alternatively: servicioskoinonia.org/LibrosDigitales

Printable originals with full resolution can still be requested for local editions without profit purposes.

A classical work of EATWOT's International Theological Commission

In 30 days after the «Noti-fication» against Jon Sobrino, the EATWOT's International Theological Commission re-quested and collected the contributions of more than 40 theologians, from all over the world, to reflect and testify about their theological work, as «getting the poor down from the cross».

As a result, there is this digital book, which in its first week -40 days after the «Noti-fication- registered more than three thousand downloads.

It continues to be on line for downloading in several languages (English, Spanish, Italian) and in paper (English, Spanish, Portuguese).

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Reacciones y trasfondo ecuménicos de la Laudato Si’

Guillermo KERBER

Montevideo (Uruguay) – Ginebra (Suiza)

Más allá de los titulares

La encíclica del Papa Francisco Laudato Si’ (Alabado seas), “Sobre el cuidado de la casa común”, tuvo, desde su publicación a mediados de 2015, un impacto mediático impresionante. Los medios de diferentes partes del mundo la comentaron incluso antes de que fuera oficialmente presentada. Tan pronto como su contenido fuera revelado a los medios italianos y luego de su presentación en el Vaticano, líderes políticos y religiosos, científicos y organizaciones de la sociedad civil han hablado acerca de ella.

Era, ciertamente, un documento muy esperado de este Papa, el primero que viene del hemisferio sur. Recordemos su frase cuando fue elegido, “parece que mis hermanos cardinales han ido a buscar (al obispo de Roma) cerca del fin del mundo!”.

El Papa Francisco había ya firmado otra encíclica (Lumen Fidei, en junio de 2013), pero la atención a Laudato Si’ puede haber sido, por un lado, por su temática: el ambiente. El ambiente fue, en 2015, particular-mente relevante en las negociaciones internacionales principalmente por dos eventos: primero, la Conferencia de Estados Parte (COP en inglés) de la Convención Marco de las Naciones Unidas sobre el Cambio Climático (CMNUCC) en diciembre en París que debió adoptar el largamente espe-rado acuerdo “justo, ambicioso y vinculante” para reducir las emisiones de dióxido de carbono (CO2) en la atmósfera, ratificado y entrado en vigor en 2016. El segundo evento fue la adopción por parte de la Asamblea General de Naciones Unidas de la Agenda 2030 para el Desarrollo Sostenible con 17 Objetivos del Desarrollos Sostenible, que comienza con la erradicación de la pobreza e incluye varios objetivos vinculados al ambiente.

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Por otro lado, junto a estos dos factores externos, la encíclica fue considerada como el primer documento completo del Papa Francisco, que mostraría, al menos en parte, su perspectiva sobre los temas cruciales de nuestro tiempo. Es casi seguro que Lumen Fidei, había sido terminada por el Papa anterior, Benedicto XVI y sólo firmada por el Papa Francisco.

Laudato Si’, desde el título, muestra los intereses y preocupacio-nes del Papa. Sabemos que él eligió su nombre por San Francisco de Asís. Con esta encíclica eligió como título el comienzo de una de las más conocidas obras del Poverello, el Cántico de las Criaturas. San Francisco será, de hecho, una referencia continua a lo largo de la encíclica. Pero la encíclica expresa también un compromiso personal del Papa (ver, por ejemplo “Mi llamado”, § 13 ss1).

Lo que sostengo en las páginas siguientes es que Laudato Si’ marca un punto de inflexión en la Doctrina Social de la Iglesia al incluir la ecología en sus preocupaciones centrales. Como el Papa mismo expresa, las preocupaciones por nuestra casa común, han sido previamente expre-sadas por otras iglesias y comunidades cristianas, especialmente por el Patriarca Ecuménico Bartolomé. Luego de resumir los puntos centrales de la encíclica según la perspectiva metodológica del Ver-Juzgar- Actuar, voy a responder a la invitación al diálogo que hace la encíclica y mostrar algunos ejemplos sobre cómo el movimiento ecuménico ha respondido al cuidado de la creación y a los más pobres.

1 El signo § seguido de un número se refiere a los párrafos numerado de la Carta encíclica del Santo Padre Francisco sobre el Cuidado de la Casa Común, Ciudad del Vaticano: Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2015.

2 La metodología del Ver-Juzgar- Actuar ha sido utilizada ampliamente por los movimientos de Acción Católica (de trabajadores, estudiantes, intelectuales, etc.) desde la primera mitad del siglo XX. El cardenal Joseph Cardijn con la Juventud Obrera Católica (JOC) fue uno de sus promotores. Fue adoptada por las teologías de la liberación en América Latina en la década de 1970. A mi modo de ver, un muy buen análisis del uso de la metodología en teología es proporcionada por Clodovis Boff, Teología de lo político. Sus mediaciones (Salamanca: Sígueme, 1980), donde presenta las diferentes mediaciones: socio-analítica (Ver), hermenéutica (Juzgar), teoría-praxis (Actuar). Es inte-resante observar que más allá del continente latinoamericano, la metodolo-gía también se ha utilizado en los círculos ecuménicos y sobre la temática que nos concierne. Por ejemplo, el estudio del Consejo de Iglesias de Africa del Sur “Climate Change – A Challenge to the Churches in South Africa”, (Marshalltown: SACC, 2009) (Cambio Climático - Un reto para las Iglesias en Sudáfrica) incluye los siguientes capítulos: Respuestas cristianas al cambio climático - "Actuar" y la necesidad de un análisis eclesial; la investigación de lo que está en juego - "Ver" y la necesidad de un análisis social; Identificación de las raíces del problema - "Juzgar" y la necesidad de discernimiento teológico; Respuesta a esta visión - un Actuar renovado.


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Una opción metodológica y contenidos claves

Si nos fijamos en la estructura de Laudato Si' es fácil reconocer la metodología del Ver-Juzgar-Actuar2 como la forma en la que la encíclica ha sido articulada.

Ver: Lo que le está pasando a nuestra casa (Capítulo 1)

Juzgar: Juez: El Evangelio de la Creación (Capítulo 2);

Raíz humana de la crisis ecológica (Capítulo 3);

Una ecología integral (Capítulo 4)

Actuar: Algunas líneas de orientación y acción (Capítulo 5);

Educación y espiritualidad ecológica (Capítulo 6)

Las tres partes de la encíclica presentan los conceptos claves para hacer frente y responder a la crisis ecológica. Al hacerlo, Laudato Si’ implica un punto de inflexión en la Doctrina Social de la Iglesia (DSI). El Papa Francisco coloca explícitamente Laudato Si' como una parte integral de la DSI (§ 15). La Doctrina (o Enseñanza) Social de la Iglesia, recor-demos, es la enseñanza de la Iglesia Católica en asuntos sociales. En los tiempos modernos, la DSI comienza con la encíclica Rerum Novarum del Papa León XIII, quien, en 1891, respondía a algunos de los principales desafíos de la sociedad europea de la época, a saber, los retos que se le planteaban a la gente y especialmente a los trabajadores de finales del siglo XIX. Cuarenta, ochenta y cien años más tarde, otras encíclicas socia-les conmemoraron la fecha: Quadragésimo Anno, en 1931 del Papa Pío XII, Octogésima Adveniens, en el año 1971 del Papa Pablo VI (citado en el § 4) y Centésimus Annus en 1991 del Papa Juan Pablo II (citado en el § 5).

Como el profesor Jean-Dominique Durand, de la Universidad de Lyon subrayara en una conferencia en noviembre de 2015, Laudato Si’ constituye una gran inflexión en la DSI al incluir la ecología (integral) como parte de las preocupaciones sociales. Como se afirma en reiteradas oportunidades en la encíclica “no podemos dejar de reconocer que un verdadero planteo ecológico se convierte siempre en un planteo social” (§49, en cursiva en el original).

Expresiones de la crisis ecológica. La primera parte de la encíclica insistirá, pues, en algunas de las expresiones más severas de la crisis eco-lógica: la contaminación, el cambio climático, la crisis del agua, la pérdida de la biodiversidad. La contaminación está vinculada a la basura y a la cultura del descarte que son fuertemente criticadas por el Papa (§20-22). El clima es presentado como un bien común y se hace referencia al con-senso científico sobre el recalentamiento del clima debido especialmente a la actividad humana (§23-26). La escasez de agua y los peligros que

Reacciones y transfondo ecuménico de la Laudato Si' · 79

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emanan de la privatización del agua, así como el derecho al agua potable segura son otra expresión de la crisis ecológica.

El grito de la tierra y el grito de los pobres. Las mencionadas mani-festaciones de la crisis ecológica están íntimamente vinculadas con la pobreza y la desigualdad, lo que se convertirá en una afirmación central a lo largo de la encíclica. La cita mencionada más arriba continúa: “…un verdadero planteo ecológico se convierte siempre en un planteo social, que debe integrar la justicia en las discusiones sobre el ambiente, para escuchar tanto el clamor de la tierra como el clamor de los pobres” (§49; ver también § 14, 53 y 117). El clamor, el grito de la tierra y el grito de los pobres, en cursiva en el texto de la encíclica traen a mi memoria el libro de Leonardo Boff sobre teología y ecología que fuera publicado precisa-mente con ese título: “Grito de la tierra, grito de los pobres”3.

Diálogo entre ciencia y religión. Pero la crisis ecológica no es fácil de afrontar. Es compleja y tiene muchas causas. Por tanto, dice el Papa, necesitamos buscar una respuesta teniendo en cuenta las diferentes pers-pectivas y saberes ( Juzgar). Para hacerlo, “la ciencia y la religión, que aportan diferentes aproximaciones a la realidad, pueden entrar en un diálogo intenso y productivo para ambas” (§62).

Teología de la creación. Los cristianos deben contribuir a esta bús-queda a partir de sus propias convicciones, en las que la teología de la creación juega un rol central (§ 65-100). Una respuesta eficaz a la crisis debe tener en cuenta especialmente el paradigma tecnocrático (§ 106ss), el antropocentrismo desmesurado (§ 116ss) y el sistema económico y financiero (§ 189ss) que están destruyendo la tierra y ahondando las desigualdades.

La ecología integral (§137-162) es propuesta para responder a esta crisis. Aquélla tiene en consideración las diferentes dimensiones de la ecología (biológica, social, humana) el principio del bien común y parti-cularmente la responsabilidad frente a las generaciones futuras.

Tal como es presentada, la ecología integral parte de una compren-sión holística de la creación. El Papa menciona las ecologías ambiental, económica, social, cultural y de la vida cotidiana (§ 138-155). Desde que el biólogo Ernst Häckel, que acuñó el término a fines del siglo XIX, definió la ecología como la ciencia que estudia las relaciones entre los organismos y su entorno, ha habido un desarrollo en la ecología que nos permite comprender más cabalmente las diferentes relaciones. Porque la

3 Cf Leonardo Boff, Ecologia: Grito de la tierra, grito de los pobres (Madrid: Trotta 1996) Edición original en portugués: Ecologia: grito da terra, grito dos povres (São Paulo: Attica 1995).


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ecología es, fundamentalmente, una ciencia de relaciones. Si la ecología biológica estudia las relaciones entre las especies y su ambiente, la ecolo-gía social, cultural o política estudia las relaciones entre los seres huma-nos, con las estructuras sociales y el ambiente. En la segunda mitad del siglo XX, pensadores desarrollaron conceptos como ecología profunda (Arne Næss4) y ecología de la mente (Gregory Bateson5), buscando mos-trar una nueva filosofía (ecosofía) y una nueva epistemología que toman en cuenta la unidad de toda la naturaleza. En América Latina ha habido un interesante desarrollo comenzado a fines de 1980 con la Ecología Social Latinoamericana (Eduardo Gudynas)6.

En Laudato Si’, como he mencionado más arriba, la ecología inte-gral tiene como principio el bien común (§156-158), en un mundo en el que la desigualdad golpea la conciencia humana. A lo largo de toda la encíclica el Papa Francisco va a repetir una y otra vez que la crisis ecoló-gica golpea particularmente a los pobres, a los excluidos. Una respuesta efectiva a la crisis ecológica debe tener en cuenta la naturaleza y los seres humanos, especialmente los más vulnerables, como parte de ella.

Estas perspectivas llaman a una acción urgente (Actuar). Esta impli-ca cambios en nuestros estilos de vida personales (§ 203ss) y también en las políticas locales nacionales e internacionales (§164-181). En relación con las últimas, a la vez que reconoce que se han hecho avances en algunos aspectos, como en la Convención de Basilea sobre los desechos tóxicos, la Convención de Viena y el Protocolo de Montreal sobre las Sustancias que agotan la Capa de Ozono (§168), el Papa afirma que, el progreso realizado en el proceso de la Convención de Cambio Climático es, lamentablemente, muy limitado (§169). Ahora que el Acuerdo de París ha entrado en vigor, veremos si lo acordado (reducción de las emisiones de CO2, financiación para la adaptación de los países más vulnerables, etc.) se lleva a la práctica o queda en letra muerta.

Conversión ecológica. El último capítulo de la encíclica está dedica-do a la educación y la espiritualidad. Estas dos son cruciales para llevar adelante un cambio radical, la conversión ecológica (§216-221) que el mundo necesita. Para desarrollar una espiritualidad profunda de la crea-

4 Ver, por ejemplo las obras de Arne Naess, Ecology, Community and Lifestyle: Outline of an Ecosophy (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989) y George Sessions, Deep Ecology for the Twenty-first Century (Boston: Shambhala, 1995).

5 Ver, por ejemplo, Gregory Bateson, Pasos para una ecología de la mente (Buenos Aires: Lohlé, 1975, original Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1972).

6 Ver, por ejemplo, Eduardo Gudynas and Graciela Evia, La praxis por la vida. Introducción a las metodologías de la ecología social (Montevideo: CLAES 1991).


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ción, el Papa citará a místicos católicos, entre ellos Santa Teresa del Niño Jesús (§230) y a San Juan de la Cruz (§234). Ya había citado anteriormente a Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (nota 53) y, como ya dijimos, San Francisco de Asís es un leit motiv a lo largo de toda la encíclica. Otras citas intere-santes en este capítulo son las referencias a la Carta de la Tierra (§207), un marco ético internacional sobre la sostenibilidad, y al escritor místico musulmán Ali-al-Khawas (§233).

La protección de toda la creación. Mientras que la encíclica, con su énfasis en la crisis ecológica y en la respuesta necesaria, profundiza una nueva cuestión en la Doctrina Social de la Iglesia, la preocupación por el cuidado de la creación no es algo nuevo en el Papa Francisco. Recordemos que la “protección”, la “custodia”, tomando como ejemplo a San José, fue el tema de la homilía de la inauguración de su pontificado el 19 de marzo de 2013 (Festividad de San José, quien será mencionado en Laudato Si’, § 242). En dicha homilía, el Papa extendía la protección a toda la creación: “seamos ‘custodios’ de la creación, del designio de Dios inscrito en la naturaleza, guardianes del otro, del medio ambiente”. Y continuaba, “cuando el hombre falla en esta responsabilidad, cuando no nos preocupamos por la creación y por los hermanos, entonces gana terreno la destrucción y el corazón se queda árido”. En la homilía el Papa vincula esta protección, este cuidado, con su ministerio: “custodiar toda la creación, custodiar a todos, especialmente a los más pobres, cus-todiarnos a nosotros mismos; he aquí un servicio que el Obispo de Roma está llamado a desempeñar, pero al que todos estamos llamados”7. Las dos preocupaciones interrelacionadas de la protección de la creación y de los más pobres, mencionadas en reiteradas oportunidades en Laudato Si’, aparecen claramente ya en el comienzo del pontificado de Francisco.

Respondiendo a una invitación al diálogo

Varias veces el Papa Francisco dice que esta encíclica está dirigida a todos. Es una invitación al “diálogo con todos, para buscar juntos cami-nos de liberación” (§ 64). Respondiendo a esta invitación deseo ofrecer, en los párrafos siguientes, algunas reflexiones sobre cómo algunos de los contenidos claves de la encíclica han sido tratados en el movimiento ecuménico.

Ya al comienzo de Laudato Si’, el Papa afirma que “también fuera de la Iglesia Católica, otras Iglesias y Comunidades cristianas –como también otras religiones– han desarrollado una amplia preocupación y

7 Homilía del Papa Francisco 19 Marzo 2013 (acceso 13.11.2016) https://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/es/homilies/2013/documents/Papa-francesco_20130319_omelia-inizio-pontificato.html


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una valiosa reflexión sobre estos temas que nos preocupan a todos. Para poner sólo un ejemplo destacable, quiero recoger brevemente parte del aporte del querido Patriarca Ecuménico Bartolomé (§7).

La referencia y el reconocimiento a las contribuciones del Patriarca Bartolomé sobre este tema (§8-9) se reflejaron también en la invitación a un representante del Patriarcado Ecuménico a la ceremonia de presen-tación oficial de la encíclica. En la conferencia de prensa sobre ésta, el Metropolita John (Zizioulas) de Pérgamo, un conocido teólogo ortodoxo, en representación del Patriarca Bartolomé, fue uno de los oradores8.

El Metropolita John de Pérgamo comienza su alocución expre-sando la “alegría y satisfacción personal del Patriarca Bartolomé por la publicación de la encíclica”. Y continúa recordando a la audiencia que “el Patriarcado Ecuménico fue el primero, en el mundo cristiano, en llamar la atención a la comunidad internacional sobre la gravedad de la proble-mática ecológica y el deber de la Iglesia de expresar esta preocupación e intentar contribuir con todos los medios espirituales a su disposición, a la protección del ambiente. Por eso, ya en el año 1989, el Patriarca Ecuménico Dimitrios promulgó una encíclica a los creyentes y a todas las personas de buena voluntad, en la que subrayaba la gravedad de la pro-blemática ecológica así como sus dimensiones teológicas y espirituales”.

En efecto, en el año 1989, con su encíclica, el Patriarca Dimitrios establecía el día 1° de setiembre, el comienzo del año litúrgico en la Iglesia Ortodoxa, como el día “cuando oraciones e intercesiones deben ser ofrecidas por toda la creación y por la reparación del daño causado al ambiente”. Luego, el día se convertirá en el Día de oración por la pro-tección de toda la creación. La Tercera Asamblea Ecuménica Europea en Sibiu, Rumania, en setiembre de 2007, tomó esta iniciativa y llamó a los cristianos a celebrar un Tiempo para la Creación entre el 1° de setiembre y el 4 de octubre (la festividad de San Francisco de Asís). Esta iniciativa, fue reafirmada a nivel global por el Consejo Mundial de Iglesias. Hoy en día, en varias iglesias en el mundo, este Tiempo para la Creación es una oportunidad para expresar la preocupación y el cuidado de la creación a través de oraciones, reflexiones, celebraciones litúrgicas y acciones.

Cuando Bartolomé es elegido Patriarca Ecuménico en 1991, luego del fallecimiento de Dimitrios, asume un rol de liderazgo en relación a la crisis ecológica al punto que es llamado el “Patriarca Verde”9. Entre sus

8 Vale la pena leer toda la intervención (en inglés), Pope Francis Encyclical Laudato si’. A comment by Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon (acce-so 13.11.2016), http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/06/18/metropoli-tan_john_zizioulas_laudato_si_give_orthodox_grea/1152356 . La traducción es mía.


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muchas declaraciones, ha afirmado por ejemplo que “la humanidad, tanto individualmente como colectivamente… ha sucumbido a una teoría de desarrollo que valora la producción sobre la dignidad humana y la rique-za sobre la integridad humana… Esto es la razón por la cual la naturaleza ‘gime y trabaja’ en todas sus partes (Romanos 8,22)”10.

El Papa Francisco cita el discurso del Patriarca Bartolomé al Simposio Ambiental en California, Estados Unidos, en noviembre de 1997 (§8). Vale la pena mirar todo el párrafo de la cita: “Cometer un crimen contra el mundo natural es un pecado. Que los seres humanos hagan que las especies se extingan y que destruyan la diversidad biológica en la creación divina; que los seres humanos degraden la integridad de la tierra al causar cambios en el clima, al desnudar la tierra de sus bosques naturales o destruyendo sus zonas húmedas; que los seres humanos las-timen a otros seres humanos con enfermedades, que los seres humanos contaminen las aguas, el suelo, el aire de la Tierra con substancias vene-nosas: todos éstos son pecados”11.

Y específicamente en relación con el cambio climático el Patriarca Ecuménico declaró: “El cambio climático constituye una cuestión de jus-ticia económica y social, ya que aquéllos que serán más directa y severa-mente afectados por el cambio climático serán las naciones más pobres y más vulnerables… así como los jóvenes y las generaciones futuras… Hay una relación estrecha entre la economía de los pobres y el calentamiento de nuestro planeta… La trama de la vida es un don sagrado de Dios, tan precioso y a la vez tan delicado”.12

Para el Patriarca Ecuménico, por tanto, hay una estrecha relación entre la protección de la creación y la preocupación por los pobres, la

9 Una excelente antología de los escritos ecológicos del Patriarca Bartolomé (en inglés) ha sido editada por John Chryssavgis (ed.), Cosmic Grace, Humble Prayer: The Ecological Vision of the Green Patriarch Bartholomew I, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2009), el título ya revela una perspectiva: Gracia cósmica, oración humilde: la visión ecológica del Patriarca Verde Bartolomé I. De esta obra tomamos la mayoría de las citaciones siguientes que he traducido. Una versión más reciente es citada en Laudato Si’ (nota 15), John Chryssavgis, On Earth as in Heaven: Ecological Vision and Initiatives of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew (New York 2012).

10 Mensaje del Patriarca Ecuménico Bartolomé en el “Día de oración por la pro-tección de toda la Creación”, 1° setiembre de 1994.

11 Patriarca Ecuménico Bartolomé “Discurso ante el Simposio Ambiental”, Santa Bárbara, California, , Noviembre 1997, ver Chryssavgis, Cosmic Grace, 190.

12 Patriarca Ecuménico Bartolomé: “Mensaje al Grupo de Trabajo sobre Cambio Climático del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias”, agosto de 2005. Publicado por el CMI en Ginebra, Suiza, enero de 2006.


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cual, como mostré anteriormente, es afirmada varias veces por el Papa Francisco. Y esta relación constituye una cuestión de justicia social y económica.

Pero el Patriarca Bartolomé no sólo se ha referido a la crisis ecoló-gica a través de encíclicas y declaraciones. Como el Metropolita John de Pérgamo recordó en su alocución en el Vaticano mencionada más arriba, el Patriarca Ecuménico organizó varios simposios científicos internacio-nales para tratar los problemas ambientales en Patmos (1995) en el Mar Negro (1997), en el Río Danubio (1999), en el Mar Adriático (2002), en el Mar Báltico (2003), en el Río Amazonas (2006), en el Ártico (2007) y en el Río Mississippi (2009). La preocupación por las dimensiones cien-tíficas, éticas, teológicas y espirituales de la problemática ambiental se ha expresado también con la creación en 1991 del Instituto de Teología y Ecología en la Academia Ortodoxa de Creta, Grecia, bajo los auspicios del Patriarcado Ecuménico, que a través de sus múltiples actividades ha profundizado estas dimensiones13.

Si el Patriarca Ecuménico ha jugado un rol central en temas ecoló-gicos a nivel internacional, organizaciones ecuménicas como el Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI) también han tratado la problemática desde hace varias décadas.

Los dos aspectos mencionados por el Papa, el cuidado de la crea-ción y la preocupación por los pobres, han estado en el centro del trabajo del CMI a través del Programa Cuidado de la Creación y Justicia Climática. El CMI comenzó a discutir los desafíos a las comunidades sostenibles a mediados de 1970, refiriéndose a la vez a las amenazas económicas y ecológicas. A fines de 1980 y principios de los 90, el Proceso Conciliar de Justicia, Paz e Integridad de la Creación (JPIC) estudió en profundidad las relaciones entre el cuidado de la creación, la justicia económica y la cons-trucción de la paz. El proceso culminó en una Convocatoria Internacional en Seúl, Corea, en 1990, donde diez afirmaciones fueron adoptadas conjuntamente con un compromiso y acciones concretas. El preámbulo del Acto de Compromiso expresa que los participantes discutieron “la respuesta común frente a las amenazas que enfrenta la generación actual, confrontada a nuevas y complejas amenazas interrelacionadas, entre ellas, las formas profundas y letales de injusticia, la violencia universal y la

13 Ver por ejemplo las publicaciones de la Academia (en inglés) Ecological Theology and Environmental Ethics (vols. 1-3) (Chania: OAC 2009, 2012, 2014) y Sustainable Alternatives for Poverty Reduction and Ecological Justice (Cambridge: Cambridge Scholars Publishing 2014).


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degradación del ambiente. El real peligro radica en la interacción de estas amenazas. Juntas representan una crisis global”14. La afirmación de que “todo está conectado, relacionado” que aparece varias veces en la Laudato Si’ (§ 70, 92, 117, 120, 137, 142, 240) tiene aquí un claro precedente.

El documento conclusivo de la Convocatoria JPIC incluye también una crítica del antropocentrismo: “Resistiremos la pretensión de que todo en la creación es meramente un recurso para ser explotado por el ser humano. Resistiremos que las especies se extingan para beneficio humano; el consumismo y la producción en masa destructora; la con-taminación de la tierra, el aire y el agua; todas las actividades humanas que están hoy conduciendo al rápido cambio climático y a las políticas y planes que contribuyen a la desintegración de la creación”15. Esta afir-mación es muy cercana a la crítica que el Papa Francisco hace al antro-pocentrismo moderno desviado (§115-119). Tengamos en cuenta que el antropocentrismo ha sido una de las críticas ecológicas principales a la tradición judeocristiana desde la publicación del famoso artículo de Lynn White Jr. En el que acusa al cristianismo de la dominación de los seres humanos sobre la naturaleza. White afirmaba que “especialmente en su forma occidental, el cristianismo es la religión más antropocéntrica que le mundo ha conocido”16.

A través de los años el CMI ha continuado a mostrar la articulación entre el grito de la tierra y el grito de los pobres, resaltando las implica-ciones éticas, particularmente relacionadas a la justicia. A nivel progra-mático, en la década pasada, a través de programas como el de Pobreza, Riqueza y Ecología y Cuidado de la Creación y Justicia Climática, recien-temente fusionados en el Programa de Justicia Económica y Ecológica, el CMI invita e inspira a las iglesias a desarrollar respuestas efectivas a las amenazas a la vida y a incidir a nivel nacional e internacional. La fundamentación teológica de estos programas y las implicaciones concre-tas para las iglesias y las regiones han sido publicadas en libros y en la Revista académica del CMI, The Ecumenical Review17.

Dada esta preocupación y compromiso de larga data, no es extraño entonces, que cuando la encíclica fuera publicada, el Secretario General del CMI, el Rev. Dr. Olav Fykse Tveit, expresara: “La encíclica responde,

14 Preman D. Niles, Between the flood and the rainbow (Geneva: WCC Publications, 1992), 164-165.

15 Niles, Between the flood, 173. 16 Lynn White Jr., “The historical roots of our ecological crisis,” Science 155.3767

(1967), 1205. 17 La gran mayoría de estas publicaciones están en inglés. Sin embargo el pri-

mer volumen de la colección Pobreza, Riqueza y Ecología (“Poverty, Wealth


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de hecho, a uno de los desafíos más importantes de nuestro tiempo: la crisis ecológica. Ésta tiene varios componentes, entre ellos, el cambio climático, la crisis del agua, la pérdida de la biodiversidad. Como las Iglesias han dicho varias veces, el cambio climático debe ser visto como un problema mundial con implicaciones ambientales, sociales, económi-cas y políticas”18.

Dada la gravedad de la situación, el CMI, junto con otras organi-zaciones religiosas, ha desarrollado una incidencia interreligiosa, espe-cialmente sobre el cambio climático19.Dos declaraciones interreligiosas promovidas por el CMI en 2014 (respondiendo a la Cumbre del Clima convocada por el Secretario General de Naciones Unidas, Ban Ki Moon en septiembre) y en 2015 (como contribución a la preparación de la Conferencia sobre el Clima, COP21, en París), subrayan claramente la relación entre la destrucción ecológica y su impacto en las comunidades más vulnerables, así como sus implicaciones éticas en cuanto a la justicia climática. La última declaración, firmada por más de 150 líderes espiritua-les y religiosos de todos los continentes (y con una amplia representación de América Latina), por ejemplo, afirma: “Nuestras convicciones religio-sas, códigos sociales y costumbres nos enseñan a preocuparnos por los más vulnerables: el cambio climático está llevando a una degradación ecológica sin precedentes, afectando en particular, las vidas y los medios de subsistencia de las poblaciones más vulnerables. Es un deber moral irrefutable para todos los gobiernos ponerse de acuerdo sobre medidas

and Ecology”), que reflexiona desde América Latina y el Caribe tiene también traducción en castellano y en portugués (Geneva: WCC, 2009; Quito-São Leopoldo, CLAI, 2011), in Asia and the Pacific (Geneva: WCC, 2010), in Europe (Geneva: WCC, 2011), in Africa (Geneva: WCC, 2012), in North America (Geneva, WCC, 2012), Rogate Mshana and Athena Peralta (eds.) Economy of Life (Geneva: WCC, 2015); David G. Hallman, Spiritual values for Earth Community (Geneva: WCC, 2010). Ver los ejemplares temáticos de The Ecumenical Review, por ejemplo: Churches Caring for Creation and Climate Justice, Julio 2010, Peace on Earth, peace with the Earth, Marzo 2011, Ecumenical and Ecological perspectives of the God of Life, Marzo 2013, Economy of Life, Julio 2015.

18 Olav Fykse Tveit, Declaración sobre la Carta encíclica Laudato Si’ de su Santidad Papa Francisco sobre el cuidado de la casa común, (acceso 13.11.2016): https://www.oikoumene.org/en/resources/documents/general-secretary/sta-tements/statement-by-the-wcc-general-secretary-rev-dr-olav-fykse-tveit-on-the-encyclical-letter-laudato-si2019-of-the-holy-father-francis-on-care-for-our-common-homencis/

19 He estudiado la acción interreligiosa por el clima a nivel internacional en Guillermo Kerber, “International advocacy for climate justice” in R. Veldman, A. Szasz and R. Haluza-Delay, (eds.) How the World’s Religions are Responding to Climate Change: Social Scientific Investigations (Abingdon: Routledge, 2013), 278-294.


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concretas y mensurables para caminar hacia la justicia climática mundial y las alianzas para la resiliencia climática. Por lo tanto: la COP21 es el momento oportuno para garantizar la justicia climática”20.

Conclusión

La publicación de la encíclica Laudato Si’ del Papa Francisco pro-vocó muchas reacciones tanto dentro como fuera de la Iglesia Católica. Políticos, científicos y líderes religiosos expresaron sus opiniones. Muchos dieron una bienvenida elogiosa a la encíclica, mientras que otros, funda-mentalmente representantes de las industrias de los combustibles fósiles y políticos conservadores, la criticaron, afirmando, por ejemplo, que no le correspondía al Papa tratar temas científicos controvertidos.

La encíclica implica una inflexión en la Doctrina Social de la Iglesia al incluir la destrucción ecológica y sus expresiones como una de las pre-ocupaciones fundamentales de aquélla. Al afirmar en reiteradas oportuni-dades la interrelación entre el grito de la tierra y el grito de los pobres, el Papa retoma afirmaciones de la eco-teología de la liberación.

Muchos de los contenidos centrales de la encíclica han sido trata-dos anteriormente por el movimiento ecuménico y especialmente por el Patriarca Ecuménico Bartolomé. Pero la nueva síntesis propuesta por la Laudato Si’ refuerza lo que las Iglesias y el movimiento ecuménico en su conjunto han hecho para responder a lo que ha sido visto como uno de los más importantes desafíos de nuestra época.

Más allá del movimiento ecuménico, en los últimos años se han hecho públicas declaraciones interreligiosas que manifiestan el consenso de las comunidades de fe al enfrentarse a estas amenazas. Junto con estas declaraciones, es urgente implementar acciones concretas a nivel perso-nal, comunitario, nacional e internacional para llevar adelante la “conver-sión ecológica” a la que apela el Papa Francisco.

20 Declaración de Líderes Religiosos y Espirituales sobre la próxima Conferencia de Naciones Unidas sobre el Cambio Climático, COP21 en París en Diciembre de 2015 (acceso 13.11.2016) http://alc-noticias.net/es/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2015/11/CLAI-declaracion.pdf


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Pope Francis, in the highly anticipated encyclical Laudato Si’,1

offered his analysis of the current ecological crisis. Essential to Francis’ approach is the intimate connection between the exploitation of men, women, and children living on the margins of society and degradation of the natural environment. Francis called for a personal response to this two-fold crisis through an ecological conversion rooted in a spirituality that acknowledges the interconnected of all created reality in relation to God. This response presupposes a certain level of moral agency and the ability to rehabilitate vicious ecological habits. Unfortunately, Francis’ call to ecological conversion does not pay adequate attention to how one’s moral autonomy can be diminished by the structures, institutions, and practices of an individual’s historical location. For example, untena-ble land distribution, increased narco-farms, and the exploitative labor practices found in Guatemala perpetuate cycles of social sin that exploit the environment and rural Mayan campesinos. In appropriating moral insights from Laudato Si’, we must address the dehumanizing structures that ground ecological injustice as well as foster personal conversion. Specifically, by keeping indigenous communities intact and connected with their ancestral identity, individuals are more capable of exercising moral agency in ways that benefit the natural environment and the well-being of the community.

Structures of Vice and Communities of CareReading Laudato Si’ from the Context of Guatemala

Joshua R. SNYDER

Milton, USA

1 Pope Francis, Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’ of the Holy Father Francis On Care for Our Common Home, 24 May 2015, Vatican City, Online edition, accessed July 15, 2016, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals

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This analysis of Laudato Si’ from the context of Guatemala focu-ses on integral ecology in relation to structures of vice that perpetuate Guatemala’s eco-crisis and how communal practices can promote growth in personal ecological virtues. This paper begins by exploring the inter-connectedness of Guatemala’s land inequity and deforestation. Then, it demonstrates how the Guatemalan Episcopal Conference used its social capital to draw attention to these structures of injustice. Finally, it conclu-des with a case study of two indigenous communities and how cultural identity and practices can either support or diminish environmentally sustainable practices.

Integral Ecology

We begin with Francis’ understanding of integral ecology. At its most basic level, integral ecology acknowledges the interconnectedness of all life. Human beings are connected to the entirety of creation which derives from and is sustained by God’s animating love. Francis writes, “each organism, as a creature of God, has an intrinsic value independent of their usefulness…the same is true of the harmonious ensemble of organisms coexisting in a defined space and functioning as a system” (§140).2 While human beings possess unique characteristics, we also pos-sess a shared identity with all living beings as creatures. Integral ecology highlights our creatureliness and the need for harmonious coexistence among all diverse lifeforms within a given ecosystem.

At a more profound level, integral ecology brings together prefe-rential option for the poor and safeguarding the natural environment. The environment and the men, women, and children who are oppressed and marginalized do not suffer independently from each other. Rather, the destruction of the environment exacerbates the suffering of the most vulnerable members of society. Francis states, “we are faced not with two separate crises, own environmental and the other social, but rather with one complex crisis which is both social and environment” (§139). Again he claims, “the human environment and the natural environment deterio-rate together, we cannot adequately combat environmental degradation unless we attend to the causes related to human and social degradation” (§48). This requires an integrated approach that combats poverty, promo-tes human dignity, and protects the environment. Furthermore, integral ecology is a liberationist principle that “needs to incorporate a social


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perspective which takes into account the fundamental rights of the poor and the underprivileged” (§93).3

Integral ecology also entails protecting the cultural identity of indigenous communities. It calls for greater attention to and focus on local cultures when addressing environmental problems. Environmental exploitation undermines social structures that have been shaped by cultu-ral identity and challenges the meaning of life in community. It is essen-tial to show special care for indigenous communities and their cultural traditions. Often times, their unique connection to and appreciation for the natural environment offers an invaluable contribution for combating ecological degradation. This stands in contradistinction to the “techno-cratic paradigm” (§101) and its consumerist vision of human beings that attempts to resolve all problems through uniform regulations or technical interventions.4

Francis’ conception of integral ecology invites us to engage in a robust analysis of the ecological, social, cultural, political, theological, gender, and economic realms of reality. It draws our attention to how social structures and culture shape our ecological habits. According to Daniel Daly, “a structure is an institution, a practice, a value laden narra-tive, or a paradigmatic figure that people already find existing or which they create on the national or global level, and which orientates or orga-nizes economic, social, and political life.”5 Social structures can either promote virtuous behavior or undermine moral development. Those living in environments of mutual respect, solidarity, and love will find it easier to actualize ecological virtues, whereas those living in a hostile environment might find it “nearly impossible” to realize such dispositions.

We must be aware of the fact that structures of vice deform our social context and thwart moral development.6 Structures limit the reaso-nable possibilities for action that an agent has. They are structural preci-sely because they are not the result of intentions or personal failures, but

3 Daniel Castillo further develops the notion of integral ecology as a liberationist concept. Daniel Castillo, “Integral Ecology as a Liberationist Concept,” Paper presented at the annual convention of the Catholic Theological Society of America, San Juan, Puerto Rico, June 9-12, 2016.

4 Pope Francis refers to the technocratic paradigm as the tendency to view the world only through the lens of empirical science and then transform it through technology. See LS, §104, 144.

5 Daniel J. Daly, “Structures of Virtue and Vice,” New Blackfriars 92 (2010): 354.6 For a more in depth analysis of how structures relate to ecological virtues and

vices see: Michael F. Cagney, “The Problem of Big Food and the Response of an Integrated Catholic Ecological Ethics” (PhD diss., Boston College, 2016).

Strutures of Vice and Communities of Care. From the context of Guatemala · 91

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the result of the context from which one can reasonably act. In the face of negative influences, the moral agent can suffer from “value blindness,” an inability to recognize and act for certain values. Structures of injustice derive to a large extent from sin, and in turn, they often generate attitudes and forms of conduct that are also sinful.7 The effect of being born into a community misshaped by structures of vice is that it becomes increa-singly difficult to recognize vice for what it truly is.

In the case of Guatemala, the indigenous Maya majority has suffe-red at the hands of a racist ideology promoted by the minority Ladino8 population. The Ladino ruling elite saw themselves as constituting a Hispanic nation within which the indigenous population held no basic rights. They have structurally denied the Maya opportunities to fully participate in the social, economic, cultural, religious and political life of Guatemala. As we shall see, campesinos within el Petén find themselves in the midst of social, economic, and political arrangements that are evil, dehumanizing, and limit the ability for authentic moral agency. Integral ecology requires critical social analysis of these dehumanizing structures that perpetuate the eco-crisis as well as engaging in practices that foster the personal dimensions of virtue within communities of care.

Guatemalan Reality

Laudato Si’ summons us to a place-based approach to the current eco-crisis. Francis upholds, “there is a need to respect the rights of peoples and cultures, and to appreciate that development of a social group presupposes an historical process which takes place within a cul-tural context and demands the constant and active involvement of local people from within their proper culture” (§144). Guatemala offers us a point of view based in a particular locale but not bounded by it. “Local” becomes the shifted center from which the eco-crisis is viewed. Moving to a local, place-based approach mitigates the potential of the “techno-cratic paradigm” to overlook the complexities and particularities of local environmental problems. Furthermore, focusing on a particular place empowers local actors to take responsibility for developing solutions. It is local individuals and communities that can make a real difference.

7 Josef Fuchs, S.J., Moral Demands and Personal Obligations, trans. Brian McNeil (Washington D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 1993), 67.

8 There are over 5.4 million Maya in Guatemala consisting of 21 language subgroups. The term “Ladino” is a socio-ethnic reference to Westernized Guatemalans of mixed Spanish and indigenous descent.


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Francis writes, “they [local individuals] are able to instill a greater sense of responsibility, a strong sense of community, a readiness to protect others, a spirit of creativity and a deep love for land… these values are deeply rooted in indigenous peoples” (§170). With this in mind, let us turn to Guatemala’s inequitable land distribution and how it relegates the indigenous to perpetual rural poverty as well as exacerbates deforestation throughout the country’s sub-tropic forests.

Beginning with the Spanish conquest, land was seized from the Maya and granted to the colonizers. As a result, the most fertile land fell into the hands of the Spanish. Indigenous peoples were forced to work increasingly infertile soil in the central and western highlands. The emer-ging Spanish upper-class continued to gain control of land, while the indigenous were forced either to farm less productive land or become hired hands on coastal plantations. This situation was exacerbated with the establishment of the “Vagrancy” Law in 1878 which forced the Maya to perform 100 to 150 days of mandatory forced labor on coffee planta-tions.9 The consolidation of land ownership continued into the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The 1950 Agricultural Census revealed that 99.1 % of farms were small holdings accounting for only 14% of the land; .1% of holdings occupied 41% of the land; 40% of farms were owned by twenty-three families; fifty-four farms took up 19% of the land; and there were approximately 250,000 landless campesinos.10 Fast forward to 2014, 2.5% of the country’s elite continue to control 65% of agricultural land, while 88% of all the farms occupy only 16% of the land, and only 41% of landowning households possess formal title to their land.11 Guatemala’s reality resonates with Laudato Si’s claim that, in many places, “productive land is concentrated in the hands of a few owners due to ‘the progressive disappearance of small producers, who, as a consequence of the loss of the exploited lands, are obligated to withdraw from direct production.’ The most vulnerable of these become temporary laborers, and many rural workers end up moving to poverty-stricken urban areas” (§134).

9 John A. Booth, Christine J. Wade and Thomas W. Walker, Understanding Central America: Global Forces, Rebellion, and Change, Fourth edition (Boulder: Westview Press, 2005), 116.

10 ODHAG-Human Rights Office of the Archdiocese of Guatemala, Recovery of Historical Memory Project: Guatemala, Never Again! Abridged English Version (Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books, 1999), 185. The acronym “ODHAG” stands for the name of this office in the Spanish language: Oficina de Derechos Humanos del Arzobispado de Guatemala.

11 International Fund for Agricultural Development, Report and Recommendation of the President to the Executive Board on a Proposed Loan to the Republic of Guatemala for the National Rural Development Programme: Central and Eastern Regions, accessed December 2, 2014, www.ifad.org


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According to the 2014 Global Climate Risk Index, Guatemala is one of the top ten countries worldwide affected by climate change (1993-2012) as well as one of the most vulnerable to natural disasters.12 Because of its geographical location, the country is particularly affected by hurricanes, extreme rainfall, mudslides, and increasingly prolonged periods of drought.13 Over the past decade, Guatemala has suffered longer dry spells and shorter rain seasons. Unfortunately, when the rains finally come it is often in the form of extreme storms that cause loss of life and severe socio-economic damage. These natural disasters dispro-portionally impact indigenous populations; putting women and children at the greatest risk.14

At the same time, Guatemala is one of the most ecologically diverse nations on the planet, with fourteen different eco-regions and great bio-logical and cultural diversity. Four million hectares of sub-tropical forest are found in Guatemala, roughly 34% of the country’s total geographical area. The forested area is the largest in Central America and the second largest contiguous forest in the Americas after the Amazon. Guatemala’s forests are havens of biodiversity with more than 3,000 species of verte-brates (including jaguars, ocelots, monkeys and macaws) and over 8,600 species of plants.

While 70% of these forests are located within natural protected areas like the Maya Biosphere Reserve (2.1 million hectares) in the department of el Petén and the Sierra de Las Minas Biosphere Reserve in the eastern region of the country; deforestation is one of Guatemala’s main environmental problems. The primary global consequence of defo-restation is the exacerbation of climate change since estimates are that 25-30% of global warming is caused by tropical deforestation.15 Also,

12 Sönke Kreft and David Eckstein, Global Climate Risk Index 2014: Who Suffers Most from Extreme Weather Events? (Berlin: Germanwatch, 20114), 6.

13 Guatemala has been hit by several tropical storms of great intensity: Hurricanes Mitch (1998), Stan (2005) and Agatha (2010). In 2005, Hurricane Stan swept through Guatemala leaving more than 1,500 people dead, 500,000 victims and damages estimated at $989 million, approximately 3% of the country’s gross domestic product. In 2010, Pacaya Volcano erupted, scattering volcanic ash and debris across Guatemala City, bringing economic life in the capital of 1.5 million residents to a standstill. Two days later, Tropical Storm Agatha hit the capital. Data comes from Anna-Claire Bevan, “Guatemala: Adapting to Climate Change,” The Tico Times, August 13, 2013, accessed May 28, 2016, http://www.ticotimes.net/2013/08/13/guatemala-adapting-to-climate-change

14 Kreft and Eckstein, Global Climate Risk Index 2014.15 Anne Hallum, “Ecotheology and Environmental Praxis in Guatemala,” Nova

Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions 7/2 (2003): 56.


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deforestation dilutes the planet’s biodiversity since thousands of species are lost to extinction. Pope Francis echoes this concern writing,

the ecosystems of tropical forests possess an enormously complex biodi-versity which is almost impossible to fully appreciate, yet when these forests are burned down or levelled for purposes of cultivation, within the space of a few years countless species are lost and the areas frequently become arid wastelands (§38).

Between 1965 and 1990, Guatemala lost over 30% of its forests.16 An additional 17% of its forest area has been lost since 1990. Between 2000 and 2010 Guatemala experienced the most rapid deforestation of any country in the world. From 2000 to 2005 Guatemala lost an average of 27,000 hectares a year, increasing to 68,000 hectares a year between 2005 and 2010, meaning that the rate of deforestation has almost tripled in the course of a decade.

Guatemala’s deforestation is driven by two main factors: cattle rearing, which is mainly carried out by the Ladino population and the slash and burn subsistence farming of rural Maya campesinos forced from their ancestral homes. Because the rainforest soil is so poor it maintains fertility for farming for only two or three years before farmers need to expand their slash and burn clearing to new areas. In addition to clearing forests for agricultural purposes, rural communities are also reliant on wood as the leading source of energy. 86% of rural communities still rely on firewood for cooking and heat.17

Additional causes of deforestation include increased sugar planta-tions and the rise of narcofincas (narco-farms). Guatemala’s increased sugar exports has led to the expansion of numerous sugar cane planta-tions. Over the past five years, rapid deforestation has been linked to the establishment of narco-farms. Land is being appropriated by drug traffic-

16 The information regarding deforestation rates in this paragraph comes from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (OFA), “Country Profiles: Guatemala,” accessed July 30, 2016, http://www.fao.org/country-profiles/en/. For further information, see: Stéphane Foucart, “A Race for Land is Destroying Guatemala’s Rainforest,” The Guardian, July 12, 2011, acces-sed June 1, 2016, https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2011/jul/12/guatemala-rainforest-deforestation-farming-foucart.

17 The burning of firewood for heat and cooking yields high concentrations of polluted indoor air that results in respiratory infections which are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Guatemala. Ministerio de Salud Pública y Asistencia Social-MSPAS, “Diagnóstico Nacional de Salud del año 2012” (Guatemala City: MSPAS, 2012), accessed June 1, 2016, http://www.mspas.gob.gt


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kers as they try to acquire a new social status through land and cattle ownership. These drug barons are establishing a new form of feudalism as they acquire thousands of hectares of land and essentially force indige-nous laborers into servitude. This competition for land in a country that has never implemented agricultural reforms is occurring at the expense of local communities, which are displaced and forced to search for new land. These structural injustices are relentlessly devouring the forests as well as those who once lived there.

Theological Analysis

Solutions to the current eco-crisis will not emerge from just one way of interpreting and transforming reality. In responding to the struc-tures that sustain environmental degradation, we must transcend the current technocratic paradigm. Laudato Si’ argues that this paradigm creates a framework which conditions lifestyles in such a way that indi-viduals manipulate technology in order to gain control over external objects (§106-107). Technology is not neutral, rather it can blind us to the intrinsic value of other creatures and beings. By prioritizing convenience, the technocratic paradigm places the individual at the center of reality and everything else becomes relative to one’s individualistic concerns. The paradigm results in a wasteful “super-consumption” that devours both the environment and the most vulnerable members of society.

Religious beliefs offer an alternative paradigm for addressing environment problems. Over twenty years ago, Max Oelschlaeger made the bold claim, “there are no solutions for the systemic causes of eco-crisis, at least in democratic societies, apart from religious narrative.”18 Sharing religious narratives builds a sense of community identity and sustains praxis. Communal praxis, or the ability for members of a group to join together and work on a common project, is essential in caring for our common home. Likewise, religious beliefs have an enduring power to sustain transformation and open new possibilities. The Guatemalan Episcopal Conference (CEG) used its privileged position to leverage its social capital in protest against the abuse of both the environment and its indigenous inhabitants. It is the prophetic dimension of religious dis-course that gives it more potency as a mobilizing agent of change as a “moral critic” from outside the political power structure.19 Through its

18 Max Oelschlaeger, Caring for Creation: An Ecumenical Approach to the Environmental Crisis (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1994), 5.

19 Hallum, “Ecotheology and Environmental Praxis,” 57.


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pastoral letters, messages, and comunicados (communications) the CEG prophetically condemned the neo-liberal policies that perpetuated struc-tural injustice throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

Since 1988, the bishops have called for an integral approach to the social and environmental problems facing the Guatemala. The pastoral letter “the Clamor for Land” spoke out against Guatemala’s unjust land distribution and the massive poverty it generated.20 The bishops deman-ded that landowners recognize the intrinsic value of the natural environ-ment and that their property had a greater social function that usurped private ownership. We see congruence with Laudato Si’s claim that “the principle of the subordination of private property to the universal desti-nation of goods is a golden rule of social conduct” (§93). God gave the earth to the whole human race for the sustenance of all its members, without excluding anyone. In a quote reminiscent of Laudato Si and the Bishops of Paraguay, the CEG claimed, “every campesino has a natural right to possess a reasonable allotment of land where he can establish his home, work for subsistence of his family and a secure life.”21

The CEG’s most substantive treatment of the root causes of defores-tation came in its December 2000 pastoral letter, “The Cry of the Jungle in the Jubilee Year: Between Anguish and Hope.”22 The bishops’ prophetic language offered a scathing critique of the government and economic elite. They attacked the president for allowing uncontrolled access to the sub-tropic forests of el Petén; “once again the government kneels before the power of large corporations.”23 “The Cry of the Jungle” maintained that capitalism continues to fuel the daily rape and exploitation of the land. In their analysis, it is clear that violations against the ecosystem and injustices that undermine integral develop of indigenous communities are intimately connected. The CEG also raised serious questions about the introduction of African Palm into el Petén, the increase in slash and burn

20 Conferencia Episcopal de Guatemala, El Clamor por la Tierra (Guatemala City: Conferencia Episcopal de Guatemala, February 29, 1988).

21 Conferencia Episcopal de Guatemala, El Clamor por la Tierra. Commenting on the pastoral letter, Monseñor Juan Gerardi argued that these injustices revea-led a fundamental shift in Guatemala’s ethos. “Love of God, neighbor, and the created world had been superseded by the thirst for power and riches as well as the corruption and injustice that accompany them.”

22 Conferencia Episcopal de Guatemala, El Grito de la Selva en el Año Jubilar: Entre la Agonía y la Esperanza (Guatemala City: Conferencia Episcopal de Guatemala, December 2000).

23 Conferencia Episcopal de Guatemala, El Grito de la Selva, Ibid.


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farming, the loss of biodiversity seen as a violation of the right to life; and they called for an end to “hamburgerization” (massive meat production for export). Again, it was subsistence farmers who disproportionately felt the detriments of these actions.

The “2015 Earth Day” communicado expressed the bishops’ outra-ge with worsening social, agrarian, and environmental problems in the Northeast Region of the country.24

In support of the collective rights of indigenous peoples and the defense of mother earth, we must denounce an exclusive capitalist model the govern-ment promoted which violates the ancient rights of people and the land. This model has intensified the breakdown of community dynamics and the social fabric. It is unfortunate that the defense of Mother Earth, the defense of life, and raising awareness of the most violated and excluded population are seen by the government as terrorist actions and attempts to gain control.25

Criticism against the government was further levied for granting mining rights without considering the impact on the indigenous com-munities that occupied the region. The CEG was critical of “big agricul-ture” for its unsustainable practices and held up smallholding farmers as models for their care and cultivation of staple foods. We again see congruence with Laudato Si’s emphasis on small-scale food production for its ability to feed great portions of the world’s peoples, using modest amounts of land and producing less waste (§129). In its most bold sta-tement, the CEG claimed Guatemala is experiencing an “ecocide, where economic interests have turned the beauty and richness of lakes and lagoons into sewers… and the suffering poor are doomed to live in con-ditions of extreme poverty.”26

It is clear that the CEG continues to develop an integral approach to care for the environment and preferential option for the poor. Their critical social analysis looked to the economic, political, and social rea-lities that hindered integral human and ecological development. They used their social capital to advocate for those without a voice. While at

24 Comisión Pastoral de la Tierra Nacional, Comunicado de la Pastoral de la Tierra Nor Oriente: Con motivo del Día Internacional de la Tierra (Guatemala City: Conferencia Episcopal de Guatemala, April 22, 2015).

25 Comisión Pastoral de la Tierra Nacional, Comunicado de la Pastoral de la Tierra, Ibid.

26 Conferencia Episcopal de Guatemala, El Grito de la Selva. See also, Vicariato Apostólico de Petén, Comunicado de la Pastoral Social del Vicariato Apostólico de Petén: Ante los Recientes Sucesos de Contaminación Ocurridos en el Río Pasión (Guatemala City: Conferencia Episcopal de Guatemala, June 16, 2015).


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times, their prophetic denouncements have fallen on deaf ears, they have nevertheless been able to bring about policy changes that loosen the grip of structural vices. Over the past few years, Guatemala’s National Council of Protected Areas has implemented a number of projects focused on reducing deforestation to protect biological diversity and constructing a plan to counteract the effects of climate change. Its latest program, GuateCarbón, in the Maya Biosphere Reserve, aims to reduce CO2 emis-sions by 30 million tons over the next 30 years.27 Additionally, in 2009, the Environment and Natural Resources Ministry presented Guatemalan lawmakers with a climate change bill to reduce vulnerability, force adap-tations, and reduce emissions of greenhouse gases.

Communities of Care Sustaining Ecological Virtues

While structures can diminish autonomy, communal narratives and practices of care have the potential to bolster moral agency and promote virtuous behavior. As we shall see, when care is shown to keep indige-nous communities and their cultural traditions intact, the experience of ecological degradation is diminished. Sharing religious narratives main-tain communal ties and sustain virtuous ecological praxis. Whereas when Maya communities are forcibly moved from their ancestral homeland, respect for the natural environment wanes. In this section we will briefly explore two communities in Guatemala as a case study for the importan-ce of religious and cultural identity in terms of developing communities of care and sustaining environmentally sound practices.28

The northern department of el Petén covers approximately one third of Guatemala and is predominantly jungle. Under the military dic-tatorship of General Carlos Arana Osorio (1970-1974), the Guatemalan Government began giving land grants to colonize el Petén in 1971.29 By 1980, the government had constructed two roads into the region to accommodate the emerging agriculture industry and cattle ranches. However, by the mid-eighties, the government sought to reverse itself by creating protected areas such as Maya Biosphere Reserve to slow the rapid deforestation that was occurring.

27 Anna-Claire Bevan, “Guatemala: Adapting to Climate Change.”28 The following comparative study is based, in part, on the work of Anne Hallum.

See “Ecotheology and Environmental Praxis in Guatemala,” 60-64.29 For an examination of the connection between land ownership, labor, class and

conflict see John D. Early, The Structure and Evolution of a Peasant System: The Guatemalan Case (Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1982).


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During the thirty-six year civil war, the indigenous inhabitants of el Petén suffered immense persecution.30 Many of the Mopan, Lacandon, Itza, and Q’eqchi’ Maya fled el Petén or settled deep in the jungles to escape persecution. While the Maya that remained in el Petén try to main-tain their ancestral cultural and agrarian practices, the agricultural and mining industries continues to encroach on their way of life by engaging in massive deforestation and diverting rivers and streams.31

Following the peace accords of 1996, a new wave of settlement occurred when previously internally displaced Guatemalans settled in el Petén. The population swelled from roughly 20,000 in 1960 (the beginning of Guatemala’s civil war) to over 660,000 today. In addition to leaving their ancestral home, many of the Maya left their costumes and religious practices for the more favored evangelical churches that began to emerge. Faced with either relocating to poverty-stricken urban areas or working as migrant laborers, approximately 3,000 families settled within the protected Maya Biosphere Reserve and more than 200 permanently live within Tikal National Park itself. As generations become alienated from their ancestors and from their ancestral ways, they experience a loss of identity and express less reverence for the natural environment. Forests that were once home to the ancestors are now slashed and burned to make room for cattle and farming. Because of the structural oppression experienced in el Petén, the moral agency of the new inhabi-tants is greatly diminished. It is no surprise that the newly settled subsis-tence farmers, devoid of a sense of belonging or connection to the land, are among the chief perpetrators of slash and burn farming.

We are able to juxtapose the harmful ecological practices occurring in el Petén with the sustainable farming practices of Todos Santos, which is located in the northwestern department of Huehuetenango. Like el Petén, Huehuetenango suffered greatly during the civil war experiencing the third largest amount of human rights violations and victims.32 But unlike el Petén, Todos Santos remained intact with the majority of resi-dents never leaving their ancestral homeland. The inhabitants of Todos Santos belong to the Mam Mayan language subgroup and infuse Maya cosmo-vision along with traditional Catholic faith. This seamless infusion motivates environmental praxis and the cultivation of ecological virtues.

30 Over the course of the civil war, el Petén experienced the 6th largest amount of human rights violations among the 22 departments that comprise Guatemala. See, ODHAG, Recovery of Historical Memory, 309-311.

31 Felicity Lawrence, “Harsh Effects of Global Warming,” The Guardian, June 1, 2011.

32 ODHAG, Recovery of Historical Memory, 309-311.


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The Mam of Todos Santos exhibit a reverence for the land and nature that is almost palpable. Over the centuries they have developed a sophisticated combination of Catholic liturgy and Maya spirituality, in which they easily bring offerings to Catholic saints as well as to the Heart of Heaven and the Heart of Earth. Reverence for nature can be seen through a common prayer offered by many Maya before planting corn.33 For ten days they will petition Mother Earth for permission to plant. If trees are to be cut down or crops are to be planted, it must be done with reverence and with permission from “el Dueño de la Montaña” (Earth lords or spiritual owners of the mountains). Due to their sustainable agri-cultural practices and the development of a large tree nursery there are actually more trees in Todos Santos today than there were forty years ago.

If Todos Santos is to be a model for cultivating communities of care that respect both the natural environment and indigenous culture, then we need to establish partnerships with grassroots organizations that are sensitive to Maya cosmo-vision. One such organization is the Alliance for International Reforestation (AIR),34 which provides a paradigm for effective environmentalism within the Guatemalan context. AIR employs indigenous staff members who are knowledgeable of Mayan cultural and religious practices. They seek out local leaders who are respected in the community and who are willing to commit to sustainable farming and reforestation. AIR then provides a three-year training program in which the participants learn soil conservation methods, terracing, production with organic fertilizer, intercropping, and organic pesticide use.35 Eladio Iquique Socoy, a Maya and a devout Catholic who works with AIR, expresses an integrated approach that connects love of God with service to the poor and care for the natural environment. He wrote,

When we are in a forest and where we see and listen to the songs of the birds, the sounds of the rivers, when we feel the fresh air, enjoy the beauty of nature, then we ought to think that God is there because it is his creation and he desires that we are able to be happy…But we also have a responsibility to care for her because our children and our grandchildren and all generations

33 Richard Wilson, Maya Resurgence in Guatemala: Q’eqchi’ Experiences (Norman. OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1995). The ritual is also cited by Hallum, “Ecotheology and Environmental Praxis,” 63.

34 AIR was founded in the 1990s by Anne Hallum after a transformative mission experience in Guatemala in 1991. For more information regarding AIR see, Hallum, “Ecotheology and Environmental Praxis,” 65-67. See also the Alliance for International Reforestation website, http://www.airguatemala.org/index.html



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that come after also have a right to enjoy these natural resources that God has created…To love God then is to love nature…When you work for nature, you are working for the people-directly. There is no separation between hel-ping Nature and helping people…God manifests himself to us in nature and also, he shows himself to us in every face.36

Keeping indigenous communities intact and connected to their ancestral beliefs offers a direct resource for protecting the environment. We need to acknowledge and support the ecological wisdom of Mayan religious beliefs. The sacred Maya text, Popul Vuh, describes the crea-tion of the world.37 Similar to the second creation account of Genesis 2:4-3, the Maya creation myth describes how humans come from the earth. After several unsuccessful attempts the goddess Xmucane ground corn into flour, mixed it with water, and modeled four people from the cornmeal. The descendants of the primordial “mother-father” are to live in harmony and balance and to care for creation and understand its rhythms. Likewise, Maya beliefs stress the redistribution of resources and community solidarity. But according to Popul Vuh, the two main obsta-cles to this harmony are human beings desire for riches and power. Even in contemporary Maya oral traditions, hard work and honest are rarely associated with those who are rich.38

As with the creation accounts of Genesis, Popul Vuh affirms that creation is good, humans do not have dominion in the sense of owner-ship over creation, and that humans have a responsibility not to impair Creation. Maya are stewards of the land, and not owners of the earth in the deeper sense. While they are not owners of the land, they are very much tied to a particular locale for their sense of identity. The Maya see their communal identity as a relationship to the local sacred landscape. They call themselves sons and daughters of the earth, people of the cor-nfield, or by the name of the important local mountains. The belief is that the Creator placed them and their ancestors on a particular piece of land, a particular mountain group that defines them. The spirits of ancestors remain on the land and the physical remains form sacred burial mounds.

36 Ibid., 66-67.37 Popul Vuh, trans. Dennis Tedlock (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1985). 38 Liliana R. Goldín, Global Maya: Work and Ideology in Rural Guatemala (Tucson:

AZ: University of Arizona Press, 2009), 5-10.


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Conclusion

Guatemala is highly susceptible to the effects of climate change and many forms of environmental exploitation are embedded within the social structures that perpetuate Ladino privilege at the sake of Maya deve-lopment. Guatemala has some of the best environmental laws in Central America, but without legal infrastructure and enforcement, and especially without a foundational environmental ethic that respects religious beliefs, the laws are clearly inadequate. Legal systems and political pressure will not be sufficient for protecting the environment if the people who live there do not feel a responsibility for its care and preservation.

We urgently need to find ways to transform human behavior that go beyond scientific research and models. Guatemala needs a two-fold approach to the current ecological crisis. At one level, there needs to be a transformation of the dehumanizing structures that relegate the nation’s most vulnerable citizens to perpetual poverty and underdevelopment. As we have seen, the CEG has taken a prophetic role in demanding an end to the structural injustice sustained by the political and economic elite. Because structures of vice limit opportunities for authentic moral agency, they must be eradicated so that members of society can grow in virtue. At a second level, in consistency with Laudato Si’, lasting ecological change requires individual members of society as well as communities to under-go an ecological conversion (§216-221). This conversion entails gratitude and graciousness, a realization that all of created reality comes from and is sustained by God, and that all living beings are bound together in love by their Creator. Ecological conversion results in life of virtue dedicated to protecting and caring for our common home.

Robust religious convictions are essential for moral formation in ecological virtues. By recovering the sacramental nature of the environ-ment we can transcend individualistic consumption of natural resources. As we have seen above, in mapping the relationship between surviving forests and indigenous populations in Guatemala, “the densest, healthiest tropical forests coincide with the most intact indigenous communities.”39

Deforestation rates are significantly lower in areas managed by local communities according to sustainable practices. Guatemala’s indigenous population offers an innovative approach to community-based environ-mental management. Belief in the sacredness of creation and the inter-connectedness of humanity with nature provides impetus for converting one’s environmental habits.



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Laudato Si’Comentarios desde una perspectiva indígena

Eleazar LÓPEZ HERNÁNDEZ

México

A los pocos días en que el Papa Francisco publicó su Encíclica Laudato Si’, en torno al Cuidado de la Tierra como nuestra casa común1, me hicieron una entrevista telefónica para pedirme que expresara mi sen-tir, desde la perspectiva indígena, sobre dicha encíclica. Mi respuesta fue el afirmar mi enorme alegría porque esta encíclica muestra el talante del Papa Francisco que surgió de nuestra periferia latinoamericana, llevando no sólo nuestros problemas -lo que los indígenas denominamos “nuestras espinas”-, sino también nuestras mejores propuestas -“nuestras flores”- para enfrentar la problemática del mundo actual.

Ya en la Exhortación Apostólica Evangelii Gaudium2, el Papa había reafirmado uno de los ejes principales de la Teología Latinoamericana, que es la centralidad de los pobres en el evangelio cristiano. Y ahora, con Laudato Si’ la asume para toda la Iglesia, con inocultable entusiasmo que rápidamente contagió a todos, una de las preocupaciones más antiguas y fundamentales del pensamiento indígena de esta orilla del mundo: la

1 Papa Francisco, Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’ del Santo Padre Francisco Sobre el Cuidado de la Casa Común, Ciudad del Vaticano 2015, edición en línea, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/es/encyclicals/

2 Papa Francisco, Exhortación Apostólica Evangelii Gaudium del Santo Padre Francisco a los Obispos, a los Presbíteros y Diáconos, a las Personas Consagradas y a los Fieles Laicos sobre el anuncio del Evangelio en el Mundo Actual, Ciudad del Vaticano 2013, edición en línea, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, https://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/es/apost_exhortations/

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relación armónica con la madre tierra, condición indispensable para pre-servarla como matriz, resguardo y sostenimiento del conjunto de la vida en el planeta.

¡Cómo no estar alegres y esperanzados cuando la instancia mayor de nuestra Iglesia retoma y lanza al mundo algo por lo cual los indíge-nas hemos luchado siempre y que reiteradamente hemos lanzado a los cuatro vientos, -a menudo sin encontrar eco ni en el ámbito civil ni en el religioso-! Quienes nos sentimos hijas e hijos de la Madre Tierra sería-mos incoherentes si no celebráramos que el clamor de ella ahora puede ser escuchado por la fuerza y autoridad que tiene el Pastor Universal de la Iglesia. Con su Encíclica, el Papa Francisco viene a dar la razón a la teología de estos pueblos originarios tanto en su expresión precolombina como también en su expresión actual, al incluir en el magisterio pontificio no sólo esas categorías teológicas indígenas sino también el sentido más profundo que ellas tienen para nuestros pueblos. Por eso esta Encíclica rebasa lo tradicionalmente ecuménico de otras palabras pontificias que intentan incluir a las demás denominaciones e iglesias cristianas, con las que siempre hemos buscado mantener buenas relaciones. En Laudato Si’, el Papa Francisco introduce un planteamiento que proviene de la heren-cia macro-ecuménica de la humanidad y que está contenida no sólo en las grandes religiones, sino hasta en las pequeñas del mundo como las tribales y de la tradición oral de los pueblos indígenas.

¿Cómo explicar esta apertura tan amplia de nuestra Iglesia a la voz ancestral de los pueblos del mundo? Desde luego, es un signo de los tiempos que únicamente se entiende en el contexto del gran kairós abier-to por el Espíritu desde el Concilio Vaticano Segundo (1962-1965) hasta nuestros días. El mismo Papa Francisco es parte de este kairós que Dios nos da. Y eso es una muestra más de cómo el Espíritu aletea nuevamente sobre el caos actual moviendo las aguas de la historia e invitándonos a entrar en ella para quedar renovados, y poder así actuar adecuadamente en la construcción de los cielos nuevos y la tierra nueva que manifiesten la llegada del Reino de Dios entre nosotros.

Antecedentes de la Encíclica Laudato Si’

Es evidente que los planteamientos de la Encíclica no son nuevos ni recientes. San Francisco de Asís, en quien explícitamente el Papa se apoya desde el inicio del escrito, ya había intentado introducir en la Iglesia la centralidad de los pobres y el valor e importancia de las criatu-ras de la naturaleza, tomando esta concepción holística que seguramente los desechados de su tiempo ya tenían en su perspectiva y práctica cultu-ral. Más recientemente el magisterio latinoamericano, a partir de los años

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1960’s, después de percatarse de la existencia de los indígenas, primero como pobres y luego como diferentes, poco a poco da el paso de fijar la atención, de las espinas o heridas de este sector empobrecido, a admi-rar sus incuestionables flores o valores que ellos aportan al resto de la humanidad. Así, en la Conferencia Episcopal de Puebla (México, 1979)3 los pastores se percatan que todas las culturas –incluidas las indígenas- no son terreno vacío donde hay que plantar el evangelio de Cristo, sino espacios sembrados durante siglos y milenios por estos pueblos, y donde también Dios ha esparcido las “semillas del Verbo”, que la evangelización no ha de destruir sino servir para llevar a su crecimiento, fortalecimiento y plenitud en Cristo4. Después, en la Conferencia Episcopal de Santo Domingo (República Dominicana, 1992)5, nuestros obispos ponen a los indígenas como modelo a seguir en la relación armónica con la natura-leza6. Posteriormente, en la Conferencia Episcopal de Aparecida (Brasil, 2007), los obispos afirman que la Iglesia “valora especialmente a los indígenas por su respeto a la naturaleza y el amor a la madre tierra como fuente de alimento, casa común y altar del compartir humano”7.

El Papa Francisco llega al Pontificado teniendo en sus manos esos antecedentes, pero sin conocer más ampliamente la problemática y la perspectiva indígena de las cosas. Sin embargo, muy rápidamente se abre a ellas y las incorpora a su voz y compromiso pastoral. Como él fue el redactor principal del texto final de Aparecida, del documento

3 Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, CELAM, III Conferencia General del Episcopado Latinoamericano. Puebla: La evangelización en el presente y en el futuro de América Latina. Conclusiones (Bogotá: Secretariado General del Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, 1979).

4 Sobre esto, ver Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, III Conferencia General, § 201, 401, 403, 404, 451. El símbolo “§” seguido por un número se refiere a un párrafo o párrafos en los documentos citados.

5 Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, CELAM, IV Conferencia General del Episcopado Latinoamericano. Santo Domingo: Nueva evangelización, pro-moción humana, cultura cristiana. Documento aprobado (México: Ediciones Dabar, 1992).

6 Ver, Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, IV Conferencia General, §169, 176, 248.

7 Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, CELAM, V Conferencia General del Episcopado Latinoamericano y del Caribe. Aparecida: Discípulos y misione-ros de Jesucristo para que nuestros pueblos en Él tengan vida. Documento Conclusivo (Bogotá: Centro de Publicaciones del CELAM, 2007), §472.

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conclusivo toma los párrafos 125 y 1268 como esquema básico para la encíclica Laudato Si’. Por lo que sabemos del proceso de elaboración de la Encíclica, varios episcopados le acercaron otros materiales necesarios para construir su pensamiento y acción sobre la ecología. Desde luego, resalta la colaboración de la Iglesia Brasileña y especialmente del Consejo Indigenista Misionero (CIMI), con su presidente Erwin Kräutler, quien presentó al Papa la situación dramática de la Amazonía y de sus pueblos. Pero está también la voz de una de las iglesias pioneras de México en la Pastoral Indígena: San Cristóbal de las Casas (Chiapas, México) que celebró en el año 2013 su Congreso sobre la pastoral de la Madre Tierra, cuyo documento final empieza exactamente igual que la Encíclica Papal con la oración de San Francisco. Por eso no es una mera casualidad que en la visita que el Papa hace a México en el año 2016, uno de los lugares que visitó, fue precisamente San Cristóbal de las Casas.

Con anterioridad, en el año 2010, el obispo Felipe Arizmendi, llevó esa voz ecológica que se gestaba en su diócesis a un Simposio del Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano (CELAM) en Buenos Aires, Argentina, donde estuvo presente el entonces Cardenal Bergolio. Don Felipe elaboró su ponencia de la misma manera que el Papa Francisco hizo ahora para la encíclica Laudato Si’; es decir, recogiendo y profundizando la palabra

8 En el documento conclusivo de Aparecida, estos párrafos escriben lo siguiente:“125. Con los pueblos originarios de América, alabamos al Señor que creó el uni-

verso como espacio para la vida y la convivencia de todos sus hijos e hijas y nos los dejó como signo de su bondad y de su belleza. También la creación es manifestación del amor providente de Dios; nos ha sido entregada para que la cuidemos y la transformemos en fuente de vida digna para todos. Aunque hoy se ha generalizado una mayor valoración de la naturaleza, percibimos cla-ramente de cuántas maneras el hombre amenaza y aun destruye su ‘hábitat’. “Nuestra hermana la madre tierra” es nuestra casa común y el lugar de la alianza de Dios con los seres humanos y con toda la creación. Desatender las mutuas relaciones y el equilibrio que Dios mismo estableció entre las realida-des creadas, es una ofensa al Creador, un atentado contra la biodiversidad y, en definitiva, contra la vida. El discípulo misionero, a quien Dios le encargó la creación, debe contemplarla, cuidarla y utilizarla, respetando siempre el orden que le dio el Creador.

126. La mejor forma de respetar la naturaleza es promover una ecología humana abierta a la trascendencia que respetando la persona y la familia, los ambien-tes y las ciudades, sigue la indicación paulina de recapitular todas las cosas en Cristo y de alabar con Él al Padre (cf. 1 Co 3, 21-23). El Señor ha entregado el mundo para todos, para los de las generaciones presentes y futuras. El destino universal de los bienes exige la solidaridad con la generación presente y las futuras. Ya que los recursos son cada vez más limitados, su uso debe estar regulado según un principio de justicia distributiva respetando el desarrollo sostenible”. El párrafo 125 incluye una nota en referencia a “Francisco de Asís, Cántico de las Criaturas, 9”, al citar “Nuestra hermana la madre tierra”.


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plural de indígenas de muchas partes del continente, a quienes pidió previamente su palabra. De este modo, en esos textos están las voces de muchas personas que contribuimos a dar rostro a la palabra actual de la Iglesia.

Para no endosar a otros la responsabilidad de las afirmaciones que hago aquí, presento enseguida de forma extensiva los textos redactados por mí9, y por otro hermano indígena de Los Andes, que Don Felipe Arizmendi incluyó en su escrito sobre “Ecología y Pueblos Originarios”10. Los textos de nuestra autoría de alguna manera llegaron también al Papa Francisco, pues nuestras ideas principales las vemos reflejadas en su encíclica.

Mons. Arzimendi, en su ponencia ante el CELAM, reflexiona de la siguiente manera incorporando nuestros textos:

“… Comparto testimonios de algunos sacerdotes indígenas y de otros agentes de pastoral que desde hace años han consagrado su vida a estos pueblos en diversas regiones de nuestra América Latina. Ellos nos describen su propia vivencia sobre la espiritualidad ecológica de sus etnias…

El P. Eleazar López Hernández, del pueblo zapoteca, en Oaxaca, México, con amplia experiencia de otros pueblos del Continente, dice: A partir de mi experiencia de ser indígena y de ejercer el ministerio sacerdotal en la Iglesia Católica, puedo afirmar que para los pueblos de la Biblia y para los pueblos indígenas de Mesoamérica la relación con Dios involucra necesariamente la tierra, de la que procede todo y de la que procedemos todos. Para los pobres de Yavé y, con más énfasis, para los pobladores originarios de este continen-te, nadie ni nada se puede entender sin una relación estrecha con la tierra, que es matriz, resguardo y sostenimiento de toda manifestación de vida en nuestro pequeño territorio y en nuestra gran casa.

Por eso para quienes estamos vinculados a los pueblos nativos de estas tierras y también para quienes se sienten interpelados por la construcción de ‘otro mundo posible’ a partir de una perspectiva ecoteológica o geoteológica

9 El texto redactado por mí retoma la palabra de hermanas y hermanos indíge-nas que se expresaron en diversos encuentros de teología y pastoral indígena. Dicho texto lo presenté en el Foro Mundial de Teología y Liberación, durante el Foro Social Mundial de 2009, en Belém do Pará, Brasil.

10 Mons. Felipe Arizmendi, Obispo de San Cristóbal de las Casas, México, “Ecología y Pueblos Originarios”, Ponencia presentada en el “Simposio Espiritualidad cristiana de la ecología: Ambientes, economías y pueblos”, orga-nizado por el Departamento de Justicia y Solidaridad del Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano (CELAM), ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina, del 21 al 24 de agosto de 2010, http://www.celam.org/detalle.php; https://es.zenit.org/articles/espiritualidad-cristiana-de-la-ecologia/


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nueva, hace falta comprender mejor tanto el pensamiento bíblico cristiano como el pensamiento indígena acerca de la tierra a fin de asumir de ambas vertientes –que conforman hoy el alma del pueblo latinoamericano-, la riqueza espiritual que nos movilice a luchar porque se haga realidad ese ‘cielo nuevo y esa tierra nueva’ del evangelio de Cristo, y esa ‘tierra sin males’ o ‘tierra de la flor’, soñada por nuestros antepasados y que resulta del ‘Suma Kausay’ o vida en armonía entre nosotros y con todas las hijas e hijos de la Madre Tierra.

En la experiencia teologal indígena de Mesoamérica la tierra ocupa un lugar central e indispensable. Toda vida viene de la tierra, que es el mayor sacramento de Dios (a quien llamaron Ipalnemohuani = Aquel por Quien vivi-mos), el que constantemente nos da la vida. En los mitos de las culturas del maíz, la tierra es la energía vital originaria, un ser vivo que nos vivifica. La vegetación es su piel o su vestido, en las cuevas de los cerros está su vientre, los ríos son sus cabellos; cualquier parte de ella son los brazos con que nos acaricia y nos protege, porque todos los vivientes somos sus hijas y sus hijos.

La fraternidad como ideal ancestral de los pueblos indígenas resulta del hecho de que todos somos ‘parientes’ por venir de la misma madre, que es la tierra. Los humanos no estamos por encima de esta lógica, ya que comparti-mos la vida con las piedras, las plantas y los animales.

Según los mayas hubo varios proyectos previos de humanidad que se caracterizan y se distinguen por el material diverso tomado de la tierra, que Dios usó para formarla: madera, barro, piedra, monos (cfr. Popol Vuh). Representan estilos distintos de vida. Todos fracasaron porque les faltó soli-dez, capacidad de movimiento y, sobre todo, conciencia y sentimientos (cora-zón). Sólo las mujeres y los hombres a quienes Dios hizo de maíz subsistimos hasta nuestros días, porque somos los verdaderos interlocutores de Dios, los que le reconocen, le alaban y se constituyen en sus colaboradores para man-tener la armonía de la vida en la tierra. La llamada ‘cruz maya’ representa el ideal de la armonía de todo cuanto existe. Los humanos somos los guardianes y reconstructores de esa armonía.

Para los mesoamericanos Dios es Corazón del Cielo y Corazón de la Tierra. Y lo representaban en Quetzalcóatl, Kukulkán o Gucumátz, que carga el cielo por encima de la tierra, para formar así nuestra casa que es el mundo. También los humanos fuimos creados por Dios para colaborar con Él en esa tarea de levantar el cielo sobre la tierra y mantenerlo como ahora está. Para ello debemos ponernos en equilibrio y en armonía en el centro, allí donde se cruzan los rumbos del universo y, por medio del servicio al pueblo, volar como hacen ritualmente los totonacas, colgados de un palo alto, entre el cielo y la tierra, e ir descendiendo al dar 52 vueltas, formar el siglo mesoamericano, símbolo de la historia en la que hoy vivimos en la tierra. O danzar, como lo hacen los rarámuris o tarahumaras, zapateando sobre la tierra como si fuera el gran tambor de la vida. Y es que Dios solito no quiere llegar al culmen de la creación ni mantener la armonía de la vida; los humanos hemos sido for-mados para ser colaboradores de Él en esta tarea. Es lo que expresa el mito de cómo resolvió Dios el caos de la caída del cielo sobre la tierra, creando a


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la humanidad para que junto con Él pusiéramos el universo como ahora está.Para el indígena mesoamericano la tierra no nos pertenece; más bien

nosotros pertenecemos a la tierra. Vivimos por ella, estamos en ella, termina-mos en ella. Porque somos sus hijas e hijos; somos su familia al lado de los demás seres de la creación. La tierra, entonces, no se puede vender porque no es mercancía, sino que forma parte constitutiva de nosotros mismos.

Sembrar la tierra no es propiamente un trabajo, sino una relación o cola-boración amorosa para que la Tierra nos dé el alimento, como lo hace una madre. Por eso, sembrar es un acto sagrado (litúrgico) que exige primero pedir permiso y luego pedir perdón; hacer sacrificios y prestar colaboración con la tierra manteniendo la reciprocidad; ya que, si ella sufre para producir el maíz, nosotros debemos también sufrir por ella respetándola, cuidándola y defendiéndola contra toda agresión.

El Cielo indígena, nuestra utopía, es Xochitlalpan, la tierra de la flor, que es la verdadera tierra, o sea el lugar de la sabiduría, de la belleza, de la armonía; también es Tonacatlalpan, la tierra de nuestra carne y de nuestro sustento, esto es, lugar de la abundancia, del bienestar, del derecho a la vida para todos los hijos de la tierra. Por eso buscamos construir esta utopía desde aquí y ahora, a través de la verdadera ‘fraternidad’, a través de la defensa de la ‘comunidad’. Por esto en algunas regiones del Continente, a esta utopía le llaman ‘Tierra sin males’ (Guaraníes).

La perspectiva capitalista imperante, que mira la tierra y sus componentes sólo como medio de producción y por eso la explota degradándola con tec-nologías dañinas, se contrapone a la perspectiva indígena y a la perspectiva cristiana, porque está en contra de la vida. Sólo es posible la vida si respeta-mos y colaboramos con la Madre Tierra. Nosotros necesitamos de ella y ella necesita de nosotros; además, ella tiene derechos que deben ser reconocidos y respetados por todas y todos.

Volver a la relación armónica con la tierra y con todas sus hijas e hijos es condición indispensable para superar la crisis actual. La austeridad indígena en el uso y consumo de los bienes de la tierra es el único camino que podrá revertir la depredación y contaminación que se ha echado sobre el planeta, por causa de la explotación irracional, de la ambición de tener y del consumo voraz de los bienes de la creación, acaparados por unos cuantos.

También en este aspecto los indígenas tenemos, en los mitos y sabiduría ancestral de los pueblos, semillas de un mundo nuevo y justo, donde la vida sea posible en paz y armonía, y donde el ideal de Cristo también se pueda hacer realidad: ‘Yo vine para que tengan vida y la tengan en abundancia’ (Jn 10,10).

Cuando en el área mesoamericana hablamos de ‘casa’, (de donde viene el término ‘ecología’), los indígenas nos referimos a la realidad material de la construcción donde habitamos, pero de inmediato nuestra mente se remon-ta a la categoría de casa grande donde habita la comunidad, donde vive el pueblo, y en casa aún mayor, la tierra, donde existimos como humanidad. Es decir que nos referimos al planeta tierra y al universo, que es la verdadera


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casa de todas y de todos. Esto indica de qué manera la temática y la preo-cupación ecológica no nos llega por la actual crisis del medio ambiente, que obliga a los más lúcidos de la sociedad occidental a pensar mejor las cosas, sino que forma parte integrante de nuestra perspectiva ancestral, que ha sido agredida en el encuentro con la sociedad colonial y ahora está atacada más violentamente por causa de la crisis.

Los indios de este continente no nos sentimos escoria o basura. Nosotros somos hijas e hijos del cielo, de la nube o de la lluvia. Somos el fruto de la relación de amor de nuestro Padre el Sol y de nuestra Madre la Tierra.

Los mayas consideran que todos tenemos una misión al nacer y tenemos que buscar cuál es nuestro lugar en el universo. En la medida que ayudamos a mantener y recrear la armonía personal, social y cósmica, cumplimos con nuestra misión de colaboradoras y colaboradores de Dios.

Lamentablemente estos valores están siendo abandonados por hermanos indígenas a causa de la migración o influenciados por la educación alienante y por los medios de comunicación social. Pero hoy tenemos que recuperar esos valores, fortalecerlos y ofrecernos a los demás miembros de la sociedad y de la Iglesia para construir juntos el mundo nuevo que queremos…

El P. Nicanor Sarmiento Tupayupanqui, indígena peruano, expresa: Los modelos actuales de desarrollo industrial basados en el lucro económico han creado el deterioro progresivo de la naturaleza. A tal punto, que algunas de sus consecuencias son irreversibles para las futuras generaciones, miles de especies de animales y plantas no serán conocidas más que fósiles de labo-ratorio.

¿Quiénes sufren sus inmediatos efectos? La gran mayoría de las empresas petroleras, madereras y mineras se encuentran en tierras indígenas. Estas empresas nos envenenan con los humos de sus fábricas, contaminan nuestros ríos y lagunas, talan nuestros árboles de manera irracional. Lo más injusto es que se llevan nuestros recursos naturales y económicos generando la pobreza en todos sus aspectos.

Según la visión cristiana, el universo es creación de Dios, es un don, un regalo para el hombre. Por eso la preocupación por la ecología forma parte de la misma raíz del cristianismo: la de preservar la integridad de la creación de Dios, confiada al hombre. Este principio bíblico y cristiano las comunida-des indígenas lo practicaron y practican hoy en día, por ello los indígenas se convierten en los maestros de las relaciones con la naturaleza. Si queremos un ambiente sano donde la naturaleza no es sólo objeto de explotación sino lugar de relaciones y de realizaciones humanas, tenemos que recurrir a los indígenas para aprender de su sabiduría milenaria y cósmica.

La preocupación ecológica ha sido y es parte de las reivindicaciones indí-genas, debido a que las relaciones indio-naturaleza tienen una dimensión integral: social, económica, política y religiosa. El lugar de la comunidad es un lugar sagrado donde se crea la vida.

Podemos afirmar sin lugar a equivocarnos, que la visión indígena de la naturaleza, del cosmos, es relacional. Para el indígena, la tierra es la


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Pachamama, es decir, el rostro femenino de Dios; en ella se cultiva y se cría la vida, es cuna de la cultura, el lugar donde se forja el hombre. El indígena se relaciona con la naturaleza como padre y madre dadores de vida, los demás seres vivientes llegan a ser los hermanos y las hermanas que cohabitan con el hombre.

Clodomiro Siller, hace notar que los indígenas o la sabiduría indígena son capaces de trascender de lo ecológico a lo teológico, de descubrir y encontrar la manifestación de Dios en la naturaleza y poder alabar a Dios a través de las criaturas: ‘Si esa experiencia la verbalizáramos hoy diríamos que el sol y las estrellas son la obra de Dios; que en los cometas, en el día y en la noche, en la fecundidad de la tierra, en la lluvia, en el buen temporal, en el trabajo agrícola, en la cosecha, en las nubes, en el viento, en la niebla, en el rayo, en el trueno, en las montañas; en los montes en los volcanes, en los grandes árboles, en los manantiales, en los ríos y en sus fuentes, en los lagos y lagu-nas y en los mares los indígenas ven la presencia y acción de Dios) ¿Cuánta gente del mundo moderno puede hacer esta experiencia teologal? Llegan sí a lo ecológico, pero no a lo teológico. Naturalmente que los indígenas no hablan así como lo estamos expresando; por decirlo de alguna manera, ellos ‘divini-zan’ las fuerzas de la naturaleza’.

Las mismas teologías indígenas se presentan como alternativas viables al deterioro ecológico. Nuestra relación íntima con la naturaleza, definida por: el respeto a la creación, mantener el orden de la naturaleza y restablecerlo, ponernos continuamente en equilibrio con Dios y su creación, y la interpre-tación de los fenómenos naturales. Es vivir la vida como una fiesta continua, celebrando el banquete y el compartir entre hijas e hijos de la Pachamama. Las teologías indígenas reducirían significativamente o erradicarían la devas-tación ecológica en el mundo de hoy.

El mundo indígena sin discurso pero con una praxis real, ha ido alcanzando alternativas, hasta que los ecologistas se fijaron como una alternativa ecológi-ca valida. Cazar, pero no para el comercio y cultivar la tierra para vivir, pero cuidando la tierra, entrando en reciprocidad con ella a través de tecnologías tradicionales que incluyen la dimensión simbólica religiosa, constituyen hoy en día en uno de los medios de sobrevivencia creativa para el presente y el futuro de la humanidad.

Los indígenas afirman que la preocupación por la ecología forma parte de su ser indígena; es decir antes de que surgieran los movimientos ecológicos, ellos eran conscientes y vivían en armonía con la naturaleza.

La cultura moderna, después de haber hecho una explotación indiscrimina-da de la naturaleza, a través de la tala de árboles, la contaminación de ríos y las explotaciones mineras, hoy pregona la ecología, que es un valor propio de los pueblos indígenas andinos y que tiene que ver con el equilibrio del hombre, con el Ser Creador, con los otros y con la naturaleza.

La ética ecológica debe asegurar el equilibrio indefinido entre la huma-nidad y la naturaleza. Debe proclamar los derechos ecológicos que deberían ser aceptados por todos los códigos del mundo. Ser regulada por las leyes


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nacionales e internacionales. El clamor de los movimientos ecologistas debe ser acogido como un clamor de toda la humanizad, porque habitamos un mundo finito.

La moral ecológica implica una actitud seria de responsabilidad individual y colectiva. La moral ecológica debe ser fundamentada bajo los siguientes principios:

Todo debe orientarse hacia el bienestar de ‘todo hombre y de todos los hombres’, en un ambiente de racionalidad, de respeto y fraternidad universal.

Las generaciones futuras tienen el derecho de recibir un mundo realmente habitable.

Los cristianos estamos llamados a promover la cultura de la vida, ‘ser amantes de la vida, de toda clase de vida, no portadores de muerte’.

Hemos de avanzar hacia un mundo de fraternidad, de solidaridad, de igualdad. El sol, el aire, el agua, la naturaleza entera es de todos por igual.

Para los cristianos es un reto dejar de justificar desde la Biblia, que el hombre tiene soberanía y poder absoluto sobre la naturaleza. El ideal indíge-na, por lo tanto, no es la dominación, sino más bien la complementariedad y la armonía. En esta visión, el objetivo de la vida es más cumplimiento que el progreso o la superación La visión indígena valora la relación tridimensional hombre-naturaleza-Dios. Dios se revela al indígena a través de la Naturaleza; por tanto, la relación del hombre con sus semejantes, como la relación del hombre con la naturaleza exigen comportamientos morales del individuo y de la comunidad.

Los cristianos de las diferentes culturas y de diferentes condiciones socia-les estamos llamados a preservar la integridad de la creación. Porque creemos en el Dios de la vida y valoramos el principio del bien común.

Los miembros de las diferentes culturas indígenas del continente de la esperanza estamos llamados iluminar con nuestra sabiduría milenaria los proyectos de desarrollo industrial y económico. Promoviendo el desarrollo sostenible, es decir, seguir produciendo, pero sin destruir de una manera irre-versible los recursos naturales. Buscar el equilibrio entre el crecimiento pobla-cional y el mejoramiento de la calidad de vida, conjugados con un modelo de desarrollo que preserve los recursos indispensables de la naturaleza: suelos, agua, atmósfera, flora y fauna.

Dejar de justificar desde la Biblia o las teologías cristianas el dominio del hombre sobre la creación. Porque la pachamama es el lugar de relaciones y realizaciones humanas, ella es sagrada, porque es dadora la vida. Que nuestra relación con el medio ambiente sea de respeto, de reciprocidad y de armonía.

Como hijos e hijas de Dios, miembros de las iglesias cristianas y discí-pulos del Señor Jesús, reafirmamos nuestra esperanza regada por la sangre de miles de indígenas mártires en que: ‘Los árboles den fruto, los ríos no se sequen, reverdezcan los cerros. Que en un nuevo amanecer, juntos todos los pueblos, dancemos la danza de la vida en plenitud, comamos y bebamos saboreando juntos lo que Dios Mama y Tata nos ofrece’. Una vez más reafir-


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mamos nuestra fe, en el hombre nuevo revestido de Jesucristo, en los cielos nuevos y la tierra nueva para todos”11.

Hasta aquí el texto que deseo resaltar de la conferencia presentada por Mons. Felipe Arizmendi, en Buenos Aires, Argentina, en 2010.

Un comentario final

La perspectiva capitalista que impera en el mundo mira la tierra y sus componentes sólo como medio de producción y por eso la explota degradándola con tecnologías dañinas. Ese modo de proceder se contra-pone a la perspectiva indígena y al evangelio cristiano, porque está en contra de la vida. Sólo es posible la vida si respetamos y colaboramos con la Madre Tierra. Nosotros necesitamos de ella y ella necesita de nosotros; además, ella tiene derechos antecedentes a los humanos que deben ser reconocidos y respetados por todas y todos.

Volver a la relación armónica con la tierra y con todas sus hijas e hijos, como plantean los pueblos indígenas, es condición indispensable para superar la crisis actual. La austeridad de vida indígena en el uso y consumo de los bienes de la tierra es el único camino que podrá revertir la depredación y contaminación que se ha echado sobre el planeta, por causa de la explotación irracional, de la ambición de tener y del consumo voraz de los bienes de la creación, acaparados por unos cuantos.

Los indígenas tenemos, en los mitos y sabiduría ancestral de nues-tros pueblos, semillas de un mundo nuevo y justo, donde la vida sea posi-ble en paz y armonía (tal como se expresa en el “Suma Kausay” o Buen Vivir), y donde el ideal de Cristo también se pueda hacer realidad: “Yo vine para que tengan vida y la tengan en abundancia” ( Jn 10,10). Según los zapotecas los humanos somos yú (polvo) que vive en layú (tierra, territorio) para transformarla en guidxilayú, es decir, en planeta tierra, digna casa de la humanidad entera.

En ese sentido, cuando los indígenas de hoy leemos las palabras del Papa Francisco en la encíclica Laudato Si’, descubrimos con gozo el talante indígena en su magisterio pontificio. Por eso nos sentimos con-tentos de que la Iglesia institucionalmente se una a la lucha ancestral de nuestros pueblos para que prevalezca la vida en el planeta. Y con

11 El texto completo de la ponencia presentada por Mons. Arizmendi puede ser leída en Mercabá, Biblioteca Católica Digital, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://www.mercaba.org/GET/enciclopedia_ecologia.htm


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el Papa Francisco, reiteramos a los demás hermanos en la humanidad: “necesitamos una conversión que nos una a todos, porque el desafío ambiental que vivimos, y sus raíces humanas, nos interesan y nos impac-tan a todos…Las actitudes que obstruyen los caminos de solución, aún entre los creyentes, van de la negación del problema a la indiferencia, la resignación cómoda o la confianza ciega en las soluciones técnicas. Necesitamos una solidaridad universal nueva” (§14).

Aún con las limitaciones e incoherencias que también se dan entre los indígenas actuales –y también se dan en la Iglesia-- para llevar a la práctica esta perspectiva ecológica radical, es importante reconocer que la población nativa seguirá siendo un referente importante en la con-creción de proyectos y programas que echen abajo la perspectiva domi-nante de quienes por ambición del dinero son capaces de llevarnos a la catástrofe ecológica que arruinaría para siempre las posibilidades de vida nuestra y de la Madre Tierra.

Las sociedades modernas apenas se van asomando ahora a la valo-ración crítica de la relación que han establecido con la tierra y sus bienes naturales y ante los hechos consumados buscan cómo remediar el mal que han causado, después de haber agredido y roto de manera irrespon-sable la base que sustenta la vida en el planeta. En cambio, los pueblos ancestrales, que muchos consideraban primitivos o salvajes, ya entendían y vivían desde antiguo la convivencia armónica con la naturaleza.

¡Enhorabuena, pues la palabra del Papa Francisco viene a sumarse y a dar mayor fuerza a la lucha tan antigua de los pueblos originarios por la recuperación de la armonía humana con La Madre Tierra!


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Trustful Earth and Gospel Claims:An approach from the Andean Region

Diego IRARRÁZAVAL

Chile

In the midst of contemporary waves of conflict, bonds among people and with the environment have become wonderful treasures.1 A widespread vulnerability demands interaction among those who are fra-gile and wish to surivive. All of nature is weeping, and so are billions of fellow humans. In the Americas, small and powerful sparks of hope are offered by autochthonous people. Their relationship to life, nurtured by the symbol of Mother Earth, is Good News for humanity. Moreover, Christian guidelines, particularly through Pope Francis’ prophetic Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’,2 allow to open new theological dimensions.

In secular terms, is there viable hope in a world crucified by con-flicts of all kinds? Structural violence, and naive visions of unlimited progress, are huge obstacles against hope. On the other hand, scientific and technological achievements imply possibilities of being more human.

What happens in people´s lives? Development of trust happens in daily experience, in anonymous solidarity, in political transformation from the grass roots up to global institutions (for example in World Social Forums, or in networks for a decent cultural and physical environments). There are many signs of an unconditional thrust towards life, and a healthy modern critique of dehumanization. These confront devastating inequality and isolation in contemporary existence. Surveys throughout the world show dissatisfaction with this reality, and also show how people

1 From the outset, I wish to present an apology to English speaking readers for my limited skills in this language.

2 Pope Francis, Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’ of the Holy Father Francis On Care for Our Common Home, 24 May 2015, Vatican City, Online edition, accessed July 10, 2016, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals.

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prioritize study and employment, family and mutual support, personal efforts to advance in life.3 Having all of this in mind, what claims to trust and hope may be drawn from the Gospel?

This essay deals with how indigenous peoples experience Earth, and with emerging South American eco-theologies, prompted by Pope Francis Laudato Si’. There are mutual challenges between peoples of the earth and contemporary evangelical proposals, such as the ones espou-sed by the encyclical. We are dealing with autochthonous Mother-Earth and with what is also called Sister-Earth (Francis of Assisi). These treasu-res of wisdom imply an ethics and spirituality of the Earth.

Secular and spiritual persons join hands. In today’s world there are plenty of secular initiatives to take care of the environment, and Christian communities feel a rebirth of eco-spiritual-theology. These proposals have crucial theoretical and practical implications for what Laudato Si’ calls our “Common Home.” What has been developing is not only concern for the environment. There are also challenging reflections, prophetic propo-sals, and evangelical claims.

Reverence and trust within the Earth

It continues to be true that indigenous communities have plenty of bonds with the environment and that they see themselves as “peoples of the earth”. However, these persons are objects of violence due to external entities and also due to internal shortcomings. Global structures and also inner lack of faith in their sources of life (and subordination to ruling groups and symbols) do not allow a naïve vision of indigenous people. On a daily basis they are confronted, discriminated, and partially destro-yed. It is not a matter of evil or wholeness, an either/or. Rather, they have a dialectical interaction with dangerous entities. Due to autochthonous relationships with the Earth, there is resistence to evil, and many signs of creative dignity.

Basic food and its symbolic value are means of freedom from hun-ger and alienation. For example, in middle and southern parts of the con-tinent, Mayan corn, Andean potatoes, and Guaraní mandioca are everyday

3 People in Latin America survive in the midst of deep contradictions, expectations, and frustrations. During recent decades of political and economic corruption, they have given priority to family networks, decreased trust in other persons, isolation, and association through modern webs, among others. See the bi-annual reports issued by the United Nations Human Development Program at www.cl.undp.org/content/chile, and the annual surveys by Latinobarómetro, Opinión Pública Latinoamericana at www.latinobarometro.org/latContents.jsp

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forms of nourishment, struggle to survive, and sources of wisdom. They can be considered “sacramental signs” of trust in Mother Earth. All of this happens in the midst of insufficient and unhealthy consumption of food.

People in Central America, enlightened by autochthonous tradi-tions,4 acknowledge corn as the origin of humanity and as transcental nourishment. In the sacred Mayan narrative, the Book of Counseling, Pop Vuh (in Mayan language), Libro del Consejo (in Spanish), ancestors came to existence due to daily type of food: “corn became part of the flesh of our ancestors, of the four first human beings.”5 This mythical language refers to humankind’s beginning (and to its future). But the present is full of suffering and contradictions. In a workshop, Mayan participants sadly saw, during a workshop, how “market forces have transformed not only culture but also spirituality…many produce corn, sell it cheaply, and later have to buy expensive corn meal.”6 So, trust in the gift of life is daily jeopardized.

In traditional Andean regions, daily food includes potato, rice, beans, meat, and vegetables. Potato has a leading role in common people’s diet and also in ritual. In the highlands of Bolivia and Peru, for example, a moving narrative:

a “mother speaks tenderly with potatoes, saying: Mama Ispalla (indige-nous sacred name for potato) do not fall asleep, do not be destroyed by frost or hail, nor be taken by thieves. Don’t allow the sun to hinder your growth. Quickly put on your clothing so as to be strong, since we wish that you give abundant crop so as to fill our home”; Mama Ispalla is also ritually told: “do not abandon us, your sons and daughters, we wish to live with plenty of food… we heartfully thank you…We are happy being together with you.”7

With Andean communities I have often given thanks in my heart as all sit in a circle and we enjoy potatoes cooked within the earth (accor-ding to an ancient autochthonous form of communal sharing).

4 See for example, the main Pre-Spanish conquest Mayan tradition in Popol-Vuh: Las antiguas historias del Quiché (México: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1976), particularly its narrative of humankind born from corn, pp. 103-104.

5 “la formación de nuestra primera madre y padre; de maiz amarillo y de maiz blanco se hizo su carne…los cuatro seres humanos que fueron creados,” Popol-Vuh, 104.

6 Solidaridad y Comisionato Central Misionero, Tierra y Espiritualidad Maya: II Encuentro Taller sobre Cultura y Espiritualidad Maya (Guatemala: Voces del Tiempo, 2000), 157, 159.

7 Vicenta Mamani, Ritos espirituales y prácticas comunitarias del Aymara, (La Paz, Bolivia: Creart, 2002), 148, 152. This is my translation from Spanish. See also Victor Bascopé, Espiritualidad originaria en el Pacha Andino (Cochabamba: Verbo Divino, 2008); Vicenta Mamani, Calixto Quispe, Martín Mamani, et al., Pacha. “Awatirinakasa” Nuestras autoridades (Cochabamba: Verbo Divino, 2009).

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However, global cultural-economic conditions are pushing many persons to sell their land, and to leave aside ritual contact with its crops. In the midst of this drama, a leading Andean theologian reminds us: “uraqik janiw isikiti alxañataki. La tierra no es ropa para ser vendida” (¡Earth is not cloth to be sold!).8 Unfortunately, due to poverty and crisis in values, land loses the meaning as a source of life, and it is often sold. Most young people move into the cities; their concerns and values are transformed.

In urban contexts, Andean earth-rituals of blessing and thanksgi-ving take new forms, particularly during Carnival, Lent and Holy Week, as well as rituals with the dead in November (and throughout the year). In these new contexts, there is widespread phenomena that demonstrate individualistic types of belief and ritual, ambivalence towards creation, and an instrumental attitude towards nature. Nevertheless, research on urban communities is not pessimistic; in areas of Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador, groups of migrants continue to show links to the earth and its social components. Moreover, as discussed later in this essay, Andean Christian ethics, and, in particular, devotions to Mary, do include symbols of intimacy with the earth and of responsibility for its wellbeing.

As many who have not been born in indigenous contexts (but are welcomed in them) I can give witness to being led into the mystery of Mother Earth. This implies (at least for me) sincere thanksgiving for com-mon people who teach the most essential dimensions of existence. One is taught to be a guest and not an owner of nature. It becomes evident that monistic or dualistic patterns, and that subtle or explicit kinds of spiritualism, are meaningless for indigenous communities. Andean people (and one who joins them) are connected to earthly sacredness, to concre-te entities full of Life.

Moreover, one is able to be more contemplative towards the incar-nate God in all of creation. This is not pantheism; objects and individuals are not deities.9 Rather, contemplation opens hearts and minds to the gift of life within all entitites. There is greater trust in Love that embra-

8 Domingo Llanque, La cultura aymara (Lima: Tarea, 1990), 54. I wish to express my deepest gratitude to Fr. Domingo, who led me into andean civilization and theology. See also, Modesto Mamani, “La naturaleza: Nuestra casa común,” in Teologia Andina: El tejido diverso de la fe, ed. Josef Estermann, Vol. II (La Paz, Bolivia: Plural Editores, 2006), 251-270.

9 When authocthonous cultures are judged in terms of pantheism, animism, inmanent polytheism, a philosophical misunderstanding also shows Christian difficulty with other spiritual systems; ethnocentric language often lies beneath doctrinal judgements.


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ces the universe and all peoples. Faith in the Incarnation has awesome implications. Transcendence is earthly; the human condition is more than human; the paschal mystery transforms the universe.

Relationships with Mother-Earth include all dimensions of exis-tence, taking care of living entities, and rituals throughout the year. She is source of life; she is not a natural absolute nor is she addressed as a goddess. During my years among Christian Andean people I am not hearing an either/or: God or “Pachamama” (Mother-Earth). She, instead of being seen as omnipotent Being, is a source of relationships and of unlimited Life. Something similar may be said of the Trinity, as divine relationships.

In an urban área of Bolivia, A. Agreda says: “divine energy flows, grows and nourishes life not only of persons but also of eco-systems.”10 Not only in rural contexts, also city people often say: I live because of “Pachamama.” To her are adressed spontaneous offerings of drink (“ch’alla,” in local language) and formal rituals of thanksgiving and peti-tions for daily needs.

As is well known, relationships with Mother-Earth have a close link with devotions to feminine Christian icons, and particularly with Mary. Let us first of all acknowledge a widespread witness of faith to both God and the Virgin Mary.11 This is a sign that people’s faith draws away from androcentrism. Moreover, interreligious aspects come to the forefront when Mary and Mother-Earth share elements of trust and of ritual. It seems to me that a second key for understanding these rich interactions are that reverence for Earth has some ten-thousand years (of cultures in what we now call America), and Marian rituals (usually with forms of syncretism) has some five-hundred years. Thus the features of Marian

10 Alcira Agreda quoted by Judith Ress, Lluvia para florecer (Santiago, Chile: Conspirando, 2002), 183. See also Domingo Llanque Chana, Vida y Teología Andina (Cuzco: Instituto de Estudios Aymaras, 2004), 83-85.

11 See Rubén Vargas Ugarte, Historia del culto de María en Iberoamérica y de sus imágenes y santuarios más celebrados (Buenos Aires: Huarpes, 1947); Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, Nuestra Señora de América (Bogota: Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano, 1988); Ivone Gebara, Teologia ecofemi-nista (São Paulo: Olho d’Agua, 1997), 115-130; Carlos Alberto Steil, Cecília Loreto Mariz, and Misia Lins Reesink, ed., Maria entre os vivos. Reflexões teóricas e etnografias sobre aparições marianas no Brasil (Porto Alegre: Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, 2003); Verónica Cordero, ed., Vírgenes y diosas en América Latina (Montevideo: Doble Clic, 2004); Sonia Montecino, Madres y Huachos: Alegorías del mestizaje chileno (Santiago: Catalonia, 2007); Maria del Pilar Silveira, Mariologia Popular Latinaomericana (Caracas: Universidad Católica Andrés Bello, 2013).


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devotion arise out of cosmic and plural traditions. A third key: sacred acti-vity throughout the Americas is mostly in hands of women healers and leaders (indigenous, Afroamericans, Mestizo). So imagery of the divine is sustained by feminine everyday behavior.

Concerning mutual contacts between cosmic forces and Christian experience, images and rituals to Mary are conditioned by autochthonous music, dancing, offering of agricultural and economic goods. This is why it is said that Mary is “Pachamamized.”12 Moreover, faith in the mother of God has strengthened the human features of nature, and personal dimensions of spirituality, among indigenous modern citizens. Christian communities and their leadership should acknowledge a transcendental factor: “people of the earth” are the starting point and custodians of rituals, such as what happens with náhuatl Tonantzin-Guadalupe, and with guaraní Caacupé-Mary.

In the case of Tupi-guaraní symbolic behavior, there are also tre-asures of wisdom. One of its main food, mandioca, implies an unders-tanding of land, body, transcendence. Here I draw upon L. Boff’s unders-tanding of Amazonic mythic narratives.13 Mandi, a child beloved by all her tribe, dies and is buried in the plot of land of her grandfather who unceasingly wept there. A plant grew, and its roots are what Brazilians eat (mandioca), considering it the body of Mandi. The best of humanity becomes food for all. This certainly has its own cultural and spiritual meanings. It also has eucharistic implications.

Unfortunately, throughout the world and within Andean regions, what have become most important are rituals that represent and legiti-mize modern progress. Secular goals have been wrapped up by sacred dimensions. People’s hearts and minds are clogged by desire and behavior concerning material and cultural consumption in commercial and musical festivities, supermarkets, mass media, and entertainment industry. These phenomena undermine a healthy being in the world. So, together with a strengthening of autochthonous wisdom and action, it is also most important to confront secular absolutes.

12 See Diego Irarrázabal, “Mutación en la identidad andina: Ritos y concepciones de la divinidad,” Allpanchis 31 (1988): 11-84.

13 Leonardo Boff, O casamento entre o cèu e a terra. Contos dos povos indígenas do Brasil (Rio de Janeiro: Mardeideias, 2014), 18-20. My apology for summari-zing a marvelous myth. See also Pierre Clastres, La palabra luminosa. Mitos y cuentos sagrados de los guaranís (Buenos Aires: Editorial del Sol, 1993); www.portalguarani.com narrative about “mandioca.”


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In indigenous regions, foreign persons often talk about native worship of nature and of pantheism. But, the major problems are rather how young (and older) generations see science and technology as expla-nations and solutions to everything. Unfortunately, such absolutes go hand in hand with exploitation of the environment, with inequality due to bad distribution of resources, with the abuse of tourism that places autochthonous communities as objects of consumption. Therefore, a good dialogue between foreigners and “peoples of the earth” includes a critique of modern sacralization. Moreover, spirituality is a key to con-temporary problems. The global threat to human and natural well-being is confronted by autochthonous spiritualities.

Earthly praise and fellowship with Christ

Each responsible involvement with the environment has transcen-dental meaning. As humans we may interact with other entities (instead of having them as objects at our disposal), and thus bonds of cosmic fellowship are enhanced. Due to fascinating Andean experience and wisdom with the Earth, it is easier to explore elements of our Christian tradition. The journeys of faith combine praise, praxis, and a response to eco-spiritual demands.

Recently, human, biblical, and ecclesial resources have been com-municated to the world through the outstanding encyclical Laudato Si’ by Pope Francis. Its final paragraphs may be considered theological keys to this remarkable document. They lead to a realistic and mega-ecumenical prayer, since we are part of a humanity and an environment which under-go deep crisis (chapters 1 and 3), and all of us gratefully wish to take care of a Common Home. Later, there is a deeply evangelical and Trinitarian prayer, since we witness and praise God’s love for all beings in the earth. Such attitudes flow from a “gospel of creation” (see the outstanding chap-ter 2). This leads to an outline of integral ecology and carefully explained challenges of today (chapters 4 and 1 of the encyclical). Compassion with the earth and solidarity with the poor sustain and promote action and spirituality (chapters 5 and 6). All of this leads to two kinds of prayer: a concern “for our earth” and praise and worship “with creation” (§246).14

At the end of Laudato Si’, a first prayer is a trustful commitment: “You embrace with your tenderness all that exists. Pour out upon us the power of your love that we may protect life and beauty… O God of the



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poor, help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth so pre-cious in your eyes” (§246). Love of all entities implies struggling for their dignity. A second type of prayer is also praise to the Lord, that implies human responsibility:

“Father, we praise you with all your creatures. They came forth from your all-powerful hand; they are yours, filled with your presence and your tender love…O Lord, seize us with your power and light, help us to protect all life, to prepare for a better future, for the coming of your Kingdom of justice, peace, love and beauty. Praise be to you! (§246).

Humanityis called to take care of a lovable world, of which we are not owners. Therefore, a Christian concern towards all of creation inclu-des praise and meaningful solidarity.

These attitudes have been nourished by a precious spiritual herita-ge. A major landmark has been Francis of Assisi, who in 1225 produced his “Canticle of the Creatures.”15 Its content is one of cosmic and evan-gelical worship. In this brief Canticle, “praise My Lord” is said 10 times. A lovable God:

“Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Mother Earth, who sustains us and governs us and who produces varied fruits with colored flowers and herbs. Praised be You, my Lord, through those who give pardon for Your love, and bear infirmity and tribulation. Blessed are those who endure in peace.”16

The last part of the Canticle echoes the Beatitudes. All entities of the universe are in fellowship with us: brother sun, sister water, sister death, and others. In the thirteenth century, the prophet of Assisi calls earth “sister-mother.” What is remarkable is the connection between vene-ration of the Earth and the Good News of the living Christ. Such connec-tion signals an earthly movement towards the fullness of the Kingdom of peace and justice. An evangelical fellowship seals bonds with the envi-ronment, with a fertile sister-mother earth.

All of this is countercultural, because modern civilization is anthro-pocentric. Technology and science daily reinforce such a unilateral para-digm. However, the Gospel spirituality is that humans are care-givers and not owners of the world. Laudato Si’ is clearly countercultural towards the anthropocentric and technocratic paradigm (§15-121). Such a realistic and honest critique opens the door towards good proposals; the encycli-

15 Written in Assisi when Francis was almost blind, before his death in 1226. See Canticle of the Creatures, in Francis of Assisi: Early Documents, Vol. I, ed. Regis J. Armstrong, J.A. Wayne Hellmann, and William J. Short (New York: New City Publications, 1999), 113-114.

16 Canticle of the Creatures, Ibid.


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cal carefully unravels a wholistic and integral ecology (§137-162). It covers economic, cultural, daily concerns, the common good, and global justice. It is immanent and transcendent. It implies a “cultural revolution” (§114). It listens to both the “cry of the earth” and the “cry of the poor” in today’s world (§49, 53).

In recent years, and particularly since the publication of Laudato Si’, theoretical-practical proposals are being shared throughout the world. A forerunner has been L. Boff, with his systematic work with books (such as Ecología: Grito de la tierra, grito de los pobres) and also with his practical essays addressed to believers and people of good will, as is the case of a plan to “take care of the Earth.”17 In this program Boff stresses changes in everyday experience, such as being critical of our failures and contradictions and being compassionate, recycling garbage, taking care of trees, producing beauty in our neighborhoods, having debates over envi-ronmental issues, fostering informal dialogue with other persons. Boff also draws upon what famous Padre Cicero of northern Brazil said at the beginning of the twentieth century regarding saving rain water or plan-ting a tree each day, and he ends with a conviction: Life has to prevail.

Various other insightful proposals for action are being developed around the world in parishes and religious communities to advance strategies by which people learn to recycle, share goods without use of money, gardening, ecological program in each church, prayer and cele-bration of creation, ethical standards in finance and economy, and other similar actions. Throughout today’s world, many proposals move forward in wholistic terms, and are concrete programs in an evangelical respon-sibility for creation.

It may also be emphasized that the relevance of Christ today, through the Spirit of life, is being admired and understood in new ways. It is good to remember that following Jesus of Nazareth and being faithful to his Spirit does not happen only in subjective terms, since it also demands our daily eco-human responsibilities. Unfortunately, today many persons continue to be conditioned by dualistic frameworks, as if salvation belonged to the soul and the earth were only a stage for divine miracles. Nature and history are in the hands of God, who places human beings as administrators of things and in charge of giving birth to new life. Therefore, Jesus Christ may not be reduced to religious realms nor

17 See Leonardo Boff, Ecología: Grito de la tierra, grito de los pobres (Madrid: Trotta, 1996), and publications on his web site, accessed as of July 30, 2016, http://leonardoboff.com/site-eng/lboff.htm


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to individual interests and feelings. Since Jesus, son of God, is a cosmic Christ meaningful to all ages and to all peoples, it makes no sense to place the world and ecological concerns on one side, and to place the history of salvation on another side. An integral ecology, as developed by Pope Francis in Laudato Si’, invites all to a spirituality rooted in historical responsibilities.

Not only because of the encyclical, but also due to people’s wisdom and ecological solidarity, in many regions of the world a renewed unders-tanding of Jesus Christ is taking place. Fellowship with the Lord implies bonds with the poor of the earth and with the natural environment that he deeply loved. Discipleship implies receiving and sharing with others the prophetic beatitudes that invite all created entities into the Kingdom.

These Christian messages are most meaningful for autochthonous peoples in the Americas and elsewhere. They are a source of hope both for the human condition and for spiritual growth. These peoples were told during centuries that their relationship with nature had elements of paganism and of idolatry. Later they were taught that they had to accept, according to divine plans, their material scarcity, daily suffering, their being merely servants and workers, and also carry out manipulation of nature for the sake of progress. Fortunately, those unjust and dehumani-zing strategies have been replaced by modern acknowledgment of human rights and respect for the environment. Moreover, spiritual growth has been taking place together with renewal within institutions of the Church and among communities. These entities have helped common people to trust God’s creation, to love and take care of the environment, to be com-passionate and in solidarity with the poor, as Jesus was according to the Gospel, and as the Church is called to be.

What deeply moves people’s faith today is the growing awareness of a radically human Lord and also an authentic listening to the Spirit and its signs today. This becomes a beautiful experience, as we understand the mystery of incarnation in human history and in concrete circumstances. For example, the way Jesus healed people, confronted social inequality, and praised the goodness of all kinds of entities; and what all of this may be carried out today. Further examples are his unrestricted contact with the downtrodden and marginalized, and in their midst, his activities with bread, water, earth and so many other elements of creation. His parables are full of earthly and bodily images; his miracles are also concrete and liberating. Likewise, as Church, we are called to follow in his footsteps.

As is well known, the main focus of Jesus has been the Father´s Kingdom that benefits the lowly. Persons whose eyes today are opened by the Word of God, are able to see human solidarity and celebrations


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as signs of such a Kingdom. What is important is how with Jesus´ Spirit the community continues to proclaim the earthly and socially subversive meaning of the Kingdom. Also crucial is the eucharistic breaking of the bread until the Kingdom comes. In a few words, Jesus has been -and continues to be through his Spirit- bread of life and a savior in and for the earth.

Briefly we may recall key texts. Fellowship with Christ happens in everyday existence and has cosmic dimensions. “Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom all things are and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things are and through whom we exist” (1 Cor 8:6). Moreover, all of creation undergoes the experience of coming to life: “We know that all creation is groaning in labor pains even until now; and not only that, but we ourselves, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, we also groan within ourselves as we wait for adop-tion, the redemption of our bodies” (Rom 8: 22-23). Humanity is called to fellowship with “pan to pleroma,” since “all things were created through and for him” (Col 1:16). Of course other biblical resources are also mea-ningful.

In conclusión, let me emphasize the major themes of this essay. Andean and other indigenous peoples, with their ecological understan-dings and praxis, are indirectly or explicitly confronting anthropocentric and technocratic absolutes in today’s world. This implies a reconstruction of Latin American identities and historical goals. In these contexts, the beautiful legacy of Francis of Assisi and now the prophetic encyclical Laudato Si’ are renewing our bonds with Sister-Mother-Earth.

We may ask ourselves: how are we embraced by the environment, even when we use secular language? How do we interact as members of a lovable creation using an evangelical language? This happens not due to magic nor due to dualistic patterns, but rather God’s creation is respected in so far as we take care of the Common Home. It happens when persons do not fall into traps nor enter into cages. In other words, when we avoid exploitation of nature and when we disagree with consumption of things and persons. Ecological demands are present through sacred entities in authocthonous spiritualities, and mainly through the Lord who becomes poor, is crucified and is risen. The “little ones” of the earth show us how to be hosts in God’s creation.

People rediscover in themselves and through the Christian heritage how to trust a life-giving Earth. Moreover, when there is participation in communities and active membership in the people of God, we ack-nowledge the Gospel claims to freedom and to fellowship with Christ. He belongs to what happens in our midst and what is transcendent, here


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and beyond. The incarnate Son of God belongs to this earth and is Risen for eternity. He brings forth the Kingdom for the lowly and all who hope for fullness of life. Thus, to have trust on Mother-Earth goes hand in hand with an evangelical Discipleship. This happens in the midst of worldly lights and darkness, of liberating energies, and of dark traps and cages.

Each situation has specific dangers and opportunities. Hopefully from a particular situation--for example the Andean, or the Amazonic, or the urban context--we can interact with different resources that are cha-llenging. This happens in the case of Christian prophetic statements such as Laudado SI’. Throughout this essay the focus has been on Andean communities and a few other Latinamerican situations that become open to Gospel claims. We have underlined authocthonous eco-human-spiritual resources.

A personal word for you who are kindly reading this essay. Each person benefits from specific experience and wisdom. One may admire how others trust the Earth and how communities walk on the footsteps of Jesus, light of the world. Hopefully each person and society has healthy connections with earthly-transcendent entities. This leads us away from contemporary traps that offer unreal happiness. Rather, humanity res-ponds to demands of ecological integrity, and may listen to evangelical claims that allow survival of sister-mother Earth.


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African Perspective on Environment.

A wholistic approach to lifeAdam K. arap Chepkwony

Kenya

There is no time in history when environmental issues have been of great concern in Africa than now. From time immemorial Africans have relied on weather for human and of other animals’ survival both domestic and wild. As sure as the sun will rise tomorrow, exactly twelve hours later, Africans have depended on seasons to plant their crops, harvest, plan for festivals and ceremonies to mark what each year has brought to fruition.

Such precise predictions are no longer possible due to weather patterns that have gone wild due to global climate change. In the part of the world where I live, the months of November to March have always been considered dry period with brief short rains in December. This year however, it has not been the same, instead the period rained throughout putting everybody at an awkward position. This situation is made worse since the month of March is supposed to be the planting season. And as I write this paper, farmers are wondering whether it is going to rain as usual or the rains will be prolonged given that it has been raining and if so for how long.

For the first time, it is clear to many people in Kenya what the fuss about climate change is all about. Indeed, they now understand the conflict the government has been having with people who reside in Mau Forest for a long time. Mau Forest is the water catchment area that provi-de water to Lake Victoria and onward to the Mediterranean Sea through River Nile. With the changing patterns of weather, the message has finally hit home, as people see the diminishing waters in the rivers, dams and water holes; the dying animals due to heavy rains or/and drought and threatening famine.

In this paper, I will discuss how people from African traditions perceive their environment. I will propose that adherence to their ideas is

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one way Africans can participate and contribute to the efforts of making a mark in the global climate change disaster. In a foreword to a book entit-led Environment, P. Raven recommends that problems of climate change and its effects on environment are issues that call for consorted efforts. He observes that the book will assist individuals and communities to find solutions to issues affecting the environment today. He writes:

We hope that it (the book) will be useful to you as you develop your own pathways, and we count on your determination and willingness to make a difference in your own ways. As never before, we need one another’s abilities, expressed fully, to secure our common future on the best way possible.1

This is one way the Africans can contribute in an effort to control the climate change menace.

African worldview and the environment

Like all the peoples of the world, Africans has gone through chan-ges that have slowly shaded their traditional ways and have adopted the modern life. Part of this changes have unfortunately involved the destruction of forests, pollution, destruction of various species; of ani-mals, plants, fishes. This have contributed significantly air pollution and eventually the destruction of the ozone shields. This new development among the Africans is contrary to their worldview which is friendly and supports the environment and its conservation. In spite of modernity, there are many African peoples who continue to follow their traditions that encourage human coexistence with the rest of the creation. This paper explores how Africans perceive their environment and how, in a small way, they can contribute their cultural knowledge and practice to conserve the environment based on their worldview.

The African people believe in a physical and a spiritual worldview. This worldview is a system of beliefs that provides people with a mecha-nism to understand the environment in which they live and to explain everyday events and occurrences. These constitute the beliefs, values and attitudes learned by each individual from the time they are born to the time they die. It is these culturally influenced values that provide the mechanisms that control how one understands what happens to them, their community and the environment in which they live in general.

An African worldview thus looks at the entire universe and how each aspect is related to each other. The universe that is under the control of the Supreme Being is inhabited by divinities, ancestral spirits, human

1 Peter H. Raven, “Foreword,” in Environment, ed. Peter H. Raven, Linda R. Berg, and George B. Johnson (Philadelphia: Saunders College Publishing, 1998), vi.

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beings, and other spiritual beings, animate and inanimate things in that hierarchy. The worldview is a three-tiered view of reality. In the upper level is the Supreme Being who created, sustains and controls the entire universe. The lower level is that of human beings and their communities, who are expected to be obedient to the Supreme Being and to maintain harmony with all other created things in the universe.

The middle level is the vibrant spirit world that connects the acti-vities in the physical world with the spiritual world. Among these spirits are the divinities and the ancestral spirits who influence everyday life in their functions as mediators between the living and the Supreme Being. The earth and the sky spirits assist all living things to control nature in favor of life in the universe. These spirits are concerned and ready to protect and replenish the environment all the time. The spirits are also used by the Supreme Being to reward, warn or punish humans when they break the accepted moral code and in particular when they destroy the environment. We shall discuss the role of the Supreme Being, human beings, and the spirit as they interact in a human environment and indeed the entire universe.

The Supreme Being in African Spirituality

African people believe in the existence of a Supreme Being. Without any exception, all African societies believe in one Supreme Being who created the world and all that is in it. The evidence that African people believe in one supreme God is found in African prayers, songs, and myths among others sources.2

Apart from creating the world, the Supreme Being sustains the creation, provides and protects the entire creation. The Supreme Being owns everything, rules over the universe and is the source of life and reality. The Supreme Being cares for all the creation and makes sure that righteous and justice is upheld. As the creator, each African community has their unique myths of how the Supreme Being created the world.3 Since African people are made up of different ethnic communities, each with its own language, beliefs and living in different and unique environ-ments, the Supreme Being is known to each of these societies by name in their own different languages. There are therefore many names to des-cribe the same Supreme Being according to each community.4

2 Kipkoeech Araap Sambu, The Kalenjin People’s Egypt Origin Legend Revisited: Was Isis Asis? (Nairobi: Longhorn Publishers, 2007).

3 John S. Mbiti, Introduction to African Religion (London: Heinemann, 1975), 4.4 Mbiti, Introduction, 42-43.

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Human Beings and the Environment

The role of human beings in African religion is very important. According to African spirituality, humanity takes the center place in the universe. In this position, human beings define the entire universe and its creator from a human perspective. This conception is a logical conclu-sion given that all the Supreme Being’s actions and those of other spiri-tual beings are generally directed towards the well-being of the human person. This does not imply dominance but rather suggests that human beings see the rest of the creation as “the friend, the beneficiary, and the users.”5

In this position, human beings look for ways to benefit from the universe to their advantage. To manage this appropriately without disturbing the cosmic harmony, there are a number of specialists who serve as links between human beings with their fellow human beings, the Supreme Being, the divinities, the ancestors and spirits.6 These specialists are found in every society and in each locality and are both men and women. They are God-fearing individuals who are blessed with knowledge, talents, and skills to decipher the mysteries surrounding human beings. In turn, they render their services to people for a modest gift, normally regulated by the community to avoid exploitation. These specialists are in various categories as outlined by A. Chepkwony.7

First are the Herbalists who use herbal formulations to treat both humans and domestic animals. The herbs are generally derived from roots, barks, leaves and fruits from plants. Herbs are also formulated from bones, excreta, oils, skins, fur, feathers, fish oils, animal products and other ingredients suitable for yielding medicinal extracts. These are pro-cessed into powder, liquids or oils ready for use. The herbalist can thus be likened to the pharmacist since they prepare and dispense medicine in the community.8 The environment is thus very important for an herbalist. He/she uses and also protects the environment for it is the products from the environment that heals not only humans but also other animals.

5 Mbiti, Ibid., 60.6 Id., 150. 7 Adam K. arap Chepkwony, “African Traditional Medicine: Healing and

Spirituality,” in Science, Religion and Society: An Encyclopedia of History, Culture, and Controversy, ed. Arri Eisen and Gary Laderman, vol. 2 (Armonk, NY: M.E Sharpe Publisher, 2006), 643-645.

8 Tessema,S.S. “The Traditional Medicine: Past Growth and Future Development in East Africa,” East Africa Medical Journal 57/1 (January 1980): 48-54.


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Second, the diviners. The role of diviners is to reveal the difficult and unique causes of illness that the herbalists fail to discern. Sometimes some diviners double up their specialty as herbalists, but the majority work with the patients in discovering the hidden causes of suffering. They serve as consultants to the herbalists when initial treatment fails. As such, it is assumed that there are hidden causes of disease, which could only be revealed by a diviner.

The diviners pray to the ancestors or the Supreme Being to reveal to them the reason why one continues to be unwell, the required medi-cation, or the healer who could ably assist the patient. Diviners seek the cause of illness of their patients through mediums who communicate directly with the spiritual world. According to J. Mbiti, the medium can reveal:

Where to find lost things, who may have bewitched the sick, what type of ritual and medicine are necessary for the cure of people's troubles, whether an intended journey will be a success or not, which of the living dead may have a request to make and what kind, and many other things.9

If an illness is caused by inappropriate behavior on the part of the patient, a remedy or cure for the illness can only come through spiritual intervention. While an herbal healer use herbs from plants to treat disea-ses, a diviner seeks input from the spiritual world to understand the cause of the illness and prescribe a cure.

Apart from revealing the cause of problems, diviners also provi-de curative medicine as well as preventive medicine. It is therefore not uncommon for patients to see a diviner for protection from misfortune. Similarly, a person undertaking a long journey may want medicine that will provide protection while on a trip and provide wisdom and clarity in making important decisions along the way.

Thirdly, ritual elders are those men and women who perform hea-ling rituals for individuals or for the entire community. Ritual practices themselves serve as remedies for certain illnesses and in certain cases; medicines are accompanied by rituals for the herbs to be potent. Rituals are also effective in treating certain diseases that are brought about by unsettled matters in one’s life – the unfinished business. Ritual practices include prayers, sacrifices, offerings, or a combination of some or all of these. Rituals are therefore necessary because there are certain ailments that cannot be resolved by herbs alone. Some has summarized the impor-tance of rituals thus:

9 Mbiti, Introduction, 159.


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As much as our body requires food for nourishment, our souls and spirits require rituals to stay whole. It is as if without the spirit being nourished in us, the body pays for the consequences. The food of psyche is the symbol, and it is through ritual that our spirit is fed.10

This African wisdom of healing through rituals enables one to find new balance between the Supreme Being, community, environment and the self. It is this balance and harmony with the rest of creation that res-tores, retains and replenishes good health.

The Spirit World and the Environment

The African worldview is populated with spirits. The world of spi-rits is central in all African communities including those in the diaspora. Spirits influence the lives of human beings as individuals and as com-munities in different ways. There are basically three functions of spirits, those known to assist human beings; those that create disturbances and those that are neutral, causing neither harm nor good to humans. In this paper I will discuss three important kinds of spirits who are concerned with humans and their environment.

First, divinities are spiritual beings that are close to the Supreme Being. Not all communities in Africa believe in the existence of divini-ties. Some communities that believe in divinities include the Yoruba of Nigeria,11 the Adigo of Kenya,12 the Bunyoro of Uganda,13 and several communities in Central Africa.

The communities that believe in divinities have explanations of how they originated and their purpose in this world. However, the gene-ral understanding is that divinities were created or brought into being to hold certain functions in the theocratic government of the universe. The divinities serve human beings under different ministries each with a portfolio in the Supreme Being’s monarchical government. The divinities are in charge of a variety of functions among them fertility, agriculture, forests, rivers and streams, mountains and health, among many other human needs. It is the responsibility of each divinity to see to it that the environment is taken care off and that humans do not exploit it exces-sively.

10 Malidoma Patrice Somé, The Healing Wisdom of Africa. Finding Life Purpose Through Nature, Ritual, and Community (London: Thorsons, 1997), 160.

11 Ade Dopamu, “The Yoruba Religious System,” African Update 6/3 (1999): 2-17.

12 Chembea,Sulleiman A. Chembea, “The Impact of Islam on the Belief in Spirits Among the Adigo” (MPhil thesis, Moi University, 2011).

13 Akiki Byaruhanga, Religion in Buyoro (Nairobi: Kenya Literature Bureau, 1992).


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Second, African communities believe that after death, one enters into the underworld and joins the community of ancestral spirits. These are the spirits of those who have died. The spirits are closely interested in what happens in families and communities they were associated with before death. As ancestral spirits, they are close to the Supreme Being and can affect the lives of the living. There are two types of ancestral spi-rits. The remembered ancestors or the “living-dead,” according to Mbiti, are the spirits of people who died recently and are still remembered. Mbiti refers to these spirits as the ancestors in the Sasa (present/now) period.14 These are the spirits that have come back to the family and the clan through the birth of babies named after them.

These ancestral spirits are mostly concerned about the prosperity and security of their families and communities. They are believed to be the owners of land and protectors of the living. They intercede with the Supreme Being on behalf of individuals and their communities to protect them from harm. It is believed that these spirits have power over bad spirits that bring about evil. However, if individual members, families or communities engage in inappropriate behavior, the ancestors withdraw their protection and their willingness to intercede for their descendants before the Supreme Being as a sign of displeasure.

Third, the nature spirits are spirits that inhabit or live in nature. There are two types of nature spirits, those that live in the outer space and those that live on earth. The spirits of the outer space live among the planets, sun, stars and the moon. These spirits are important since they control the seasons which determine when to prepare the ground for planting and when to plant, to harvest, to prepare for communal ceremo-nies, and when to rest. The seasons that are controlled by this celestial bodies also alert the community as to when to pray, sacrifice, worship, and when to undertake traditional festivals and ceremonies.

The nature spirits on the other hand live on earth. These types of spirits live either in water or on land. The water spirits control springs, rivers, lakes and oceans. The spirits that inhabit water are very important since they are believed to control fish and animals that live in the waters. The nature spirits of land inhabit rocks, mountains, trees, valleys, forests and all sacred places. One of the reasons why the spirits inhabit these places is to protect the particular environments that serve as the Supreme Being’s pharmacy. For it is here that all kinds of herbs for all kinds of ailments for both human beings and animals are grown and harvested. It

14 Mbiti, Introduction, 83.


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is also here that both human beings and other creatures dwell and find their survival needs.

The nature spirits are, therefore, very important to human beings and the environment. They are good spirits who protect people and pro-vide them with essential items in life like water, air, food, and medicine by preserving the environment. The nature spirits are directly under the control of the Supreme Being who often uses these spirits to reward or punish human beings when they go astray. For example, thunder and lightning is used to settle disputes and even to punish wrong doers.

Wholistic Approach to Life

I shall use the term “wholistic” here to describe the way Africans perceive and deal with reality as a whole functioning system. Africans perceive the Earth as a garden where human beings, spirits and all the living creatures dwell. In this garden the Supreme Being expects human being and the rest of the creation to co-exist in harmony. A peaceful co-existence of all creatures is necessary for the survival of life in the uni-verse. In his part, the Supreme Being continues to nurture his creation in a benevolent manner. The Supreme Being thus expects human beings to live in the world in harmony with the rest of the creation. Nigerian philosopher Theophilius Okere has explained the importance of this relationship as follows:

The goal of interaction of beings in African world-view is the maintenance of the integration and balance of the beings in it [the world]. Harmonious inte-raction of beings leads to the mutual strengthening of the beings involved, and enhances the growth of life. A pernicious influence from one being weakens other beings and threatens the harmony and integration of the whole.15

To maintain a healthy relationship with creation, human beings are supposed to seek harmony on a cosmic scale. This can be achieved when human beings act righteously by following the acceptable moral values that ensure harmony between the Supreme Being and His creation. In the words of R. Rweyemanu,

the African soul has perceived the moral obligation to collaborate with the ordered harmony in creation so as to preserve that equilibrium which visible

15 Theophilius Okere, “The Kite May Perch, the Eagle May Perch: Egbe bere Ugo bere: An African Concept of Peace and Justice,” in International Philosophers of Peace (New York: Boston University, 1998), 9, as cited by Hyacinth Kalu, Together as One: Interfaith Relationships Between African Traditional Religion, Islam, and Christianity in Nigeria, Interfaith Series vol. II (Bloomington, IN: iUniverse, 2011), 29.


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and invisible forces must maintain. It is from the Supreme Being, the divine creator and author of order and harmony. It is therefore a sinful serious trans-gression to attempt to break or interrupt the free, harmonious and orderly functioning of the god-given peace which guarantees life, growth, survival in creation.16

Africans, therefore, believe that any disorder in the universe causes disunity with the Supreme Being. Among the Kipsigis of Kenya, for exam-ple, this belief is based on the concept of ngogisto. Ngogisto is the belief that the Supreme Being (Asis) is the ultimate upholder of tribal sanctity and the final arbiter of justice. Asis, therefore sees all evildoers and punis-hes them regardless of whether there was any litigation against them or not. The idea of ngogis suggests that the universe is a rigidly structured and ordered system such that any disruption of its normal function is followed by a counter reaction.17 Whoever abuses the harmonious rela-tionship that exists between the Supreme Being and his creation is due for punishment for creating an imbalance in the cosmic order. As J.V. Taylor rightly puts it:

A man’s well-being consists…in keeping in harmony with cosmic totality. When things go well with him he knows he is at peace and of a piece with the scheme of things and there can be no greater good than that. If things go wrong, then somewhere he has fallen out of step…The whole system of divination exists to help him discover the point at which the harmony has been broken and how it may be.18

This idea of cosmic harmony is a widely acknowledged concept in African communities. Among the Bambuti of Congo, harmony within the community is of capital importance and it is actually the basis of their ethics. If a man beats his wife among the Bambuti, for example, this causes disharmony not only between the wife and the husband, but his family, community, and the cosmos in general. Cosmic harmony is therefore enhanced through proper relationships. Ethical relationships concern the behavior of the individual or community towards Supreme Being, ancestors, fellow human beings, other creatures, the environment

16 Robert Rweyemanu, “Religion and Peace: An Experience with African Traditions,” Studia Missionalia 38 (1989): 394, cited by Godfrey Igwebuike Onah, “The Meaning of Peace in African Traditional Religion and Culture,” Pontifical Urban University, Rome, accessed July 30, 2016, http://afrikaworld.net/afrel/goddionah.htm.

17 Adam K. arap Chepkwony, “African Religion in the Study of Comparative Religion: A Case Study of Kipsigis Religious Practices” (PhD dissertation, Moi University, 1997).

18 John V. Taylor, The Primal Vision: Christian Presence Amid African Religion (London: SCM Press, 1963), 67.


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and the spirits. Each of these relationships has a direct effect towards the Supreme Being. Bad relationships bring disharmony or ill health, while good ones bring harmony and prosperity. In other words, the African code of ethics that governs these relationships controls not only the indi-vidual and the community, but also the cosmos and its creator. G.I. Onah has rightly observed that:

If a person breaks either the spiritual or the cosmic harmony, the lack of peace that ensues reverts on the entire community. Sometimes individual reparations in terms of sacrifices are not enough to restore the harmony and all the members of the community are called upon to right the wrong. There is thus a strong sense of the social dimension of immoral conduct.19

The key idea behind environmental sustainability is to maintain harmony with Supreme Being and the rest of the creation. It is only when harmony exists between the Supreme Being and creation that good health is enjoyed by the individual and the community at large. Onah summari-zes this idea as follows:

The goal of all moral conduct is therefore the fullness of life. Human life is considered full in Africa when it is marked by spiritual, material, and social blessings; when the network of relations with the spiritual, human and mate-rial beings is as it should be.20

Conclusion

In sum, the alliance between the Supreme Being and humans depends on whether humans maintain good relationship with his fellow humans, flora, fauna, and the spirits. This worldview is capable of trans-forming the many of the climate change issues that is facing the world. If Africans adhere to those ideas as they did in the past, they will have participated in the solutions of this problem in their own way. Fortunately, there are other communities such as Indians, Chinese, Japanese, and the first nation’s people of America, South America, and Australia who share similar ideas. If they all put their effort together, and supported by scien-tific solutions, it will hasten the recovery of our degrading environment.

19 Onah, “The Meaning of Peace.”20 Onah, Ibid.


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Francis of Assisi:

Transgenic and SyntheticsYolanda CHÁVEZ

Los Angeles, United States

Translation of Ditter Chávez

“It is our humble belief that the divine and the human is in the smallest details dressed seamlessly in God's creation, even in the last grain of dust of our land”.*

In this article I intend to present an approach to the intersection between the worldview of St. Francis of Assisi and the civilization of GMOs 1. For that, I will examine first the world view of St. Francis from the comprehensive ecological perspective contained in the Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’: About the care of our Common Home,2 written by Pope Francisco , and published in May 2015, Later, I will discuss how innovations in GM foods have inspired experiments in biotechnology to modify cells synthetically .

I will conclude by sharing some concrete actions that are underway by organizations of people who see humanity as a sister, mother earth as our Common Home.

In his Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’, Pope Francis addresses the issue on a comprehensive ecology from a selected perspective: The St. Francis of Assisi’s, who has been credited with a vision of particular appreciation

* Patriarch Bartholomew, Archbishop of the Orthodox Church of Constantinople, text quoted by Pope Francisco, Encyclical Letter Laudato Si ' Holy Father Francis About Care Common House, Vatican City 2015, online edition, accessed July 3, 2016 http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/es/encyclicals. See n. 9 of this encyclical and footnote 18: " Speech ' Global Responsibility and Ecological Sustainability: Closing Remarks '" I Vertex Halki, Istanbul ( June 20, 2012 )

1 See footnote 5. 2 Pope Francis, Encyclical Letter.

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for God's creation. For St. Francis of Assisi it was essential to be concer-ned about nature, social justice for the poor and commitment to society, through this deep relationship, he found inner peace. This sense of unity made him live in harmony with God, with nature and with himself. The creatures were seen by the Saint of Assisi as integral parts of himself, and he understood himself as one with nature.

The spiritual intuition of Francis of Assisi perceived the creation as a reflection of the goodness and love who gave life from his own life, and that intuition inspired him to care for the welfare of his sisters and brothers: the sun and the moon, stars, water and earth, wind and fire, fruits, flowers, herbs, mountains and seas, men and women. The root of this intuition came from understanding that his own body was composed of the same elements of all these creatures.

It is not difficult to imagine Francisco walking along the shore of a river praising the Creator because of his manifestations in flora and fauna. It is possible that in his daily walks he saw planted fields, rudimentary gravity irrigation systems, water mills or windmills, and possibly met gun-powder. All these were typical of the so-called middle Age innovations.

The innovations of that era have come so far at the beginning of the third millennium, that it is difficult to understand how the natural functions of genes in the seeds and cells have been modified from the outside to decide their behavior and their ability to organize themselves in nature. A brief examination of the current situation allows us to raise the question of what St. Francis of Assisi would think of those fruits, herbs and genetically modified cells of the present age.

Modifying the chemical structures from the outside

After the Second World War (1939-1945), companies that had been enriched by the production of explosives to supply the great powers and their allies, needed to continue selling their products after the war. They still had a rich nitrogen source and could get more thanks to state subsidies, these companies had, in synthetic nitrates, the possibility of generating power and wealth, so they thought of creating new markets. They modified the chemical structure of explosives such as potassium nitrate used in the manufacture of gunpowder, and developed fertilizers and insecticides.3

3 Lizzie Collingham, Taste of War: World War II and the Battle for Food (New York: Penguin, 2012), 490-491.

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In this new market they found ways to amass fortunes with the use of chemicals in farming. Thus began the agrochemical industry. The large market of explosives ended with the Peace Treaty of San Francisco4 between Japan and the Allied Forces. But the need to produce food will remain as long as human beings on the planet. Perfect business!

With fertilizers and insecticides, crop yields quantities were not only good, but they tripled at the cost of sacrificing the nutritional quali-ty of the seeds which kept diminishing. The cosmetic appearance of the food begins to be the most important factor of the production processes.

The Flavr Savr tomato is the first transgenic5 fruit established in the United States in 1994. This tomato was genetically modified in order to make its ripening period last longer and could withstand the journey of being carried through the field, where it was harvested, to the supermar-ket where it was sold to the public. In addition to this, it had better color, better texture, longer life and better “flavor”. The new tomato was created by removing a gene, and adding others. A gene encoding an enzyme in the ripening process was isolated, and two new genes originally absent from the tomato, were introduced. The first gene, dubbed the Flavr Savr, was really an antigen that made cell membranes decompose slowly, and another gene encoding the synthesis of a protein conferring resistance to the antibiotic kanamycin, which is lethal to normal plants of tomato.

In the process of chemical structures to genetic, shortly after, trans-genic soybean (or soya) was released and two years later, this technology

4 The Treaty of San Francisco or the Peace Treaty with Japan, was officially signed by 49 nations between the Allied Powers and Japan on September 8, 1951, in San Francisco, California. This treaty served to officially end World War II. See, United Nations Treaty Series 1952 https://treaties.un.org

5 A transgenic is a genetically modified organism (GMO), also known as living modified organism (LMO) or transgenic organism. According to the Cartagena Protocol on Security Biotechnology, a "living modified organism" is defined as "any living organism that possesses a novel combination of genetic material obtained through the application of modern biotechnology." The "modern bio-technology" is defined by the Protocol as "the application of: (a) techniques in vitro nucleic acid, including recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and direct injection of nucleic acid into cells or organelles, or (b) the fusion of cells beyond the taxonomic family, that overcome natural physiological barriers of reproduction or recombination and that are not techniques used in traditional breeding and selection "Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety of the Convention on Biological diversity: text and annexes (Montreal: Secretariat of the Convention on Biological diversity, 2000), Article 3, p. 4, accessed July 3, 2016, http://bch.cbd.int/protocol/text

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was applied to corn.6 Agriculture was the most important business, but not for the benefit of farmers. Monsanto, the company that had increased its economic benefits during the World War selling chemicals used in the manufacture of explosives or poison gas, began to collect royalties for every genetically modified seed. With this, the company came crushing down with its great economic power on simple, ancient and traditional cultures of the peoples of all continents. The company used its modified seeds to monopolize world food production and its target has not been focused on solving the major problems of hunger and malnutrition suffe-red by the poorest people on the planet. Currently, Monsanto controls about 90 percent of the global market for genetically modified seeds7. It seems that their goal aims to have the absolute power of the food eco-nomy in the world.

Genetically modified seeds require insecticides (modified explosi-ves) to control some pests, but generate others on which today, the extent of damage that may affect biodiversity is unknown, including water and fertile land. This means that millions of peasants no longer have the basic supplies on which they had relied on for generations.

A palpable symptom of this reality is the migration to big cities or to other countries. Mexican farmers, for example, come to the US to work in the fields in California, Texas, Washington, Florida, Oregon and North Carolina where there is also transgenic crops and where there are mono-cultures. Given that industrial agriculture seeks to enrich quantitatively generating fuel or food as a commodity whose demand is constant and permanent, then you can understand why the quality of the nutritional value is not important. The effects on the health of workers and consu-mers of these transgenic processed foods made for fast food restaurants, is an issue that remains for further exploration in future studies.

When the powerful civilization of GM realizes that it has the ability to alter, manipulate and accelerate the slow evolutionary equilibrium in genes and nature, and in doing so generate large financial amounts in

6 Monsanto, “Rundup Ready Corn 2 “Products Monsanto, accessed July 3, 2016, http://www.monsanto.com/products. See also, Maggie Delano, “Roundup Ready Crops. Cash crop or third world savior? “, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Source self- published, accessed July 3, 2016, http://web.mit.edu/demoscience/Monsanto/index.html

7 Angélica Enciso, Laura Poy, y Matilde Pérez, “Controlan 10 empresas 95 por ciento del mercado mundial de semillas”, Diario La Jornada, 6 de febrero de 2007, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://www.jornada.unam.mx/2007/02/06/index.php


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profits up to achieve unimagined riches, then why not alter other aspects of nature and create an artificial cell?

On May 21, 2010, The Wall Street Journal reported that researchers at the private institute J. Craig Venter had created a synthetic cell com-pletely controlled by artificial genetic instructions8. That is, a cell with programmable artificial synthetic DNA. By 2014 a cell was produced with self-replication: bacterial cells with cell walls and completely synthetic DNA. Synthetic biology began creating artificial life nonexistent in natu-re. They created a bacterial cell controlled by a synthetic genome. That is, it made bacteria with new properties and it decoded them to design sophisticated models of cellular networks that may be programmable for use in different field’s science, even be the beginning of a new industrial revolution9.

In the transgenic civilization, scientific advances make new deve-lopments appear and it seems that the whole of humanity is submerged in a maelstrom of progress and discoveries that far from satisfy the basic needs as care, food and nutrition of billions of living things, leaving regrettable consequences in its wake as impairment of the quality of human life and biodiversity.

The seed, the cell and intelligence from cosmology of St. Francis of Assisi

What do these advances mean from the cosmology of St. Francis of Assisi, for whom the seed, the cell and intelligence are sacred? According to the Encyclical Letter Laudato Si ', Pope Francis says the conviction of St. Francis of Assisi to recognize every creature as a sister, and take care of them all with affection (§11) 10. The worldview of San Francisco, as is expressed in Laudato Si ', seems to be anchored in memory of the biblical

8 "This experimental one-celled organism that can reproduce, opens the way to manipulation of life at scales previously unattainable, researchers and ethicists said. For a generation, scientists have been altering the fragmented DNA, pro-ducing a collection of genetically modified plants and animals. But the ability to create an entire organism offers a new power over life, "Robert Lee Hotz," Scientists Create Synthetic Organism ", The Wall Street Journal, May 21, 2010, accessed July 3, 2016, http://www.wsj.com/articles

9 For the first time, scientists successfully produced an artificial cell containing organelles capable of performing the various steps of a chemical reaction. This was done at the Institute for Molecules and Materials (IMM) at the Radboud University Nijmegen. See Russell Johnson, "Nanoreactors: Catalysis in Compartments" Nature Chemistry 6 (Published Online 2013): 5, access the July 3, 2016, http://www.nature.com/nchem/journal

10 The symbol "§" followed by a number refers to a paragraph or paragraphs in sections of the Encyclical Letter Laudato Si '.


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people according to the account of Genesis 2: 7, which recalls that "our body is made up of the elements of the planet, its air-is what gives us breath and it’s water gives us life and restores"(§ 2). This worldview also is reflected in many cultures of indigenous peoples.

In the way of perceiving the creation, according to the narrative of the first chapter of Genesis, every creature from the seeds, grass, fruit and herbs (v. 11), the stars in the firmament of heaven, night, the days and years (v. 14), to men and women (v. 27), have the same dignity and share the same sacred dimension because we were created by a God who stopped to contemplate his creation and saw that all he had done was very good (v. 31). Seeds and cells share the cool, clear water of the river essence, the brightness of the sun reflecting on the moon, and the stars, the sacredness of the days, nights, years and time.

St. Francis asked that the convent always leave a part of the garden left uncultivated for wild herbs to grow, so that those who admire, could raise their thoughts to God, the author of such beauty.11 Uncultivated parts, invited and encouraged biodiversity and sustainability in the small Franciscan garden. Earth, fruits, and herbs, had a sacred dimension in the same way as it does to the ancient cultures that led to the evolution and diversity of seeds, interacting with them with intelligent love for thousands of years. Customs, languages, rituals, legends, climates and ecosystems in close relation to seeds, created a variety of cultures.

In China, for example, since before the Qin Dynasty period (221-206 BCE12), rice was already the main food and was used as an offering in a ritual to Shennong, the Divine Farmer, who, according to tradition, passed on to his ancestors practice of agriculture. For Teenek culture, an indigenous community located in the Huasteca, north of the state of Veracruz in Mexico, corn is the origin of human beings. The Popol Vuh, Book Council, the sacred book of their community recounts the dialogue between parents, Tepeu and Gucumatz on "the creation and training of our first mother and father":

"From yellow corn and white corn he became flesh; from maize dough came the arms and legs of man. Only maize dough went into the flesh of our fathers, the four men were created ... Then there were also their wives and women were made. God himself made them carefully."13

11 Tomás de Celano, Vida segunda de San Francisco, Séptima edición (Madrid: Biblioteca de Autores Cristianos, 1998), capítulo CXXIV, n. 165.

12 "BCE" means Before Common Era.13 El Popol Vuh: Las antiguas historias del Quiché, traducidas del texto original

con introducción y notas de Adrián Recinos (San José, Costa Rica: Editorial Universitaria Centroamericana, 1978), 100, 103.


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According to this mythical narrative of creation, men, women, and people cannot live without corn. To live, it is necessary to continue fee-ding corn to the same body made from that corn. These cultures despite being so different, have something in common, in that they are compa-tible with the same intuition of St. Francis of Assisi: they understood the secret of life implicit in a seed. The seed which is contained the embryo that will become a plant that eventually bursts into fruits, grains or seeds that will generate more life leading to global biodiversity. Nowadays, this global biodiversity is in danger.

"Francis, repair my house; do you not see it sinking?”

In the biographies of St. Francis of Assisi there is consistency to note that this was the call of God that he received, he listened while pra-ying, contemplating the crucified Christ in the old church of St. Damian14.

In my approach to this issue, I think this is the same call that pervades the Encyclical Letter Laudato Si'. In his election as Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis took on behalf of "Francisco" in honor of St. Francis of Assisi, as a "beautiful model that can motivate us" (§10).

St. Francis understood his relationship with God through everything that lives, thus emulating God who linked himself to join humanity and creation through networks of co-existential and interdependent relations-hips. From the cosmology of San Francisco, every person and community depend on each other to truly achieve identity as beings created by the same Creator. Indeed, the integral ecology proposed by Pope Francis consist of making the life that everyone receives every day sacred, loving creation. Only God creates life, creates relationships and saves humanity and the world by creating these relationships.

Seeing St. Francis of Assisi, as a role model integral ecology that Pope Francis proposes, is based on those relationships that save deep manifestations of sin increasingly flare up when the creatures are decon-secrated.

14 St. Damian was a small church located a kilometer and a half from the walls of Assisi, at the foot of a hill. Abandoned above the altar, was a crucifix that had been saved from deterioration. From this crucifix, the voice of Christ cru-cified, called Francis of Assisi saying, "Francis, do not you see that my house is sinking? Go therefore and fix it”. On this, see Donald Spoto, Francisco de Asis: El santo que quiso ser hombre (Barcelona: Ediciones B.S.A., 2007), 81-82; Enciclopedia Franciscana, "El crucifijo de San Damián y San Francisco de Asís," Directorio Franciscano, accessed July 3, 2016, http://www.franciscanos.org/enciclopedia


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Such desecration occurs in the social realities of exacerbated poverty that goes beyond lack of food or medicine, lack of work, forced migration, lack of respect for the smallest, the helpless, the defenseless, and the fragile. There appears to manifest social injustice as a sin becau-se it is going against our own nature. Life altering gene contained in a seed, or a cell for the purpose of filling the hands of power and money is exposed as an absolute corruptness: the artificial will never replace life.

To repair and care for our common home, seen as Sister Mother Earth, is the core of the proposal of the Encyclical Laudato Si’. It pro-motes an integral ecology as a new paradigm of justice, a theology that "incorporates the peculiar place of human beings in this world and its relations with the surrounding reality "(§ 15). His proposal is a call to rethink the objectives and the meaning of human activity, to include admiration for life, stupor by sunrises and sunsets, fascination of hum-mingbirds and bees, reverence for seeds and cells, devotion to daisies, calla lilies and wild herbs.

The responsibility of caring for our planet over economic benefits and profits of multinational giants like Monsanto, is part of that call. It also includes putting the benefits of knowledge, advances in science and technology at the service of life, but seeking the common good that underlies everything that is related to the deepest dimension of human beings, what unites the person and all humanity with the planet and all living things.

An ecological spirituality. Practices of change

Pope Francisco proposes a spirituality centered on God, author of life, a source of beauty and goodness, and Creator of our common home, not to end up worshiping other powers, to not put ourselves in the place of God, not to trample reality that created to recognize our limits. That spirituality, called in Laudato Si ' an "ecological spirituality"15, is proposed as the best way to put in place the human being, to end its pretensions of domination. But also proposes a process of permanent reflection on the very meaning of human existence in the world, since the type of planet that humanity builds, or destroys, becomes the expression of their own dignity. In his encyclical, the Pope proposes these questions: "Why do we

15 The entire sixth chapter of the Encyclical focuses on the theme of "Education and ecological spirituality"


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go through this world? Why we did come to this life? Why do we work and fight? Why does this land need us? "(§160).

In the worldview of St. Francis of Assisi, the possible answer would be: To be protective of the work of God as an essential part of a virtuous existence. To achieve harmony with the consciousness of not being dis-connected from other creatures, to form with all beings in the universe a beautiful universal communion. Not contemplate reality "from outside" to alter it but from within to love her and care for her. In response to the serious environmental problems facing the world today, an ecological spirituality demands changes to our practices at all levels.

Globally, a worldwide struggle for the rescue of the seeds has already begun. For example, in the Arctic Circle has been established a huge underground pantry of seeds of thousands of crop plants worldwi-de. This is a case where scientific and technological advances are used for the good of the planet and humanity. It is a kind of "Noah's Ark" for seeds16. Created at the initiative of the Norwegian government-in coope-ration with the Organization of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the Alliance for Global Crop Diversity Trust, has been given the task of collecting 2,000 million seeds, equivalent to 4.5 million samples from around the globe to store them and keep them in good condition. It is located near Longyearbyen in the Norwegian archi-pelago of Svalbard.

Noah's Ark for seeds is a complex of three high security storage units located at the end of a tunnel of 125 meters inside a mountain. Seeds are stored at a temperature of 18 degrees below zero, packed in aluminum containers of four layers, which in turn are stored on shelves in boxes. The dome is impervious to volcanic activity, earthquakes, radiation and sea level rise, and in case of power failure, the permafrost (perma-nently frozen ice layer) of the outer acts as a natural refrigerant. It is the storehouse of the world's largest seed company, created to safeguard the biodiversity of the species. It should be mentioned that within the vault there are no genetically modified organisms. On a smaller scale commu-nity seed banks exist in countries like Mexico in the herbarium of the

16 Agencias, “Inaugurada en el Ártico el ‘Arca de Noé’ de las plantas”, Diario El País, 26 febrero de 2008, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://sociedad.elpais.com/sociedad/2008/02/26/. Ver también, Crop Trust, https://www.croptrust.org


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College of the Southern Border, and in Colombia in "Seeds of Identity"17, among many other countries and cultures who care to recover and pre-serve native endangered seed species.

At the community level, in our neighborhoods and in our churches we may well get together to talk without fear about the terms of scienti-fic advances to understand what they are, what they’re for, what is their practical application, who benefits, and what they can bring to the living network of relationships in our everyday realities. The churches are called to provide answers to the problem of ecological crisis by developing a focus on environmental education that includes promoting a new lifestyle for defense and environmental care programs.

On a personal level, we are called to grow in an ecological spiritua-lity that provides the values, new habits, and motivations for a permanent commitment to caring for the world. This type of spirituality requires an ecological conversion leading to recognize the connection of each person with the created world. It also helps to strengthen initiatives to "get out of this spiral of self-destruction in which we are submerging" (§163), lar-gely caused by the lifestyles where GM and synthetic move. How much could we get from our homes in everyday and simple situations, ask for example why tomatoes have no taste or why fruits are designed more like ornaments for a fruit bowl than nutritious food, and seek alternatives to stop using products with these characteristics. This small action, insigni-ficant it may seem, can become like those grains of sand falling into the gears of the great machine and makes it stop.

17 Identity seeds in Bogotá, Colombia, working with SWISSAID Foundation for the protection of biodiversity and food sovereignty. This organization also link the defense of seeds to the defense of life and the territories, takes into accou-nt social, economic, ecological, environmental and cultural aspects from the perspective of local actors as the basis of life, the whole of family relationships and the symbolic and cultural representations of the natural environment. See, http://semillasdeidentidad.blogspot.com


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Francisco de Asís: los transgénicos y los sintéticos

Yolanda CHÁVEZ

San Francisco, Estados Unidos

“Es nuestra humilde convicción que lo divino y lo humano se encuentra en el más pequeño detalle contenido en los vestidos sin costuras de la Creación de Dios, hasta en el último grano de polvo de nuestra tierra”1.

En este artículo me propongo presentar un acercamiento a la inter-sección entre la cosmovisión de San Francisco de Asís y la civilización de los transgénicos. Para eso, examinaré primero la visión del mundo de San Francisco desde la perspectiva ecológica integral contenida en la Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’: Sobre el Cuidado de la Casa Común2, escrita por el Papa Francisco, y publicada en mayo de 2015. Posteriormente, anali-zaré cómo las innovaciones en los alimentos transgénicos han inspirado experimentos en la biotecnología para modificar células sintéticamente. Concluiré con algunas acciones concretas que están llevando a cabo orga-nizaciones de personas que conciben a la humanidad como hermana, y a nuestra Madre tierra como la casa común.

En su Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’, el Papa Francisco aborda el tema sobre una ecología integral desde una perspectiva selecta: la de San Francisco de Asís, a quien se le ha atribuido una visión de particular apre-cio hacia la creación de Dios. Para San Francisco de Asís eran indispensa-bles la preocupación por la naturaleza, la justicia social para los pobres y

1 Patriarca Bartolomé, Arzobispo de la Iglesia Ortodoxa de Constantinopla, texto citado por el Papa Francisco, Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’ del Santo Padre Francisco Sobre el Cuidado de la Casa Común, Ciudad del Vaticano 2015, edición en línea, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/es/encyclicals/. Ver el n. 9 de esta encíclica y la nota 18: “Discurso ‘Global Responsability and Ecological Sustainability: Closing Remarks’”, I Vértice de Halki, Estambul (20 junio 2012)”.

2 Papa Francisco, Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’.

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el compromiso con la sociedad, en cuya unidad relacional encontraba la paz interior. Este sentido de unidad le hacía vivir en armonía con Dios, con la naturaleza y consigo mismo. Las criaturas eran vistas por el Santo de Asís como partes integrales de sí mismo, y se comprendía a sí mismo como un todo con la naturaleza.

La intuición espiritual de Francisco de Asís percibió a la creación como reflejo de la bondad y el amor de quien ha dado la vida de su propia vida, y esa intuición lo inspiraba a cuidar por el bienestar de sus hermanas y hermanos: el sol y la luna, las estrellas, el agua y la tierra, el viento y el fuego, los frutos, flores, hierbas, los montes y los mares, los hombres y las mujeres. La raíz de esta intuición descansa en la compren-sión de su propio cuerpo como integrado por los mismos elementos de todas estas criaturas.

No es difícil imaginar a Francisco caminando por la orilla de un rio alabando al Creador por sus manifestaciones en la flora y la fauna. Es posible que en sus caminatas diarias haya visto campos sembrados, rudi-mentarios sistemas de riego por gravedad, molinos de agua o molinos de viento, posiblemente conoció la pólvora. Todas estas eran innovaciones propias de la así llamada Edad Media.

Las innovaciones de esa época han llegado tan lejos al inicio del tercer milenio, que resulta difícil comprender cómo las funciones natura-les de genes en las semillas y las células han sido modificadas desde afue-ra para decidir su comportamiento y su capacidad para organizarse en la naturaleza. Un breve examen del panorama actual permite levantar la pregunta sobre ¿qué pensaría San Francisco de Asís si se encontrara con esos frutos, hierbas y células genéticamente modificadas de la era actual?

Modificando las estructuras químicas desde afuera

Al terminar la Segunda Guerra Mundial (1939-1945), las empresas que se habían estado enriqueciendo con la producción de explosivos para abastecer a las grandes potencias y sus aliados, necesitaban seguir vendiendo sus productos después de la guerra. Todavía les quedaba una gran fuente de nitrógeno y podían conseguir más gracias a los subsidios estatales, esas empresas tenían en los nitratos sintéticos la posibilidad de generar poder y riqueza, así que pensaron en crear nuevos mercados. Modificaron la estructura química de los explosivos como el nitrato de potasio empleado en la fabricación de pólvora, y elaboraron fertilizantes e insecticidas3.

3 Lizzie Collingham, Taste of War: World War II and the Battle for Food (New York: Penguin, 2012), 490-491.


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En este nuevo mercado encontraron maneras de amasar fortunas con el uso de los químicos en las actividades agrícolas. Comenzaba la industria agroquímica. El gran mercado de los explosivos terminó con el Tratado de Paz de San Francisco4 entre las Fuerzas Aliadas y Japón. La necesidad de producir alimento permanecerá mientras haya seres huma-nos sobre el planeta. ¡Negocio redondo!

Con los fertilizantes e insecticidas, los rendimientos en cantidades de cosecha no sólo fueron buenos, sino que se triplicaron a costa de sacrificar la calidad nutritiva de las semillas que fue disminuyendo pro-gresivamente. El aspecto cosmético de los alimentos comienza a ser el factor más importante en los procesos de producción.

El jitomate Flavr Savr es el primer fruto transgénico5 creado en los Estados Unidos en 1994. Este jitomate fue genéticamente modificado con el fin de hacer durar más tiempo su periodo de maduración y pudiera así resistir el viaje que lo transportaba del campo, donde era cosechado, hasta el supermercado donde era vendido al público. Además de esta ventaja, tenía mejor color, mejor textura, mayor duración y mejor sabor. El novedoso jitomate fue creado quitándole un gen, y agregándole otros. Se le aisló el gen que codifica una enzima en el proceso de maduración y se le introdujeron dos nuevos genes ausentes en éste. El primer gen, bautizado como Flavr Savr, realmente era un antigén que actuaba para que las membranas celulares se descompusieran lentamente, y otro gen codificaba la síntesis de una proteína que confería resistencia al antibióti-co kanamicina, que es letal para las plantas normales del jitomate.

4 El Tratado de San Francisco o Tratado de Paz con Japón, fue oficialmente firmado por 49 naciones entre las Fuerzas Aliadas y Japón, el 8 de septiembre de 1951, en San Francisco, California. Este tratado sirvió para terminar oficialmente la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Ver, United Nations Treaty Series 1952, https://treaties.un.org.

5 Un transgénico es un organismo modificado genéticamente (OMG), denomi-nado también organismo vivo modificado (OVM) u organismo transgénico. De acuerdo al Protocolo de Cartagena sobre Seguridad de la Biotecnología, un “organismo vivo modificado” es definido como “cualquier organismo vivo que posea una combinación nueva de material genético que se haya obte-nido mediante la aplicación de la biotecnología moderna”. La “biotecnología moderna” es definida por este Protocolo como “la aplicación de: (a) Técnicas in vitro de ácido nucleico, incluidos el ácido desoxirribonucleico (ADN) recom-binante y la inyección directa de ácido nucleico en células u orgánulos, o (b) La fusión de células más allá de la familia taxonómica, que superan las barre-ras fisiológicas naturales de la reproducción o de la recombinación y que no son técnicas utilizadas en la reproducción y selección tradicional”, Protocolo de Cartagena sobre Seguridad de la Biotecnología del Convenio sobre la Diversidad Biológica: Texto y Anexos (Montreal: Secretaría del Convenio sobre la Diversidad Biológica, 2000), Artículo 3, p. 4, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://bch.cbd.int/protocol/text/.

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En el paso de las estructuras químicas a las genéticas, poco des-pués salió al mercado la soja (o soya) transgénica y dos años después, se aplicó esta tecnología al maíz6. La agricultura se hizo el negocio más importante, pero no para beneficio de los campesinos. Monsanto, la empresa que durante la Primera Guerra Mundial había multiplicado sus beneficios económicos vendiendo productos químicos utilizados en la fabricación de explosivos o de gas de combate, comenzó a recaudar regalías por cada semilla genéticamente modificada. Con esto, vino aplas-tando con sus grandes dimensiones económicas a los cultivos sencillos, milenarios y tradicionales de los pueblos originarios de todos los con-tinentes. La empresa usó sus semillas modificadas para monopolizar la producción mundial de alimentos y su meta de producción no ha estado enfocada en resolver los grandes problemas de hambre y desnutrición que sufre la población más pobre del planeta. En la actualidad, Monsanto controla alrededor de 90 por ciento del mercado mundial de semillas transgénicas7. Pareciera que su meta apunta a tener el poder absoluto de la economía alimentaria del planeta.

Las semillas genéticamente modificadas requieren de los insectici-das (explosivos modificados) para controlar algunas plagas, pero generan otras sobre las cuales hoy mismo, no se conoce la magnitud de los daños que pueden llegar a afectar a la biodiversidad, incluyendo el agua y las tierras fértiles. Lo cual significa que millones de campesinos dejen de contar con los suministros básicos de su alimentación con los que habían contado por generaciones.

Un síntoma palpable de esta realidad es la migración a las grandes ciudades o a distintos países. Los campesinos mexicanos, por ejemplo, llegan a Estados Unidos a trabajar en los campos de cultivo en California, Texas, Washington, Florida, Oregón y Carolina del Norte donde también hay cultivos de transgénicos y donde también existen los monocultivos. Tomando en cuenta que la agricultura industrial busca enriquecerse cuantitativamente generando combustibles o alimentos como un bien

6 Monsanto, “Rundup Ready Maíz 2”, Productos Monsanto, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://www.monsanto.com/products. Ver también, Maggie Delano, “Roundup Ready Crops. Cash crop or third world savior?”, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Fuente auto-publicada, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://web.mit.edu/demoscience/Monsanto/index.html

7 Angélica Enciso, Laura Poy, y Matilde Pérez, “Controlan 10 empresas 95 por cien-to del mercado mundial de semillas”, Diario La Jornada, 6 de febrero de 2007, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://www.jornada.unam.mx/2007/02/06/index.php


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de consumo cuya demanda es constante y permanente, entonces puede comprenderse por qué la calidad de los valores nutritivos no tiene importancia. Los efectos en la salud de los trabajadores y consumidores de estos alimentos transgénicos procesados para restaurantes de comida rápida, es un tema que queda pendiente para seguir explorando en estu-dios posteriores.

Cuando la poderosa civilización de los transgénicos se da cuenta que tiene la capacidad de alterar, manipular y acelerar los lentos equili-brios evolutivos en los genes y su naturaleza, y al hacerlo generan gran-des cantidades económicas en ganancias hasta llegar a alcanzar riquezas insospechadas, entonces ¿Por qué no alterar otros aspectos de la natura-leza y crear una célula artificial?

El 21 de mayo de 2010, el periódico The Wall Street Journal dio a conocer que los investigadores del instituto privado J. Craig Venter, habían creado una célula sintética completamente controlada por instrucciones genéticas artificiales8. Esto es, una célula artificial programable con ADN sintético. Para el 2014 se habían producido células con auto-replicación: células bacterianas con paredes celulares y ADN completamente sintético. La biología sintética comenzó a crear vida artificial, inexistente en la natu-raleza. Creó una célula bacteriana controlada por un genoma sintético. Es decir, hizo bacterias con nuevas propiedades y las decodificó para diseñar modelos de sofisticadas redes celulares que pudieran ser programables para usarlas en diferentes campos de la ciencia, incluso hasta suponer el inicio de una nueva revolución industrial9.

En la civilización de los transgénicos, los avances científicos hacen aparecer nuevos avances y pareciera que la humanidad entera se encontrara sumergida en una vorágine de progresos y descubrimientos

8 “Este organismo experimental de una célula que puede reproducirse, abre el camino a la manipulación de la vida a escalas hasta ahora inalcanzables, dije-ron investigadores y expertos en ética. Por una generación, los científicos han estado alterando el ADN fragmentado, produciendo una colección de plantas y animales genéticamente modificados. Pero la habilidad de crear un organis-mo entero ofrece un nuevo poder sobre la vida”, Robert Lee Hotz, “Scientists Create Synthetic Organism”, The Wall Street Journal, 21 de mayo de 2010, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://www.wsj.com/articles/. Traducción del inglés al español por la autora.

9 Por primera vez, los científicos produjeron con éxito una célula artificial que contiene orgánulos capaces de llevar a cabo las diversas etapas de una reac-ción química. Esto se hizo en el Instituto de Moléculas y Materiales (IMM) en la Universidad de Radboud Nijmegen. Ver Russell Johnson, “Nanoreactors: Catalysis in Compartments”, Nature Chemistry 6 (Published Online 2013): 5, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://www.nature.com/nchem/journal/


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que lejos de saciar las necesidades elementales como el cuidado, la ali-mentación y la nutrición de miles de millones de seres vivos, va dejando lamentables secuelas a su paso como el menoscabo en la calidad de la vida humana y la biodiversidad.

La semilla, la célula y la inteligencia desde la cosmología de Francisco

¿Qué significan estos avances desde la cosmología de San Francisco de Asís, para quien la semilla, la célula y la inteligencia son sagradas? De acuerdo a la Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’, el Papa Francisco señala la convicción de San Francisco de Asís en reconocer a toda criatura como hermana, y a cuidar de todas ellas con cariño (§11). 10La cosmovisión de San Francisco, como queda expresada en Laudato Si’, parece estar anclada en la memoria del pueblo bíblico según la narración del libro del Génesis 2:7, la cual recuerda que “nuestro propio cuerpo está constituido por los elementos del planeta, su aire es el que nos da aliento y su agua nos vivifica y restaura” (§2). Esta cosmovisión igualmente aparece refleja-da en muchas culturas de los pueblos originarios.

En el modo de percibir la creación, según la narrativa del primer capítulo del libro del Génesis, toda criatura desde las semillas, el pasto, el fruto y las hierbas (v. 11), los astros en el firmamento del cielo, la noche, los días y los años (v. 14), hasta los hombres y las mujeres (v. 27), tenemos la misma dignidad y compartimos la misma dimensión sagrada puesto que fuimos creados por un Dios que se detuvo a contemplar su creación y vio que todo lo que había hecho era muy bueno (v. 31). Las semillas y las células comparten la esencia fresca y cristalina del agua del rio, la luminosidad del sol que se refleja en la luna y las estrellas, la sacralidad de los días, las noches, los años y el tiempo.

San Francisco pedía que en el convento siempre se dejara una parte del huerto sin cultivar para que crecieran las hierbas silvestres, de manera que quienes las admiraran, pudieran elevar su pensamiento a Dios, autor de tanta belleza. 11La parte sin cultivar, invitaba y estimulaba la biodiversidad y la sostenibilidad en el pequeño huerto franciscano. Tierra, frutos, y hierbas silvestres, tenían una dimensión sagrada de la

10 El símbolo “§” seguido por un número, se refiere a un párrafo o párrafos en secciones de la Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’.

11 Tomás de Celano, Vida segunda de San Francisco, Séptima edición (Madrid: Biblioteca de Autores Cristianos, 1998), capítulo CXXIV, n. 165.


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misma forma que lo tiene para las culturas ancestrales que dieron lugar a la evolución y la diversidad de las semillas, relacionándose con ellas con amor inteligente durante miles y miles de años. Costumbres, lenguas, rituales, leyendas, climas y ecosistemas en relación íntima con las semi-llas, crearon una gran variedad de culturas.

En China, por ejemplo, desde el período anterior a la dinastía Qin (221-206 AEC12), el arroz ya era el principal alimento y era ofrecido como ofrenda ritual a Shennong, El Divino Granjero, quien, según la tradición, transmitió a sus ancestros la práctica de la agricultura. Para la cultura Teenek, de una comunidad indígena ubicada en la Huasteca, al norte del estado de Veracruz en México, en el maíz está el origen del ser humano. El Popol-Vuh, Libro del Consejo, libro sagrado de su comunidad relata el diálogo entre los Progenitores, Tepeu y Gucumatz, sobre “la creación y la formación de nuestra primera madre y padre”:

“De maíz amarillo y de maíz blanco se hizo su carne; de masa de maíz se hicieron los brazos y las piernas del hombre. Únicamente masa de maíz entró en la carne de nuestros padres, los cuatro hombres que fueron creados…Entonces existieron también sus esposas y fueron hechas las mujeres. Dios mismo las hizo cuidadosamente”13.

Según esta narrativa mítica de la creación, los hombres, las muje-res, y los pueblos no pueden vivir sin el maíz. Para vivir, es necesario que siga alimentándose del maíz, ese mismo cuerpo hecho de maíz. Estas culturas a pesar de ser tan distintas, tienen algo en común, en cuanto que son compatibles con la misma intuición de San Francisco de Asís: comprendieron el secreto de la vida implícito en una semilla. La simiente donde está contenido el embrión que habrá de convertirse en una planta que eventualmente reventará en frutos, granos o semillas que generarán más vida dando lugar a la biodiversidad global. En nuestros días, esta biodiversidad global está en peligro.

“Francisco, repara mi casa; ¿no ves que se hunde?”

En las biografías de San Francisco de Asís hay consistencia en notar que este fue el llamado de Dios que él recibió, escuchado mientras oraba,

12 “AEC” : Antes de la Era Común.13 El Popol Vuh: Las antiguas historias del Quiché, traducidas del texto original

con introducción y notas de Adrián Recinos (San José, Costa Rica: Editorial Universitaria Centroamericana, 1978), 100, 103.


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contemplando al Cristo crucificado en la vieja iglesia de San Damián14. En mi acercamiento a este tema, creo que este es el mismo llamado que impregna la Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’. En su elección como Obispo de Roma, el Papa Francisco tomó en nombre de “Francisco” en honor a San Francisco de Asís, como un “modelo bello que puede motivarnos” (§10).

San Francisco entendió su vínculo con Dios a través de todo lo que vive, emulando así a Dios quien se hizo vínculo para unirse a la humanidad y a la creación mediante redes de relaciones co-existencia-les e interdependientes. Desde la cosmología de San Francisco, toda persona y comunidad dependen una de la otra para verdaderamente alcanzar la propia identidad como seres creados por un mismo Creador. Precisamente, la ecología integral que propone el Papa Francisco consis-te en hacer sagrada la vida que cada quien recibe cada día, amando lo creado. Sólo Dios crea vida, crea relaciones y salva a la humanidad y al mundo creando esas relaciones.

Tomando como modelo a San Francisco de Asís, la ecología inte-gral que el Papa Francisco propone, tiene su base en esas relaciones que salvan de las hondas manifestaciones de pecado que se recrudecen cada vez más cuando las criaturas son desacralizadas. Tal desacralización ocu-rre en las realidades sociales de pobreza exacerbada que va más allá de la falta de alimento o medicinas, de la falta de trabajo, de las migraciones forzadas, de la falta de respeto por lo más pequeño, por lo indefenso, lo inerme, lo frágil. Ahí aparece manifestada la injusticia social como un pecado porque es ir en contra de nuestra propia naturaleza. Alterar la vida contenida en el gen de una semilla, o en una célula con el propósito de llenarse las manos de poder y dinero es expuesta como una mezquin-dad absoluta: lo artificial jamás sustituirá la vida.

Reparar y cuidar nuestra Casa Común, vista como la Hermana Madre Tierra, es el núcleo de la propuesta de la Encíclica Laudato Sí. Promueve una ecología integral como nuevo paradigma de justicia, una teología que “incorpore el lugar peculiar del ser humano en este mundo

14 San Damián era una iglesia pequeña situada a un kilómetro y medio de las murallas de Asís, al pie de una colina. Encima del altar abandonado, había un crucifijo que se había salvado del deterioro. De éste crucifijo, la voz del Cristo crucificado, llamó a Francisco de Asís diciéndole: “Francisco, ¿no ves que mi casa se hunde? Anda, pues, y repárala”. Sobre esto, ver Donald Spoto, Francisco de Asís: El santo que quiso ser hombre (Barcelona: Ediciones B.S.A., 2007), 81-82; Enciclopedia Franciscana, “El crucifijo de San Damián y San Francisco de Asís,” Directorio Franciscano, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://www.franciscanos.org/enciclopedia


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y sus relaciones con la realidad que le rodea” (§15). Su propuesta es un llamado a replantear los objetivos y el significado de la actividad humana, para incluir la admiración por la vida, el estupor por los amaneceres y las puestas de sol, la fascinación por los colibríes y las abejas, la veneración por las semillas y las células, la devoción por las margaritas, los alcatraces y las hierbas silvestres.

La responsabilidad de cuidar nuestro planeta por sobre los bene-ficios económicos y de lucro de las gigantes multinacionales como Monsanto, es parte de ese llamado. También incluye el poner los bene-ficios del conocimiento, los avances de la ciencia y de la tecnología al servicio de la vida, pero buscando el bien común que subyace en todo lo que está relacionado con la dimensión más profunda del ser humano, lo que une a la persona y a toda la humanidad con el planeta y con todo lo que tiene vida.

Una espiritualidad ecológica. Prácticas de cambio.

El Papa Francisco propone una espiritualidad centrada en Dios, autor de la vida, fuente de belleza y bondad, y Creador de nuestra casa común, para no terminar adorando a otros poderes, para no colocarnos en el lugar de Dios, para no pisotear la realidad que creó, para reco-nocer nuestros límites. Esa espiritualidad, llamada en Laudato Si’ como una “espiritualidad ecológica”15, la propone como la mejor manera de poner en su lugar al ser humano, de acabar con sus pretensiones de dominación. Pero también propone un proceso de reflexión permanente sobre el significado mismo de la existencia humana en mundo, ya que el tipo de planeta que la humanidad construye –o destruye—viene a ser la expresión de su propia dignidad. En su encíclica, el Papa propone estas preguntas: “¿Para qué pasamos por este mundo? ¿Para qué vinimos a esta vida? ¿Para qué trabajamos y luchamos? ¿Para qué nos necesita esta tierra?” (§160).

En la cosmovisión de San Francisco de Asís, la posible respuesta sería: Para ser protectores de la obra de Dios como parte esencial de una existencia virtuosa. Alcanzar la armonía con la conciencia de no estar desconectados de las demás criaturas, de formar con todos los seres del universo una preciosa comunión universal. No contemplar la realidad “desde fuera” para alterarla sino desde dentro para amarla y cuidarla. En respuesta a los graves problemas ambientales que afectan al mundo

15 Todo el capítulo sexto de la Carta Encíclica está enfocado en el tema de la “Educación y espiritualidad ecológica”.


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de hoy, una espiritualidad ecológica exige prácticas de cambio a todos niveles.

A nivel mundial, ya ha comenzado una lucha global por el rescate de las semillas. Por ejemplo, en el Círculo Polar Ártico, ha sido estableci-da una enorme despensa subterránea de semillas de miles de plantas de cultivo de todo el mundo. Este es un caso donde los avances científicos y tecnológicos son usados para el bien del planeta y la humanidad. Se trata de una especie de “Arca de Noé” para semillas16. Creada a iniciativa del gobierno de Noruega—en colaboración con la Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Alimentación y la Agricultura (FAO), la Alianza para la Diversidad Global de los Cultivos, se ha dado a la tarea de reco-lectar 2,000 millones de semillas, equivalente a 4,5 millones de muestras de todo el planeta para almacenarlas y conservarlas en óptimas condicio-nes. Está situada cerca de Longyearbyen, en el archipiélago noruego de Svalbard.

El Arca de Noé para semillas consiste en un complejo de tres almacenamientos de alta seguridad situados al final de un túnel de 125 metros en el interior de una montaña. Las semillas se conservan a una temperatura de 18 grados bajo cero, empacadas en contenedores de alu-minio de cuatro capas, que a su vez están en cajas almacenadas en estan-tes. La bóveda es impermeable a la actividad volcánica, los terremotos, la radiación y la crecida del nivel del mar, y en caso de fallo eléctrico, el permafrost (capa de hielo permanentemente congelada) del exterior actúa como refrigerante natural. Es el almacén de semillas más grande del mundo, creado para salvaguardar la biodiversidad de la especie. Hay que mencionar que dentro de la bóveda no hay organismos genéticamente modificados. En menor escala existen bancos comunitarios de semillas en países como México en el herbario del Colegio de la Frontera Sur, y en Colombia en “Semillas de Identidad”17, entre otros muchos países y culturas que se preocupan por recuperar y conservar especies de semillas nativas en peligro de extinción.

16 Agencias, “Inaugurada en el Ártico el ‘Arca de Noé’ de las plantas”, Diario El País, 26 febrero de 2008, acceso el 3 de julio de 2016, http://sociedad.elpais.com/sociedad/2008/02/26 Ver también, Crop Trust, https://www.croptrust.org

17 Semillas de Identidad en Bogotá, Colombia, trabaja con la Fundación SWISSAID por la defensa de la biodiversidad y la soberanía alimentaria. Esta organización, además de vincular la defensa de las semillas con la defensa de la vida y los territorios, tiene en cuenta aspectos sociales, económicos, eco-lógicos, ambientales y culturales desde la mirada de los actores locales como la base de la vida, el conjunto de relaciones familiares y las representaciones simbólicas y culturales del entorno natural. Ver, http://semillasdeidentidad.blogspot.com


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A nivel comunitario, en nuestros barrios y en nuestras iglesias bien podemos reunirnos para hablar sin miedo sobre los términos de los avan-ces científicos para entender qué son, para qué son, cuál es su aplicación práctica, a quienes beneficia, y qué pueden aportar a la red de relaciones vivas en nuestras realidades cotidianas. Las iglesias están llamadas a ofre-cer respuestas al problema de la crisis ecológica mediante el desarrollo de programas centrados en la educación ambiental que incluyan el fomento de un nuevo estilo de vida para la defensa y el cuidado del ambiente.

A nivel personal, estamos llamados a crecer en una espiritualidad ecológica que proporcione los valores, los hábitos nuevos, y las moti-vaciones para un compromiso permanente por el cuidado del mundo. Este tipo de espiritualidad requiere de una conversión ecológica que lleve a reconocer la conexión de cada persona con el mundo creado. También contribuye a fortalecer iniciativas para “salir de esta espiral de autodestrucción en la que nos estamos sumergiendo” (§163), causada en gran medida por los estilos de vida donde se mueven los transgénicos y los sintéticos. Cuánto podríamos conseguir desde nuestros hogares en las situaciones cotidianas y simples, preguntarnos por ejemplo por qué los jitomates no tienen sabor o por qué las frutas están pensadas más como adornos para el frutero que como alimentos nutritivos, y buscar alterativas para dejar de consumir productos con esas características. Esta pequeña acción por insignificante que parezca, puede llegar a ser como esos granitos de arena que caen en los engranajes de la gran maquinaria y la hace parar.


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Con i loro miti e i loro dogmi, con le loro leggi e la loro morale, le religioni sono state a lungo il motore del sistema operativo delle società. Ma, almeno nella forma che ci è familiare, non sono destinate a durare per sempre. "Per sem-pre" è la spiritualità, intesa come dimensione profonda costituiva dell'essere umano, non la religione, che ne costituisce la forma socio-culturale concreta, storica e dun-que contingente e mutevole. La tesi degli autori del libro - J.S. Spong, M. López Vigil, R. Lenares e J.M. Vigil, tra i nomi più prestigiosi, bri-llanti e amati della nuova teologia di frontiera - è che le religioni così come le conosciamo siano destina-te a lasciare spazio a qualcosa di nuovo e non ancora facilmente pre-vedibile, ma sicuramente aprendo all'insopprimibile dimensione spi-rituale dell'essere umano un futuro ricco di straordinarie possibilità.

Ma che ne sarà della tradizione di Gesù? Riuscirà il cristianesimo nell'impresa di trasformare se stesso, reinterpretando e riconvertendo tutto il suo patrimonio simbolico in vista del futuro che lo attende? Riuscirà a liberarsi di dogmi, riti, gerarchie e norme, di tutti quei rituali religiosi che hanno finito per sovrapporsi al Vangelo?

È a questo compito tutt'altro che semplice che hanno rivolto le loro riflessioni, e dedicato la loro vita, gli autori di questo libro, ma a cui guardano con interesse e passione anche tutti coloro - e sono sempre di più - che avvertono la necessità di trasformare la propria religiosità, vivendo ormai dolorosamente la contraddizione con la dottrina ufficiale e coltivando una vita spirituale al di fuori di ogni steccato religioso.

Gabrielli Editori | www.gabriellieditori.it | [email protected] 978-88-6099-290-1 | Págine: 272 | Uscita: aprile 2016 | Italia

Oltre le religioniUna nuova epoca per la spiritualità umana

J.S. SPONG - Mª LÓPEZ VIGIL - R. LENAERS - J.M. VIGILA cura di Claudia FANTI e Ferdinando SUDATI

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In his Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’, Pope Francis1 asserts that humankind and the environment are reeling from the effects of the “rapidification” (§18)2 of “superdevelopment” (§109). This pursuit is spu-rred relentlessly by the one-dimensional techno-scientific rationality that spawns the culture of indifference (§106-108) and relativism (§123). The one-dimensional anthropocentricism has hollowed human existence of its transcendental value. Many believe that the mental age has run its course. We are now in the mystical age. This age offers humankind an opportune time to realize that “we are people of the quantum leap!”.3

Delightful to note in Laudato Si’ the much awaited “awe-filled con-templation of creation” (§125) that Pope Francis has ingeniously woven into the papal document. This ingenuity serves to alert the contemporary women and men of the need to “water the vast inner desert” (§217) in human civilization with the dews of the contemplative and prophetic mysticism of St. Francis of Assisi.4

A Call to Live a Contemplative

and Prophetic MysticismJojo M. FUNG s.j.

Manila, Philippines

1 Pope Francis, Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’ of the Holy Father Francis On Care for Our Common Home, 24 May 2015, Vatican City, Online edition, accessed July 10, 2016, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals.


3 Kathleen Coyle, “Theology and the New Cosmology: A Quantum Leap in Theological and Spiritual Insight,” East Asian Pastoral Institute Review 50/2 (2013): 189; Frank X. Tuoti, The Dawn of the Mystical Age: An Invitation to Enlightenment (New York: Crossroad Publishing, 1997), 3.

4 See Canticle of the Creatures, in Francis of Assisi: Early Documents, Vol. I, ed. Regis J. Armstrong, J.A. Wayne Hellmann, and William J. Short (Manila: New City Publications, 1999), 113-114.

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Only the dews of mystical moments enable contemporary women and men to awaken within themselves the insightful exhortation of Ali al-Khawas, as cited in the Encyclical: “There is a subtle mystery in each of the movements and sounds of this world. The initiate will capture what is being said when the wind blows, the trees sways, water flows, flies buzz, doors creak, birds sing, or in the sound of strings or flutes, the sighs of the sick, the groans of the afflicted.”5 In this mystical experience, the “distance between the creatures of the world and the interior experience of God”6 no longer exists.

This experience of oneness is indispensable to the contemplative mysticism woven into the interstices of Laudato Si’. Allow me to bare my soul with the humble intent that the sense of oneness with creation is attainable and profoundly transformative.

Annual Retreat. Day 7 July 5, 2015. 10.00-11.00am. Second Prayer Period. Jesus’ life is one of recurrent moments of mystical union with creation for he states that “I am the gate”, “I am the living water”, “I am the bread of life”. I find myself desiring the grace of mystical intimacy with creation too. Suddenly, welling up within me is an understanding that “I am the soaring eagle”, “I am the sacred forest”, “I am the mystical rain”, “I am the wind of life (not of death)”, “I am the glittering raindrops”, “I am the smiling dolphin”, “I am the smiling rainbow”, “I am the blue sky shinning cloud”. I truly desired an intimate experience with the rain and the wind. I listen to the rain, I heard, “I desire to have intimacy with you too.” With the wind, “I heard, “you are part of me and I am part of you.”

The experience of intimacy sets the stage for greater what I call greater “contemplative flourishing.” I was immensely intrigued and challenged by the mystical insight of St. John of the Cross, as expressed in the Encyclical: “the realities and experiences of this world ‘is present in God eminently and infinitely, or more properly, in each of these sublime realities is God’. This is not because the finite things of this world are really divine, but because the mystic experiences the intimate connection between God and all beings, and thus feels that ‘all things are God’.” (§234). Only after a month of praying and more specifically in front of a tree have I fully understood this insight. My journal entry indicates that praying on “all things are God” is profoundly transformation in that it has led me to a personal conviction that “all things are truly God” and realized that theo-en-passim and panentheism are the two sides of a coin.

5 Pope Francis, Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’, Footnote 159. See Eva de Vitray-Meyerovitch, ed., Anthologie du soufisme (Paris: Sinbad, 1978), 200.

6 Ibid.

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August 27-28, 2015. From 26 to 28, praying on Laudato Si’, “all things are God,” in the earthing prayer session at the back of Moro Lorenzo sta-dium, Ateneo de Manila University campus, Manila, has informed me that all of creation is so Godly and Divine. Yesterday, I prayed to the tree in front of me, “speak to me that all things are God.” I heard the tree’s communication in my innermost being, “I am God indwelling in the tree.” I responded, “I am God too indwelling in me.” Then I heard the response from the tree, “we are one.” In today’s prayer, August 28, 2015, I ask all things in front of me as I sat praying on the sofa in the TV room, “speak to me that all things are God.” The building, the tree, the chairs, everything/everyone and all things speak to me, “I am God indwelling in creation.” I realized that each created parts of creation reflects God indwelling in creatures. God is indeed in all, through all, all in all. I realized that I am living in such a divine milieu, the insight that Teilhard de Chardin has realized in his time.7 He is truly a geo/comic mystic of his time!! The divine milieu is all around me and inside me too. God, Jesus, God’s ruach are the center and source of this divine milieu, this cosmic sacred web of life.

September 5, 2015. In hearing the voice “I am God” in relation to Laudato Si’ 234 “all things are God,” I now understood that the tree is a creaturely or an incarnated manifestation of “I am God indwelling in this tree” in the sense of Theo-en-passim. So like God, I too indwell in the tree and the tree in me, like a “compenetrative prescencing.” At the same time, this tree exists and subsists in God in the sense of panentheism. In a particularized sense, the incarnated spirit in the tree is the spirit of the tree. In other word, the tree has a spirit, an incarnated spirit of God. Theo-en-passim is truly the flipside of panentheism in the mystical sense that God who indwells in all things has made it possible for “all things to exist and subsist” in God. The indwelling of God and the existential subsistence in God make possible the mystical expe-rience that “all things are God.”

This experience is foundational to a profoundly intimate inner experience of a mystical cosmology explained in Laudato Si’, “everything is interconnected” (§70), “interdependent” (§ 86), and “interrelated” as “we human beings are united as brothers and sisters on a wonderful pilgrimage, woven together by the love God has for each of his creatures and which also unites us in fond affection with brother sun, sister moon, brother river and mother earth” (§138). In this sacred web of relations, it is God who “wills the interdependence of creatures. The sun and the moon, the cedar and the little flower, the eagle and the sparrow: the spectacle of their countless diversities and inequalities tells us that no creature is self-sufficient. Creatures exist only in dependence on each other, to complete each other, in the service of each other” (§86) Moreover, “each creature of

7 Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, The Divine Milieu. An Essay on the Interior Life (New York: Harper Torchbooks, 1968).

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the various creatures, willed in its own being, reflects in its own way a ray of God’s infinite wisdom and goodness” (§69). Finally, “creation is of the order of love” (§77) and that “the whole is open to God’s transcendence, within which it develops” (§79). This development is possible because the “Spirit of God has filled the universe with possibilities” and “nature is nothing other than a certain kind of art, namely God’s art, impressed upon things” (§80). Indeed, “the entire material universe speaks of God’s love, his boundless affection for us. Soil, water, mountains–everything is, as it were, a caress of God” (§84).

The experience is profoundly transformative. All of us need to “experience a conversion, or change of heart” (§218) so that human civi-lization is free from the guile and tyranny of a “misguided” and “distor-ted” anthropocentricism” (§68, 69, 118). A Spirit-led metanoia disposes modern women and men to embrace a mystical anthropology that is inse-parable from a mystical cosmology: “I express myself in expressing the world; in my effort to decipher the sacredness of the world, I explore my own” (§85). In this mystical union, the humans enjoy a “closely intertwi-ned relationships: with God, with our neighbor and with the earth” (§66).

In this mystical age, I like to propose a mystical anthropology that portrays the humans as homo spiritus or better, as homo mysticus who are the “incarnate spirits” of God’s Creative Spirit. Assuming the assertion by D. Toolan, that “the human is that being in whom the universe comes to itself in a special mode of conscious reflection,”8 along with T. de Chardin it is safe to conclude that the human is the reflexive consciousness of her/his being as a homo spiritus because the phenomenon of spirit “is the thing we know best in the world since we are itself, and it is for us everything.”9 These “incarnate spirits” enjoy an infinite openness to God and God’s self-disclosure.10 Through contemplative mysticism, the homo mysticus live in a “wakeful” at the cosmic level that is best described as “cosmiciousness” that is connected to the micro level of each embodied human awareness, best described as “bodisciousness.” This mystical “cos-

8 David Toolan, At Home in the Cosmos (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2001), 177.9 Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Human Energy (New York: Harcourt Brace

Jovanovich, Inc: 1969), 93.10 This “incarnate spirit” is transmental, transrational, and transpersonal in natu-

re. As spirit, it is always already there, waiting for us to be more fully present to this ever-present consciousness so as to live in a state of constant witnessing awareness. See Ken Wilber, The Essential Ken Wilber: An Introductory Reader (Boston: Shambhala Publications, 1998), 51; Philip Clayton, Adventures in the Spirit: God, World, Divine Action (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2008), 137. Also see Diarmuid O’Murchu, In the Beginning Was the Spirit. Science, Religion, and Indigenous Spirituality (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2012), 138.

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miciousness” informs each homo mysticus of the fourfold activities of God who is Spirit ( John 4:24) that sustain creation and human civilization.11 These activities are:

1. Suffusing. The whole cosmos and anthropos enjoy the life of profundity, creativity and harmony due to the suffusing presence of ruach elohim. The suffusing presence of ruach elohim enlivens all and everything to the extent that all and everything are sacredly alive in the presence and power of the Great Spirit. This suffusing presence enshrouds all and everything with a sense of the mystery of creation and of life itself.

2. Sensitizing. Ruach elohim sensitizes humankind to the spirit-presence and power of ruach elohim, the ancestral and nature spirits through tangi-ble consequences of the rituals illustrated by a better harvest this year than the previous years, the messages of admonition from the dreams and the everyday events in the lives of the everyday mystics of the diverse religious-cultural traditions. As a result, the everyday mystics live with a heightened sensitivity to the presence and power of ruach elohim, the ancestral and nature spirits. This sensitivity is visibly manifested through a reverential rela-tionship of awe, marvel, reverence and wonder with nature that the everyday mystics behold as spirited and sacred.

3. Sacralizing. Through the seasonal ritual celebrations, ruach elohim sacralizes the families, the farms and the forests, and in addition, the web of relations between the spirit world and the human world, the humans and fellow humans, and lastly, humankind and nature. For this reason, the mystics describe the world as spirited and thus sacralized by the presence and power of ruach elohim. This sacralization renders all and everything in creation sacred and worthy of awe, reverence and wonder, tinged with an aura of fear and the mystery of the sacredness of life.

4. Sustaining. The suffusing, sensitizing and sacralizing presence of the ruach elohim is at the same time a “sacred power” that sustains the cosmic world and the earth-community. Ruach elohim sustains creation through every stage of cosmic implosion-explosion and the epochal changes in the collective memory of the world and humankind.

This mystical “cosmiciousness” alerts the homo mysticus to live as conduits that (a) suffuse the cosmos and anthropos with God’s sacred presence and power to that humankind relate to God’s creation with reverence and sensitivity; (b) sensitize the rest of humankind to the need for developing and globalizing the mystique of “wakeful” mystical aware-ness that gains ready access to the power of God’s Spirit and actualized the spirit-power for the concerted efforts of contestation that reverses the onslaughts at the local, regional and global levels; (c) sacralize the cosmos

11 On the fourfold activities of God’s Spirit, see Jojo M. Fung, S.J., Living in Awe: A New Vision and Mission for Asia (Petaling Jaya: Public Media Agency PMA, 2015), 23-24.


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and anthropos through the power of the spirit world especially through ritual celebrations so that everything and everyone is made sacred; (d) sustain the cosmos and anthropos with the sacred presence and power of the spirit world so that creation manifests the glory and splendor of the dynamism of God’s Creative Spirit.12

Engaging in these fourfold activities, the homo mysticus endeavors to live the Ignatian sense of being,13 a “discerning person” (anthropos diatritikos) who is “perpetually mindful or watchful of God working in all things and at all times.”14 In other words, they live in a mindful mystical sense that facilitates the connection and communication with the cosmic spirit world. At the same time, the homo spiritus becomes the mediatory conduits of the spirit-power. This power is actualized for contesting the radical evil of the corporate cartels and multinational conglomerates.15

These fourfold activities, in consistency with the Encyclical Laudato Si’, enable the homo mysticus to embrace creation with a sen-sitivity to “hear both the cries of the earth and the cries of the poor” (§49) by embodying “a prophetic and contemplative lifestyle,” with a fundamental “conviction that ‘less is more’” (§222). In other words, we are called to a contemplative and prophetic lifestyle of less consumption and more “serene attentiveness” to the inner being/voices that engenders actions so that “creation is projected towards divinization” (§236). This collaborative initiative of the eschatological divinization of creation calls

12 Fung, Living in Awe, 28.13 See, Aloysius Pieris, “Spirituality as Mindfulness: The Biblical and Buddhist

Versions,” in Negotiating Borders: Theological Explorations in a Global Era. Essays in Honour of Prof. Felix Wilfred, ed. Patrick Gnanapragasam and Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza (Delhi: ISPCK Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2008), 187.

14 Fung, Living in Awe, Ibid. Also see Pieris, “Spirituality as Mindfulness,” 185-198.

15 See Thomas J. Volgy, Kristin Kanthak, Derrick V. Frazier, and Robert Stewart Ingersoll, “The G7, International Terrorism, and Domestic Politics: Modeling Policy Cohesion in Response to Systemic Disturbances,” International Interactions 30 (2004): 191-209; Peter Kanyandago, “Globalization: A Reflection on Its Anthropological Underpinnings in Relation to Social Justice,” in Negotiating Borders: Theological Explorations in a Global Era. Essays in Honour of Prof. Felix Wilfred, ed. Patrick Gnanapragasam and Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza (Delhi: ISPCK Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2008), 461; Philip L. Wickeri, “Globalization and Transnational Christianity: Notes on Intercontextual Theology and the Present Ecumenical Situation,” in Negotiating Borders: Theological Explorations in a Global Era. Essays in Honour of Prof. Felix Wilfred, ed. Patrick Gnanapragasam and Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza (Delhi: ISPCK Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2008), 466.

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for an everyday promotion of “integral ecology” (§138-162, 230, 255) that embraces the economic, social, cultural, and daily life, and a preferential option for the poor (§158) of today and the future (§162), a perennial commitment to both intra- and inter-generational solidarity (§162) and the different dialogue that promotes sustainable and equitable development (§192) of humankind and mother earth.

The foundational schooling in a contemplative and prophetic mys-ticism is indispensable to the eco-sensitive education of the women and men of today and tomorrow (§159-162). Having laid this contemplative foundation, the eco-sensitive education proceeds to empower the initiates for a prophetic ministry encompassing the following: (a) A sharp “critique of the ‘myths’ of a modernity grounded in a utilitarian mindset”; (b) The restoration of the “ecological equilibrium, establishing harmony within ourselves, with others, with nature and other living creatures, and with God”; (c) The development of an ethics of ecology that enables “people, through effective pedagogy, to grow in solidarity, responsibility and com-passionate care” (§210) of the poor and creation.

Furthermore, this envisioned eco-sensitive education forms modern women and men in exercising a prophetic “ecological citizenship” for “environmental responsibility.” This responsibility entails pragmatic implementing eco-sensitive practices borne of “sound virtues” and “good habits,” ranging from “avoiding the use of plastic and paper, reducing water consumption, separating refuse, cooking only what can reasonably be consumed, showing care for other living beings, using public trans-port or car-pooling, planting trees, turning off unnecessary lights, or any number of other practices” (§211).

Indeed, the practice of a contemplative and prophetic mysticism transforms the human mind and heart into “sacred spaces” to savor there-in the sacredness of creation and the poor. At the same time, the “sacred spaces” within create “safe spaces” without to facilitate the dialogue bet-ween science, technology, politics, economics, cultures, and religions.16

Grounded in a contemplative and prophetic mysticism, a multi-pronged dialogue aims to enkindle the dialogue partners with “a new reverence for life, the firm resolve to achieve sustainability, the quicke-ning of the struggle for justice and peace, and the joyful celebration of life” (§207).

16 On this dialogue, see Laudato Si’, chapter five: “Lines of Approach and Action,” § 163-201.


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En su Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’, el Papa Francisco1 afirma que la humanidad y el medio ambiente están sufriendo por los efectos de la “rapidación” (§18)2 del “superdesarrollo” (§109). Este propósito es estimu-lado sin descanso por la racionalidad tecno-científica unidimensional que engendra la cultura de la indiferencia (§§106-108) y el relativismo (§123). El antropocentrismo unidimensional ha vaciado la existencia humana de su valor trascendental. Muchos creen que la era mental ha hecho su camino. Ahora estamos en la era mística, la cual ofrece a la humanidad un momento oportuno para tomar conciencia de que "somos gente del salto cuántico!”3.

Es una gran satisfacción observar en Laudato Si’ la tan esperada “admiración contemplativa de la creación” (§125) que el Papa Francisco ha introducido ingeniosamente en el documento papal. Esta inspiración sirve para alertar a las mujeres y hombres contemporáneos de la necesi-dad de “regar el vasto desierto interior” (§217) en la civilización humana

Un llamado a vivir un misticismo contemplativo y profético

Jojo M. Fung S.J.

Manila, Philippines

Traducción de Horacio J.M. Bustos Kessler FMS.

Buenos Aires

1 Papa Francisco, Carta Encíclica Laudato Si' del Santo Padre Francisco sobre el cuidado de nuestra Casa Común, 24 de mayo de 2015, Ciudad del Vaticano, edición online, visitada el 10 de julio de 2016, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals

2 El símbolo "§" seguido de un número se refiere a un párrafo o párrafos en sec-ciones de la Encíclica Laudato Si'.

3 Kathleen Coyle, “Theology and the New Cosmology: A Quantum Leap in Theological and Spiritual Insight” ("Teología y la nueva cosmología: un salto cuántico en la comprensión teológica y espiritual"), East Asian Pastoral Institute Review 50/2 (2013): 189; Frank X. Tuoti, The Dawn of the Mystical Age: An Invitation to Enlightenment (El amanecer de la era mística: una invi-tación a la iluminación) (Nueva York: Crossroad Publishing, 1997), 3.

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con los rocíos del misticismo contemplativo y profético de San Francisco de Asís.4

Sólo los rocíos de los momentos místicos permiten a las mujeres y los hombres contemporáneos despertar en sí la perspicaz exhortación de Ali Al-Khawwas, citada en la Encíclica: “Hay un secreto sutil en cada uno de los movimientos y sonidos de este mundo. Los iniciados llegan a captar lo que dicen el viento que sopla, los árboles que se doblan, el agua que corre, las moscas que zumban, las puertas que crujen, el canto de los pájaros, el sonido de las cuerdas o las flautas, el suspiro de los enfermos, el gemido de los afligidos…”5. En esta experiencia mística, la “distancia entre las criaturas del mundo y la experiencia interior de Dios”6 ya no existe.

Esta experiencia de unidad es indispensable para el misticismo contemplativo entretejido en los intersticios de Laudato Si’. Permítanme desnudar mi alma con la humilde intención de mostrar que el sentido de unidad con la creación es alcanzable y profundamente transformador.

Retiro anual. Día 7°, 5 de julio de 2015, 10.00-11.00 am. Segundo momento de oración. La vida de Jesús es una de las experiencias recurrentes de la unión mística con la creación, pues él afirma: "Yo soy la puerta", "Yo soy el agua viva", "Yo soy el pan de la vida". Estoy deseando para mí la gra-cia de la intimidad mística con la creación. Repentinamente brota en mí una comprensión de que "Yo soy el águila elevada", "Yo soy el bosque sagrado", "Yo soy la lluvia mística", "Yo soy el viento de la vida (no de la muerte)", “Yo soy las brillantes gotas de lluvia", "Yo soy el risueño delfín", "Yo soy el arco iris sonriente", "Yo soy la nube radiante del cielo azul"... Realmente deseaba tener una experiencia íntima con la lluvia y el viento. Escucho la lluvia y oigo: "Deseo tener amistad contigo también". Junto al viento pude escuchar: “Tú eres parte de mí y yo soy parte de ti".

La experiencia de la intimidad prepara el escenario para algo más grande que yo defino como un mayor “florecimiento contemplativo”. Me sentí inmen-samente intrigado y desafiado por la visión mística de San Juan de la Cruz, expresada en la Encíclica: “Las realidades y experiencias de este mundo ‘están presentes en Dios de manera eminente e infinita, o más apropiadamente, Dios está presente en cada una de estas sublimes realidades’.” Esto no se debe a que las cosas finitas de este mundo sean realmente divinas, sino a

4 Véase Canticle of the Creatures, in Francis of Assisi: Early Documents, vol. I, ed. Regis J. Armstrong, J.A. Wayne Hellmann, and William J. Short (Manila: New City Publications, 1999), 113-114.

5 Papa Francisco, Carta Encíclica Laudato Si’, nota 159. Véase Eva de Vitray-Meyerovitch, ed., Anthologie du soufisme (Paris: Sinbad, 1978), 200.

6 Ibid.

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que el místico experimenta la íntima conexión que hay entre Dios y todos los seres, y así “siente ser todas las cosas Dios” (§234). Sólo después de un mes de oración, y más específicamente delante de un árbol, yo pude comprender plenamente esta perspectiva. Mi diario personal testifica que la oración sobre "todas las cosas son Dios" es profundamente una transformación en la medida en que me ha llevado a una convicción personal de que “todas las cosas son verdaderamente Dios” y a una toma de conciencia de que theo-en-passim y panentheism son dos caras de una misma moneda.

27-28 de agosto de 2015. Del 27 al 28, orando sobre la Encíclica Laudato Si’, “todas las cosas son Dios”, en un encuentro de oración con la tierra en la parte posterior del estadio Moro Lorenzo, en el campus del Ateneo de Manila University (Manila), he podido percibir que toda la creación es tan sublime y divina. Ayer oré delante de un árbol, diciéndole: “Dime que todas las cosas son Dios”. Oí la comunicación del árbol en mi ser más íntimo: "Yo soy Dios morando en este árbol". Yo respondí: "Yo soy Dios habitando en mí”. Entonces oí la respuesta del árbol: “Nosotros somos uno.”

En la oración de hoy, 28 de agosto de 2015, mientras yo estaba sentado orando en el sofá de la sala de televisión, imploro a todas las cosas que están delante de mí: “Díganme que todas las cosas son Dios”. El edificio, el árbol, las sillas… todo, todas las personas y todas las cosas me dicen: “Yo soy Dios habitando en la creación”. Me di cuenta de que cada fragmento de la creación refleja a Dios viviendo en sus creaturas. Dios está de hecho en todo, a través de todo, todo en todo. Me di cuenta de que estoy viviendo en un ambiente divino. Esta es la percepción que tuvo Teilhard de Chardin en su tiempo.7 ¡Él fue verdaderamente un místico geo-cósmico de su época! El ambiente divino está a mi alrededor y también muy dentro de mí mismo. Dios, Jesús, el espí-ritu (ruach) de Dios son el centro y la fuente de este entorno divino, de este tejido cósmico y sagrado de la vida.

5 de septiembre de 2015. Al oír la voz "Yo soy Dios" en relación a Laudato Si’ n° 234 "todas las cosas son Dios", pude comprender que el árbol es una manifestación creada o encarnada de "Yo soy Dios habitando en este árbol”, en el sentido de Theo-en-passim. Al igual que Dios, yo también vivo en el árbol y el árbol vive en mí, como una “hermanada presencia”. Al mismo tiem-po, este árbol existe y subsiste en Dios en el sentido de panentheism. En un sentido particular, el espíritu encarnado en el árbol es el espíritu del árbol. En otras palabras, el árbol tiene un espíritu, un espíritu encarnado de Dios. Theo-en-passim es verdaderamente la otra cara del panentheism en el sentido místico de que Dios, quien habita en todas las cosas, ha hecho posible que “todas las cosas existan y subsistan” en Él. La existencia de Dios y la subsis-tencia existencial en Dios hacen posible la experiencia mística de que "todas las cosas son Dios".

7 Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, The Divine Milieu. An Essay on the Interior Life (New York: Harper Torchbooks, 1968).

Un llamado a vivir un misticismo contemplativo y profético · 171

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Esta experiencia es fundamental para una experiencia interna pro-fundamente íntima de la cosmología mística explicada en Laudato Si’, “todo está interconectado” (§70), es “interdependiente” (§86) y está "inte-rrelacionado", como “los seres humanos estamos unidos como hermanos y hermanas en una maravillosa peregrinación, entretejida por el amor que Dios tiene por cada una de sus criaturas y que también nos une afectuo-samente con el hermano sol, la hermana luna, el hermano río y la madre tierra” (§138). En esta sagrada red de relaciones, es Dios quien “quiere la interdependencia de las criaturas. El sol y la luna, el cedro y la florecilla, el águila y el gorrión, las innumerables diversidades y desigualdades significan que ninguna criatura se basta a sí misma, que no existen sino en dependencia unas de otras, para complementarse y servirse mutua-mente” (§86). Además, “cada una de las diversas criaturas, querida en su propio ser, refleja a su manera un rayo de la infinita sabiduría y bondad de Dios” (§ 69). Finalmente, “la creación pertenece al orden del amor” (§77) y “todo está abierto a la trascendencia de Dios, dentro de la cual se desarrolla” (§79). Este desarrollo es posible porque “el Espíritu de Dios ha llenado el universo de posibilidades” y “la naturaleza no es otra cosa que un cierto tipo de arte, es decir, el arte de Dios impreso en las cosas” (§80). De hecho, “todo el universo material habla del amor de Dios, de su infinita ternura por nosotros. El suelo, el agua, las montañas, todo es una caricia de Dios” (§84).

La experiencia es profundamente transformadora. Todos necesita-mos “experimentar una conversión o un cambio de corazón” (§218) para que la civilización humana esté libre del engaño y la tiranía de un antro-pocentrismo mal orientado y distorsionado” (§§68, 69, 118). Una meta-noia dirigida por el Espíritu dispone a las mujeres y los hombres moder-nos para abrazar una antropología mística que es inseparable de una cosmología mística: “Yo me expreso a mí mismo al expresar el mundo; yo exploro mi propia sacralidad al intentar descifrar la del mundo” (§85). En esta unión mística, los seres humanos gozan de “relaciones estrechamente entrelazadas: con Dios, con nuestro prójimo y con la tierra” (§66).

En esta época mística, quisiera proponer una antropología mística que retrata a los seres humanos como homo spiritus o, mejor, como homo mysticus que son los “espíritus encarnados” del espíritu creador de Dios. Asumiendo la afirmación de D. Toolan, de que “el ser humano es aquel en quien el universo llega a sí mismo en un modo específico de reflexión consciente”8, junto con Teilhard de Chardin es seguro concluir que lo humano es la conciencia reflexiva de su ser como homo spiritus, porque el fenómeno del espíritu “es lo que mejor conocemos en el mundo, pues-

172 · Jojo M. FUNG

8 David Toolan, At Home in the Cosmos (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2001), 177.

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to que somos eso mismo, y ello es todo para nosotros”9. Estos “espíritus encarnados” gozan de una apertura infinita a Dios y a la auto-revelación de Dios10. A través del misticismo contemplativo, el homo mysticus vive en una “vigilia” a nivel cósmico que se describe mejor como “conciencia cósmica” (cosmiciousness) que está conectado con el nivel micro de cada consciencia humana encarnada, mejor descrita como “bioconcien-cia” (bodisciousness). Esta conciencia cósmica mística (cosmiciousness) advierte a cada homo mysticus sobre las cuatro actividades de Dios –quien es Espíritu ( Juan 4,24)– que sostiene la creación y la civilización humana11. Estas actividades son:

1. Penetración, impregnación (suffusing). Todo el cosmos y el antropos disfrutan de la vida de profundidad, creatividad y armonía debido a la presencia del espíritu divino (ruach elohim). La presencia insondable de ruach elohim anima todo y cada cosa en la medida en que todo y cada cosa viven de modo sagrado ante la presencia y el poder del Gran Espíritu. Esta pre-sencia penetrante lo envuelve todo y a cada cosa con un hondo sentido del misterio de la creación y de la vida misma.

2. Sensibilización. Ruach elohim sensibiliza a la humanidad hacia la presencia espiritual y el poder de ruach elohim, los espíritus ancestrales y de la naturaleza, por medio de las consecuencias tangibles de los rituales, mostradas por ejemplo a través de una mejor cosecha que la de años anteriores, o los mensajes admo-nitorios que recibimos en los sueños o en los acontecimientos diarios en las vidas de los místicos cotidianos de las diversas tradiciones religioso-culturales. Como resultado, los místicos de la vida diaria viven con una mayor sensibilidad la presencia y el poder de ruach elohim, los espíritus ancestrales y de la naturaleza. Esta sensibilidad se manifiesta visiblemente a través de una relación reverencial de asombro, admiración, respeto y

9 Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Human Energy (New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc: 1969), 93.

10 Este "espíritu encarnado" es trans-mental, trans-racional y trans-personal por naturaleza. En cuanto espíritu, siempre está pronto, esperando que nosotros estemos más plenamente abiertos a esta conciencia siempre presente, para vivir en un estado de constante testimonio consciente. Véase Ken Wilber, The Essential Ken Wilber: An Introductory Reader (Boston: Shambhala Publications, 1998), 51; Philip Clayton, Adventures in the Spirit: God, World, Divine Action (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2008), 137. Also see Diarmuid O’Murchu, In the Beginning Was the Spirit. Science, Religion, and Indigenous Spirituality (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2012), 138.

11 Sobre las cuatro actividades del Espíritu de Dios, véase Jojo M. Fung, S.J., Living in Awe: A New Vision and Mission for Asia (Petaling Jaya: Public Media Agency PMA, 2015), 23-24.


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fascinación con la naturaleza que los místicos de la vida diaria ven como espirituales y sagrados.

3. Sacralización. A través de las celebraciones rituales de las esta-ciones, ruach elohim sacraliza a las familias, las granjas y los bosques, y además, la red de relaciones entre el mundo de los espíritus y el mundo humano, los seres humanos y los seres compañeros de los humanos, la humanidad y la naturaleza. Por esta razón, los místicos describen el mundo como espiritualiza-do y, por tanto, sacralizado por la presencia y poder de ruach elohim. Esta sacralización hace que todo y todas las cosas de la creación sean sagradas y dignas de respeto, reverencia y asom-bro, teñidas con un aura de temor reverente ante el misterio de la sacralidad de la vida.

4. Sostenimiento. La presencia penetrante, sensibilizadora y sacra-lizadora del ruach elohim es al mismo tiempo un “poder sagra-do” que sostiene el mundo cósmico y la comunidad terrena. Ruach elohim sostiene la creación a través de cada etapa de la implosión-explosión cósmica y de los cambios de época presen-tes en la memoria colectiva del mundo y la humanidad.

Esta “conciencia cósmica” mística (cosmiciousness) exige al homo mysticus que viva siendo un canal que: (a) impregna el cosmos y el anthropos con la sagrada presencia y poder de Dios, para que la huma-nidad se relacione con la creación de Dios con reverencia y sensibilidad; (b) sacraliza el cosmos y el anthropos por medio del poder del mundo espiritual, especialmente con las celebraciones rituales, para que todo y cada una de las criaturas lleguen a ser sagrados; (c) sensibiliza al resto de la humanidad sobre la necesidad de desarrollar y globalizar la místi-ca de la “conciencia mística despierta” que logra acceder fácilmente al poder del Espíritu de Dios y que actualiza el poder espiritual a través de los esfuerzos deliberados de discusión que revierten las agresiones en los niveles local, regional y mundial; (d) sostiene el cosmos y el anthro-pos con la presencia sagrada y el poder del mundo espiritual para que la creación revele la gloria y el esplendor del dinamismo del Espíritu Creador de Dios.12

Partiendo de estas cuatro actividades, el homo mysticus se esfuerza por ser una “persona de discernimiento” (anthropos diatritikos)13, “con-

174 · Jojo M. FUNG

12 Fung, Living in Awe, 28.13 Véase: Aloysius Pieris, “Spirituality as Mindfulness: The Biblical and Buddhist

Versions,” in Negotiating Borders: Theological Explorations in a Global Era. Essays in Honour of Prof. Felix Wilfred, ed. Patrick Gnanapragasam and Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza (Delhi: ISPCK Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2008), 187.

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tinuamente consciente y atenta del trabajo que Dios realiza en todas las cosas y a cada instante”14. En otras palabras, vive en un sentido de con-ciencia mística que facilita la conexión y la comunicación con el mundo del espíritu cósmico. Al mismo tiempo, el homo spiritus se convierte en el cauce mediador del poder espiritual. Este poder se actualiza para impugnar el mal radical de los sistemas corporativos y las coaliciones multinacionales.15

Estas cuatro actividades, en consonancia con la Encíclica Laudato Si’, permiten al homo mysticus abrazar la creación con una sensibilidad para “oír tanto los gritos de la tierra como los gritos de los pobres” (§ 49) incorporando “un profético y contemplativo estilo de vida”, con una “convicción fundamental de que 'menos es más'” (§222). En otras pala-bras, estamos llamados a un estilo de vida contemplativo y profético de menor consumo y más “serena atención” al ser íntimo y a las voces inte-riores que engendran acciones para que “la creación se proyecte hacia la divinización” (§236). Esta iniciativa colaborativa de la divinización esca-tológica de la creación exige una promoción diaria de la “ecología inte-gral” (§§138-162, 230, 255) que abrace la vida económica, social, cultural y cotidiana, con una opción preferencial por los pobres (§158) de hoy y del futuro (§162), con un compromiso perenne por la solidaridad intra e intergeneracional (§162) y con un diálogo renovado que promueva el desarrollo sostenible y equitativo (§192) de la humanidad y de la madre tierra.

La enseñanza fundacional de un misticismo contemplativo y profé-tico es indispensable para la educación eco-sensible de las mujeres y los hombres de hoy y de mañana (§§ 159-162). Después de haber establecido este fundamento contemplativo, la educación eco-sensible procedería

14 Fung, Living in Awe, Ibid. Also see Pieris, “Spirituality as Mindfulness,” 185-198.

15 Véase: Thomas J. Volgy, Kristin Kanthak, Derrick V. Frazier, and Robert Stewart Ingersoll, “The G7, International Terrorism, and Domestic Politics: Modeling Policy Cohesion in Response to Systemic Disturbances,” International Interactions 30 (2004): 191-209; Peter Kanyandago, “Globalization: A Reflection on Its Anthropological Underpinnings in Relation to Social Justice,” in Negotiating Borders: Theological Explorations in a Global Era. Essays in Honour of Prof. Felix Wilfred, ed. Patrick Gnanapragasam and Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza (Delhi: ISPCK Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2008), 461; Philip L. Wickeri, “Globalization and Transnational Christianity: Notes on Intercontextual Theology and the Present Ecumenical Situation,” in Negotiating Borders: Theological Explorations in a Global Era. Essays in Honour of Prof. Felix Wilfred, ed. Patrick Gnanapragasam and Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza (Delhi: ISPCK Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2008), 466.


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a capacitar a los iniciados para un ministerio profético que abarque lo siguiente: (a) una aguda “crítica de los ‘mitos’ de una modernidad basada en una mentalidad utilitaria”; (b) la restauración del “equilibrio ecológico, estableciendo la armonía dentro de nosotros mismos, con los demás, con la naturaleza y otros seres vivientes, y con Dios”; (c) el desarrollo de una ética de la ecología que permita “a las personas, a través de una pedago-gía eficaz, crecer en solidaridad, responsabilidad y cuidado compasivo” (§210) de los pobres y de la creación.

Por otra parte, esta supuesta educación eco-sensitiva busca formar a las mujeres y hombres modernos en el ejercicio de una profética “ciu-dadanía ecológica” de “responsabilidad ambiental”. Esta responsabilidad implica la implementación de prácticas eco-sensibles aplicadas al medio ambiente que están basadas en el cultivo de “virtudes sólidas” y “buenos hábitos”, que van desde “evitar el uso de plásticos y papel, reducir el consumo de agua, separar los deshechos, cocinar sólo lo que se puede consumir razonablemente, tratar con cuidado a los demás seres vivos, utilizar transporte público o compartir un mismo vehículo entre varias personas, plantar árboles, apagar luces innecesarias, o cualquier tipo de prácticas semejantes” (§211).

De hecho, la práctica de un misticismo contemplativo y profético transforma la mente y el corazón humanos en “espacios sagrados” y nos capacita para saborear en ellos la sacralidad de la creación y la sacralidad de los pobres. Al mismo tiempo, los “lugares sagrados” interiores crean “espacios seguros” exteriores para facilitar el diálogo entre la ciencia, la tecnología, la política, la economía, las culturas y las religiones.16

Cimentado en un misticismo contemplativo y profético, un diálo-go multidimensional pretende enriquecer a los interlocutores con “una nueva reverencia ante la vida, la firme resolución de alcanzar la sosteni-bilidad, el aceleramiento en la lucha por la justicia y la paz, y la alegre celebración de la vida” (§207).

16 Sobre este diálogo, véase Laudato Si’, Capítulo 5: “Algunas líneas de orienta-ción y acción”, §§ 163-201.

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Theological Themes of Asian Christianity for the Inmediate Future

Edmund CHIA*

Australian Catholic University.

While Christianity has been in Asia for the most part of the last five centuries, it was only in the last five or so decades that we have come to appreciate more positively the contribution of what is now known as Asian Christianity. Prior to that the Christian face in Asia was more in the image of European Christianity as colonial churches did no more than replicate the beliefs and practices of the churches of their colonial masters. The last 50 years, however, have seen a proliferation of new thin-king emerging from Asia, giving rise to a variety of contextual interpre-tations of theology, especially those which resonate more amicably with the peoples, cultures, and religions of Asia. To that end the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians (EATWOT) has played a major role in spearheading the reflections.

Premised on the supposition that theology is a dynamic and ongoing reflective process, which is always in critical correlation and con-versation with the realities and issues of the contexts and the times, we cannot but surmise that there is still much to be done in the task of deve-loping an Asian Christian tradition that speaks to not only the minds but also the hearts and souls of Christians and their neighbors in Asia. Under the generic rubric of “where do we go next?” this brief article will identify three major themes (and the related sub-themes within each of them) that

From Asian EATWOT

Australia

With its mind set on the new EATWOT leadership quinquen-nium, this reflection from Australia takes the floor, inviting all other regions to participate in the dance / dialogue / debate. Yours are welcomen.

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need to be further interrogated for no other reason than because they continue to impinge upon the Christian faith. Some of the sub-themes have surfaced as problematic or challenging to Asian Christianity only in the more recent decades. For each of them, the reader is guided by the following questions: “what else is there to say about this issue?”, “why is there still a concern about this issue?”, “who should we hear from on this issue?”, “what continues to be the challenges of this issue?”, and “where do we need to focus when dealing with this issue?”

1. Christianity in Post- and Neo-colonial Asia

Even as most, if not all, of Asia have already been liberated from the colonial rule of yesteryears, the peoples have still a long ways to go before being finally freed from the thought patterns that continues to be passed on to Asians on account of the pervasive global Euro-American domination and hegemony. While post-colonial theologies have informed a number of Asian articulations for Christian living, the neo-colonial influences of the recent decades are presently shaping the minds and hearts of Asians in general. If anything, the forces of globalization from the West are wielding a much more powerful influence on the Asian thin-king and lifestyle today than they did during the colonial era. This applies as much to the churches in Asia as Christians strive to establish their own identities as truly Christians but at the same time truly Asians as well.

Asian Christianity has to work harder at shedding its foreign image so as to be accepted by the local peoples and cultures as an authenti-cally Asian religion. One area which needs urgent examination is the recent perpetuation of the Prosperity Gospel, generally imported from the affluent nations in the West through the more Pentecostally-oriented churches, to discern its place in the Asian context. It would be useful to examine how these churches develop their indigenous and local cha-racteristics and how they can become finally individuated from their mother-churches in all spheres creatively, including ecclesiologically, doctrinally, and financially. Another challenge is to deal with the fact that the churches in Asia, as minorities, have also the task of finding their place in the public realm so as to be able to play a meaningful role in the socio-political process of their respective nations. At times this is hinde-red severely by the churches’ experience of a minority complex rendering them fearful of being critical of the regime in order to protect whatever limited rights they are granted by the ruling elites. To be sure, many local churches have undergone periods of soul-searching and confronted with

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a crisis of identity. The task of developing holistic models and visions for a truly Asian church is crucial for the near future.

2. Christian Identity in Multi-religious Asia

Another urgent issue which needs continued interrogation is how Christians practice their faith in the context of the religious pluralism of Asia where the other major religions of the world have nourished the faith lives of most peoples in Asia. In addressing this concern the Christian’s task is not so much to discern the role the other religions play in God’s economy of salvation but rather to discover the place of Christianity in the rich mosaic of the religious experience of peoples in Asia. Likewise, Christian mission is understood not so much in terms of how peoples of other religions are potential beneficiaries or targets of evangelization but how Christians can be in partnership with them. An integral approach to evangelization addresses the challenges confronting the local commu-nity for the purpose of alleviating the suffering of the people and libe-rating them from all that is afflicting their lives of harmony and peace. Thus collaboration with the adherents of other religions is imperative. This partnership across religious traditions is also important given the frequency in which interreligious hatred and conflicts have often been stirred up for extra-religious, in particular political and economic, ends. Similarly, the scourge of fundamentalism in all the religions (including Christianity) has also to be dealt with and would benefit most if there is interreligious cooperation.

While there is generally evidence of increased understanding and relationship amongst Christians with people of other religious traditions as well as active participation of Christians in organized interfaith dialo-gues, more still needs to be done to enable the interreligious conscious-ness to permeate all sectors of church life. The increase in the numbers of Christians marrying partners who adhere to other religions calls for not only greater pastoral sensitivity but also theological elaboration on interfaith marriages. That it has become more common and acceptable for people to claim multiple religious belonging or identities also invites reflections on the phenomenon. To this end a major need is for ade-quate formation on interreligious relations to be provided especially for church leaders and ministers of the Gospel. Seminaries and theological institutions play an important role in helping future priests and pastoral workers prepare themselves to face not only their Christian flock but also to navigate the multi-religious environments of Asian societies. The recent

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discipline of Comparative Theology needs to be advanced to mainstream levels so that Christians can learn to engage in “faith seeking understan-ding” while learning from and with peoples of other religions.

3. Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation

If the phenomenon of multi-religiousness is distinct to Asia when compared with the other developing continents, Asia is united with Latin America and Africa in having to deal with the phenomenon of suffering, poverty and injustice. Thus, there needs to be continued reflection on the issue of justice and peace as well as on the activities which have an impact on the integrity of the created world. To be sure, Asians conti-nue to be plagued by multiple forms of poverty and suffering, a lot of which are a direct result of oppressive regimes or corrupt leadership, in particular those who rule autocratically. The widening gap between those who have a lot and those who have a little is a quintessential pro-blem that remains unresolved. The perpetual suffering of the poor and marginalized, including peoples from the tribal and indigenous cultures (many of whom have been converted to Christianity or one of the other major religions), remains a challenge that needs to be attended to more constructively. The poverty of the indigenous is also closely linked to the destructive and unbridled developments of many megacities which in the process results in a variety of environmental problems, including defores-tation, air and sea pollution.

More recently, the phenomenon of peoples on the move has gene-rated the new poor within many communities across much of Asia. Some are movements within national borders, such as rural-urban migration, and others are cross-border migration, including many who are forced to flee as refugees, asylum seekers, and also those who are trafficked. There is also the reality that many of those who move involuntarily are the most vulnerable, i.e., women and also the girl child. Their concerns ought to feature prominently in all theological reflections. Unfortunately, in some instances religion has played a role in causing people to choose between leaving their beloved homelands or risk persecution. There are also the millions who migrate voluntarily in search of jobs in order to feed their families back home. All these are the new poor and, as strangers in new lands, deserve to be welcome by the churches in the host communities.

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Wherever the water flows, life comes into being

Developing an Old Testament Theology of Water*

Emanuel GERRIT SINGGIH*

Professor in Duta Wacana Christian University,

Yogyakarta , Indonesia,

pastor of GPIB and member of EATWOT since 1990s.

Abstract

Global water supply has become scarce due to pollution and glo-bal warming. There are etiher too much water or to little water. Both are deadly. Theological explorations concerning the meaning and value or water has only recently emerging. This article is an effort to develop an Old Testament Theology of water as something that has an intrinsic value. In the context of Indonesia, the poor are facing scarcity of fresh water, not because of natural hazards, but because more and more they are pre-vented from taking water from the communal springs, as the springs are taken over by big companies. Water is not free, but has become a com-modity. The background of this article is the discussion and discourse on ecology within theological circles in Indonesia, both in Christianity and in Islam.

Key-words and concepts

Intrinsic value of water - symbolic meaning of water - tehom - mayim - hammabbul - Chaoskampf - El

* I am grateful to Yudith Liem who prepared the English version of the original in Indonesian. I edited the whole text; biblical references are taken from NRSV.

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Introduction

It is only recently that people are becoming aware of the value and importance of water in global context. Although theological treatises concerning ecology have already emerged in the 80s, theological writings concerning water have just only appear in the beginning of the 21st century, and that only in the form of initial ideas. For example, in 2006, Margaret H. Ferris wrote “When the Well Runs Dry: An Exploration of Water Conservation and Blue Theology” (in Reconstruction 6.3, Summer, 2006). In this article she stated that global water supply (drinking water) has become scarce due to pollution and global warming. Therefore belie-vers ought to be aware that water is not only crucial for human beings but that water is also important in the sense that it has an intrinsic value. Water is important theologically because it is beloved by God (Ferris, points 15-17). This religious understanding of water is called “blue theo-logy”. In Indonesian the term “blue” has pejorative meaning (for example “blue movie”), so I suggest that in the context of Indonesia we use the term “water theology”, which is theology on the significance of water. Ferris examined the tradition concerning Abraham in the Old Testament. Water is always mentioned in the context of washing and drinking, inclu-ding drinking the cattle. The feet of guests are washed by water (Genesis 18:4). All of these instances show that the role of water is central in com-munity life, and it has become general rule to treat water in this way. On the other hand, people cannot take the presence of water as for granted. Unfriendly climate can cause scarcity of water, and people have to make extra effort to maintain water supply and its quality (Ferris, point 7).

In the context of Indonesia, Catholics are more ahead than Protestants in developing a theological understanding of water. A brochu-re published by a Catholic ecological team entitled Air bagi Kehidupan: membela “Saudari Air” (Water for Life: defending “Sister Water”), Maumere: Ledalero, 2003 has a theme on water, and there is a prayer related to water, “Blessed are You, My God, for ‘Sister Water’, who is use-ful, simple, mighty and clear” (p. 6). I take that the team is inspired by St. Francis. There is a theological reflection and practical suggestions on how to use limited water supply such as not taking a long bath and not letting the water tap open while brushing teeth. The theological reflection centered on the role of water in baptismal rite, where water functions in a symbolic way. Now a symbol surely is not valued by its usefulness to human beings. I can understand why the water of baptism is made the basis of reflection on the meaning of water in an intrinsic and theological way. The regard to water as “Sister Water” (meaning water is considered as female) already shows that water is valued by its own intrinsic value.

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But eventually water gets meaning because it is related to the sacrament of baptism. Ferris considered that the search for the symbolic meaning of water in the Old and New Testament was not contradictory to the search for an intrinsic meaning of water. I also think that we should not make a tight differentiation between the symbolic meaning and the intrinsic meaning of water. Both give meaning because water is life-giving. Without water, there is no life. Still, they are not the same. I am envisaging another approach: to see within the Old Testament texts, how water is valued theologically, and from there, proceed to the probability that water can be valued intrinsically. I started with references to water in Genesis 1-11 (which Ferris took no notice of).

Water in Genesis 1-11

In Genesis 1:2, water is referred to as the Ocean (tehom) and the Waters, meaning the body of waters (mayim). If verse 2 is seen as the con-tinuation of verse 1 then the Ocean and the Waters were the first creation of the Lord God, as well as the sky and the earth. But if verse 2 is seen independently as a depiction of the earth before creation, then the Ocean and the Waters are part of chaos. In Genesis 1 chaos is depicted as con-sisting of “formless and void” (tohu wabohu), “darkness” (hakhosyek) and liquid matter, that is the Ocean and the Waters. Contrary to some Bible translations (for instance BIS, the Bible in everyday Indonesian), in the Hebrew text of Genesis 1:1-2, the liquid element are pictured as tranquil. The chaos is tranquil. If water is part of chaos then water is not included in creation but is pre-existent. Because of adherence to the theological principle creatio ex nihilo, not everyone will agree to this interpretation. But if it is accepted then it is possible to see water as having an intrinsic value, as held by Ferris. It is not created for the benefit of humankind, but it is there before creation of the world and creation of humankind. Of course later on, in Genesis 1:20-21 water becomes the habitation for water-creatures. But it is not created per se for them. The created world is surrounded by water, there is water above and below the earth, and even above the heavens, there is water (Genesis 1:7, compare Psalm 29:10). In the world-view of Genesis, most part of reality consists of water.

In Genesis 2 the picture is somewhat different. There most of the reality consists of earth. Here God planted the garden or the orchard of Eden. In popular belief, the garden of Eden is identical with the heavenly Paradise, but the narrative points at its location at Eden, in a location on earth. At first there is no vegetation because God has not yet created rain. In TB-LAI (the Bible in formal Indonesian), Genesis 2:2 mentions that there is a “mist” (ed), which wetted the surface of the earth. Perhaps it is better to follow BIS which understood ed as “water”. As long as the rain

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has not yet fallen, the earth is wetted by an underground stream that per-meates unto the surface. The garden of Eden was a focal source of four rivers that covers the whole world as it is known in the 5th century BCE. They are the Pishon, the Gihon, the Tigris and the Euphrates. It is clear that the known world at that time is the world along the Tigris and the Euphrates (now Iraq), which is known as “the fertile crescent territory”. The area is fertile because people can utilize water from the two great rivers, in contrast to the dry and arid desert which surrounds the ferti-le area. God created a garden or an orchard which is the source of the streaming waters. In the Ugaritic myth of the origin which is older than Genesis, El, which is the head of the pantheon, has his throne at the point of meeting between the Tigris and the Euphrates. It is common then in religious traditions to see that temple buildings are surrounded by water canals or that temples are always built close to the water streams. But beside Tigris and Euphrates, Pishon and Gihon are also mentioned. The location of Pishon is unknown, but Gihon is the name of a small stream close to the temple precinct in Jerusalem. Perhaps the Ugarit myth, which is common knowledge at that time for all, inspired people to build the temple close to the Gihon, to make the temple precinct represents “a little Eden”, a microcosm of the macrocosm, and as the narrative of Genesis 2 developed, it combined the two great rivers of Iraq with the two rivers of Jerusalem, the Gihon and the Pishon. The location of Pishon is unknown, but it could be that Pishon refers originally to the mythological river which flows out of the temple (compare Psalm 46:5 and the great body of water that flows from the temple to water the Sea of Salt in Ezekiel 47:1-12). We shall return later to this mythological tradition.

In Genesis 7 the water above which is bounded by the horizon (raqia) return to the earth as “the Flood” (hammabbul). In Psalm 29:10, God is enthroned above the hammabbul. In Genesis 7:11 the Ocean (tehom rabbah) (in NRSV, “the great depth”) split and the “windows of heaven” (erubot hasysyamayim) were opened, and so the water flows down to cover the earth. It was a cosmic disaster, which could be ima-gined as a gigantic tsunami. But in verse 12 this disaster is pictured in a more local term, as heavy rain which pours down for 40 days and 40 nights, and caused a great flood. Because of this cosmic disaster, all life ended, except for those who stayed in the ark. In Genesis 8 the flood subsided gradually, humankind (Noah and his family) and the other living creatures could get out of the ark and continue their life. God promised not to destroy the living beings as he had done before (verse 21) and in Genesis 9:2, the Lord explicitly stated that there will no more floods in such a scale to wipe out the earth.


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From these two narratives in Genesis 1-11, we can draw a conclu-sion that on one hand, water is seen as something intrinsic, which later becomes material for creation, even as a place for materializing life. So here we have a positive consideration of water. But on the other hand, the story of the Flood also shows the reverse consideration, that is a negative view of water. Water which is the source of life may turn into the source of life-taking. Too much water is negative. Because of this ambivalent view of water, the religious or theological view of water also has an ambiguous character: because drinking water guarantees the continuation of life, water becomes symbol for life. But at the same time, water is also a tool or an agent for the Divine to clean in the sense of punishment to the sinners or the unholy (in the Indonesian language, the word for “to clean” or “to wash” is cuci, while the word for “holy” is suci. I was using cuci and suci as a word-play, which I am unable to render in English).

Water in the Patriarchal tradition

In the story of the Patriarchs, water is valued economically: the quality of water is preserved or guarded so that it cannot be stolen (Ferris, points 9-10). This can be seen in the episode of Jacob, when he met Rachel on the side of a well (Genesis 29). In Genesis 21, the well which belongs to Abraham was confiscated by the aides of Abimelech. Abraham solved this conflict by sending seven ewes to Abimelech. The latter was perplexed by this gift. Abraham explained that the well is very important to him that losing seven ewes is nothing compared to losing a water source. Because of its economic value, water can be sold and bought as well (Deuteronomy 2:6). If we move to the present time in the context of Indonesia for a moment, there are protests against the understanding of water as commodity. On the other hand, people are getting used to buy water, as can be seen in many stalls where plastic bottles or plastic glasses which contain water are sold, and the use of dispensers in offices and hotels. Many regard these new products as practical and convenient. In slum areas of Jakarta, it is common to see water-carriers who sell their tins of water. If since the ancient times water is sold and bought, then there is no point in protesting randomly against buying and selling water. The protest should be aimed at the taking over of communal wells or springs by modern companies, who monopolized the trade of water.

Ferris also related the water motives in the Old Testament with ferti-lity and promises, that is when men (Eliezer who is the envoy of Abraham, Jacob, Moses) met women at some wells. Women and wells also appear in the New Testament, in the story of the Samaritan women who met Jesus. Ferris asked: “Why do they meet the women at wells, rather than other places?” The answer is: “Because the wells connote several important


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characteristics about the women: their purity, their fecundicity, and the fulfillment of God’s promise of progeny for the descendants of Abraham” (Ferris, point 12). The symbolic meaning can be seen in the women’s acts. If the women take water from the wells to be given to the men, then it could be regarded as a symbol of sexual intercourse and progeny. In the story of Eliezer (who represents Isaac), Jacob and Moses, the women took water from the wells for them, and the story ends with a wedding.

Water in the liturgical tradition: the Psalms

In the Psalms, water and flood, river and sea are often regarded negatively as part of chaos, although there are also positive references to water as an important part of God’s providence for the created world. Sometimes the two images are intertwined in poetic compositions. While in Genesis 1:2 the water is pictured as a tranquil chaos, in the Psalms more often the waters are depicted as raging and symbolized as mytho-logical dragons or monsters. In Psalm 18:4-5, there are three phrases which are placed in a parallel: “the cords of death encompassed me”, “the torrents of perdition assailed me”, and “the cords of Sheol entangled me”. Here “death”, “torrents” and “Sheol” (the netherworld) has the same connotation. They are regarded as ultimate life-threats, which has already started to snatch the life of the psalmist. However, in verse 16 the psal-mist witnessed that God has saved him away from the threatening flood: “He drew me out of the mighty waters”. Was he saved from real flood or from other dangerous situations (enemy attack, epidemic diseases) which are symbolized as flood? It is difficult to ascertain, but both could be the reason. But if flood has become the symbol for ultimate dangers, then we need to qualify the positive meaning of water for the people of ancient Israel.

In Psalms 68:9-10 God sends rain to human beings. In Palestine, there is no sufficient rainfall. Therefore, in rare occasions when it rains abundantly, people are thankful. The dry land is restored and the cattle survive because there is water to drink. All of these are regarded as the goodness of God, who “provided for the needy” (verse 10). But in Psalm 69:1-15 the psalmist asked for help from God because “the waters have come up to my neck”; he is even in danger to be swept away by the flood. He also prayed not to sink in the mire, not to let the Deep swallow him up, and saved from the Pit. Both “the Deep” and “the Pit” are considered as deadly enemies. In Psalm 104 God controls the waters, which used to be the powerful chaos doing battle against God and against life. It is pictured here is in a cosmic scale. The overpowered waters are turned to become “the beams for the chambers of heaven” (verse 3). The heavens consist of chambers, of which the ceilings or the beams are the former


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waters of chaos. It means when God created the heavens, He created them like a great palace of which the precinct reaches into the realm of chaos. The waters were changed into rooms to provide space for God and the hosts of heaven.

God also covers the earth with the Deep (tehom, which could also be translated as “the [primeval] Ocean”). As in Genesis 1:2, the Deep (tehom) and the Waters (mayim) are mentioned together as parallels. But contrary to Genesis 1:2, chaos is not pre-existent. At the first stage of creation, God made the Deep and the Waters cover the earth as covering garments (verse 6). But at the second stage, the picture of chaos as God’s enemy which has to be defeated to enable creation to come into being (Chaoskampf) is used. God rebuked them and they escaped to the margins of the world, and God set a boundary which they cannot pass, and they cannot return to cover the earth (verse 9). What consists of the boundary is not clear, but in verse 25 there is reference to the sea. I think the sea is part of chaos which functions as boundary between the created world and the Waters at the margin of creation. Beside the picture in the macro, that is creation in a cosmic scale, there is also the picture in the micro: creation as seen in the everyday activities of animals and human beings, which in traditional systematic theology is termed as “God’s providence”. Springs gush forth in the valley, and they give drink to the wild animals. The sea becomes the place where the ships are journeying and the home of the aquatic animals, including Leviathan, the creature of which God sported with (verse 26). Leviathan is the name of one of the mythological dragons or monsters which represent chaos. Formerly it does not play in the sea, but is the raging sea, which cover the whole world and makes it impossible to live. But God has defeated it, life comes into being and the beast of chaos is turned to become His pet.

In Psalms 74 and 89, Leviathan and Rahab are the primeval mons-ters of chaos, which represent Water as the enemy of God in the primeval conflict of God against chaos (Chaoskampf). In Psalm 74:13-14 the belie-vers invoked God to do his mighty battles of the old days, He has divided the sea with His might, broke the heads of the dragon in the waters, crushed the head of Leviathan, and gave them as food for the inhabi-tants of the wilderness. It is different from Psalm 104:26 where Leviathan is tamed. Here what is important is that chaos is defeated, and God is triumphant. Because God is triumphant, it is possible for the people who live in present to remind God of His former triumph and do the same for the sake of his people. In Psalm 89:9-10, God rules the raging sea and crushed Rahab like a carcass. The context of this passage is the incom-parability of God in creation. In these two Psalms we see a difference in


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comprehending the value of water in comparison with Genesis 1:2. Here the Waters are against God, while there the waters are tranquil: they just follow the will of God. In Genesis 1:2 the Waters are pre-existent materials which later are rearranged by the Creator God to become His agents. In these two Psalms, the Waters are also pre-existent, but they are involved in a battle against God, and are defeated. We can say that in the Old Testament, people regard water in an ambivalent way: it is both positive and negative.

Water in the Prophetic Tradition

The same ambivalence can also be detected in the prophetic tra-dition. In Isaiah 40-55, commonly called by the biblical interpreters as “Deutero Isaiah” which can be dated from the time of the exile (the final edition of the book of Isaiah is from the post exilic period), the salvation acts of God towards His people, which are about to return to the land of their fathers, is depicted as a second Exodus, and in a more glorious con-text: there is always water and large trees that give them shade, protecting them from the biting harshness of the sun (Isaiah 43:18-19). But just one chapter before, in Isaiah 42:15, we read that God will lay waste mounta-ins and hills, and dry up all their herbage, and will turn the rivers into dry lands, and dry up the pools. The context of this passage is of God as both Divine Warrior and a woman in labour, a strange paradoxical picture. Perhaps these two images are used to convey the violent sound of release of emotional restraint on the side of God, who now will rouse to save His people. In Isaiah 51:9-11 again there is a picture of Chaoskampf: God is invoked to wake up and do His battles like in the days of old, of long ago, where he cut Rahab into pieces and pierced the dragon. The context of the passage is the drying up of the sea and the waters of the great deep. But then it is said that the reason of this drying up of the sea is to pro-vide a way, so that the people of God can cross it over. This is clearly a reference to the story of the (first) Exodus, the crossing of the Red or the Reed sea. The return voyage of the formerly exiled people is understood as a second Exodus, but in the framework of creation through conflict, following the Chaoskampf pattern. So here we see two images, the one is taken from mythology and the other is from history. Many commentators are perplexed. Some called this an instance of “historification of mytholo-gy”. Others will say the reverse, that this is “mythologization of history”. Let us say that in a text which in the final form of the book belongs to the post exile period, both the components of history and mythology has merged into one all-encompassing vision of the future. But in this vision, water is regarded negatively as a barrier which has to be removed, so that the people of Israel can escape to freedom (note: in the first story of


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Exodus, the waters later on were let go by God to engulf Pharaoh and his charioteers, so there we can say that the waters has both a negative and a positive meaning, but in the second story of Exodus as in Isaiah 51:9-11, the reference to the death of Pharaoh is lacking). In Isaiah 44:27-28 again there is reference to the Deep as in the Psalms. The Deep is ordered to become dry, as well as the rivers. However, the term used in this passage is not tehom but tsulah, and it appears only here in the Old Testament. The context is of the election of Cyrus the king of the Persians, who is given the epithet “shepherd” (verse 28), which is the common title of the kings in the Ancient Near East. In Isaiah 45:1 Cyrus even received the title Masyiakh (the Anointed of God), which is unique, and higher than the title shepherd. Because Yahweh the God of Israel has called the pagan king Cyrus to conquer Babel the oppressor of Israel, Israel shall be free to return to their homeland, Jerusalem shall be repopulated, and the Holy Temple shall be rebuilt and rededicated.

In Ezekiel 47:1-12 there is an ideal description of the role of water for this world. In this apocalyptic and cosmic text we read that the pro-phet Ezekiel was given a vision regarding the future. The context is the ideal description of the new Temple in Jerusalem. There is a stream of water which flows out of the Temple to the eastern part of the country. As it flows, the stream gets deeper and wider and becomes a great river, so great that it is impossible to cross it (verse 5). When the prophet walked along the banks, he discovered many trees which grow on both sides of the river. It flows down to Araba-Jordan, to the “Salty Sea” (verse 8), so named because of its saline condition. But because the river now flows into the Salty Sea, the water becomes fresh again and can be repopulated by the fish. “Wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be many fish, once these waters reach there. It will become fresh; and everything will live where the river goes” (verse 9). I use this verse as a title for my article in a simplified form. Because there is fish in the water, human beings can live too. Many people live along the banks and become fishermen, and the marshes are turned into salt-producing fields. The trees are not common, but extraordinary trees: they produce fruits and from the tree-leaves people make herbal medicine (verse 12). The vision of Ezekiel is referred by Ferris as one of the eviden-ces that water is beloved by God (Ferris, point 16).

The description in Ezekiel 47:1-12 is a blow-up of the mythologi-cal picture of a river which flows out from the Temple in Psalms 46:5-6, where it is said that “There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of the city, it shall not be moved; God will help it when dawn comes”. Overall, Psalm 46 contains a certain theology which consists of a belief in Zion’s invio-


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lability. This theology is termed by the commentators as “Zion Theology”. This Zion Theology was severely criticized by Jeremiah, who thought that this theology has overvalued the holiness of the Temple, and caused the people to rely on the Temple as God’s dwelling which guarantees the impregnability of Jerusalem. The Temple as the symbol of God has been placed on a par with God (Jeremiah 7:1-15). This theology of Zion collapsed when in 586 BCE, the army of king Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon attacked Jerusalem for the second time, and set fire to the Temple pre-cinct. And if it has a chance to be reappreciated again, certainly it cannot explain why in the second century BCE, the Temple was again desecrated by king Antiochus Epiphanes IV from the Syro-Hellenistic kingdom of the Seleucids. Yet the mythological picture of a river or flowing water out of the Temple survived. As it is already explained above, this mythological river, which is invisible, could be the Pishon, which together with the Gihon, which is a real-concrete stream, is said to flow out from the garden of Eden.

We have also seen above, that in the Ugaritic myth, el,the head of the pantheon, resides at the meeting point between the Tigris and the Euphrates. The divine is the source of the life-giving rivers. In Genesis 2 there is no reference to Yahweh’s residence. Instead of referring to the divine residence, the text refers to the four rivers which flows to the four corners of the earth and waters it. But it is not difficult to imagine that the ed, which is an underground stream, later on turned to the surface and becomes the four rivers. If the Temple is a little garden of Eden, a microcosm of the microcosm, then God is also the source of the river which flows out of the Temple. From here we can deduct that Yahweh’s residence could be situated at the source of this ed. In Psalm 46:5 there is reference to “the Most High” which in Hebrew is elyon. Now elyon is the name of a Canaanite deity. But as head of the pantheon, el may use the name of other deities as his epithet, such as el elyon. When the Hebrew people came to settle in Canaan, they took over these names and epithets, and applied them to Yahweh. We can see this “contextualization” in the patriarchaI tradition. In Genesis 14:18-19 Melchizedek the king of Salem brought bread and wine to Abraham. He was a priest of God the Most High, meaning, he was a priest of el elyon. Then he blessed Abraham with the blessings of el elyon, God the Most High, Maker of heaven and earth. In Genesis 14:22, Abraham vowed in the name of Yahweh, God the Most High, Maker of heaven and earth. Here the title el elyon is merged with the name of Yahweh. And even in the late prophetic tradition, such as in the texts of Deutero-Isaiah, the name el is used alternately with Yahweh. Yehezkiel is familiar with this tradition of water flowing from the Temple as the abode of God. He uses it in the framework of apocalyptic thinking,


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where the picture is blown up to convey the river of God which waters the worldly environment. But is the water here understood literally or metaphorically? Although the geography is familiar, such as the Salty Sea which we nowadays could identify with the Dead Sea, a river as wide in as in Yehezkiel’s vision surely does not exist in Palestine. We cannot iden-tify it with the river Jordan, although the Jordan ends its journey in the Dead Sea. In apocalyptic thinking, metaphor is abundant, and so I think here in the vision of Yehezkiel water has a metaphorical or a symbolic meaning. In fact, in the present time many also understood the passage metaphorically, which can be seen in a modern gospel song, “His love is like a river, like a river in my heart”. The song is an interpretation of the vision of Yehezkiel, but it narrows the metaphor from a river that waters the whole world, to a river that waters only “my heart”.

We can conclude that water in the prophetic tradition continues the already existing strand in the liturgical tradition, which regard water in an ambivalent way. On one hand, water is (formerly) the enemy of God, but subdued by God to facilitate the needs of God’s creation. On the other hand, God is the source of water. This view is taken over from the older Ugaritic tradition. It shows that Israel and its neighbours share the same world-view concerning the significance of water. In the vision of Yehezkiel concerning the new Temple, the river from the Temple beco-mes a great river that waters the whole world. If the source of the river is within the Temple, then it means that God is the source of the river.

Conclusion

From the above mentioned explanations, we can draw several con-clusions:

1. The result of our interpretation towards some texts in the Old Testament relating to water is of an ambiguous nature: on one hand we can confirm Ferris’ opinion that water in the Old Testament has an intrinsic meaning. It can be seen in the references to water as pre-existent material. It does not belong to creation, because from the beginning it flows from the abode of God, and God is its source, or God has control over its source. As it is said by Ferris, water is beloved by God. But on the other hand, water is chaos. God has to struggle to subdue chaos and divide it so that land can appear. Land is creation, water is not. Since the whole world is dominated by water (both in the underworld and also in the heavens), people who live on the land is always threatened by the presence of water on the margin of creation. Of course God has established bounda-ries so that chaos can never return to engulf creation, but still chaos in the form of water is a threat to the continuation of life.


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2. In this kind of world, God provides and take care of His creation by regulating the flow of water, including the rain, so that the land could be fertile, vegetation could grow, and the living crea-tures including human beings can live. There is enough water for human need, including drinking water. But on the other hand, in his salvation acts, God is pictured as drying the sources of waters by strong hot wind, which could also be seen as His “breath”. God is waging war against Water in order to save His creation. If water is scarce, life is in danger, but if there is too much water, life is also in danger. That is why God rebukes the Flood so that it subsides to its normal content and can be used for the benefit of the living creatures and the vegetation. Chaos stays on the margin of crea-tion, but in the form of the Flood it can also become God’s agent for punishment and is allowed to cross its boundary. Perhaps we can hold to this ambivalent meaning of water. In my experience as someone from South East Asia, where there is frequent floods, water is also seen in the same way. We need water, but if there is too much water, then it becomes deadly. It is ironic that during floods many people experience thirst, but they cannot quench their thirst by drinking water from the Flood, because it is already con-taminated. In Indonesia we have a saying, “a chicken can die in the barn”. Similarly, we can also say, “in the midst of abundant water, people can die of thirst”. Our problem is too much water (flooding) or shortage of water (drought). Both can happen subsequently. So Ferris’ statement above should be modified.

3. In the context of concern toward the scarcity of water, espe-cially drinking water, what has to be done is appreciation and even respect to water, which has an intrinsic value. This respect is given not just because water is useful to human beings and so has a positive value, but also respect precisely because it is poten-tially dangerous and such has a negative value. Water is powerful just like the other elements of nature: fire/lightning, wind/air, and earth/mountain. We respect nature because it is powerful, not a cold object to be exploited. On the slopes of the Merapi volcano in Central Java live many communities who respect the volcano. They are aware that the volcano is dangerous and every five years it spews out lava and creates hot clouds, but on the other hand, it ensures the fertility of the land. In that area people can harvest almost the whole year. Their life is dependent on the activities of the volcano, which they affectionately called mbah Merapi (“gran-dpa Merapi”). In November 2006, the volcano was very active, and pours down lava and hot clouds (around 1000 Celcius). The


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government announced emergency measures and the people are evacuated. But after the disaster, people return to their homes on the slopes of Merapi. The government has announced that the area around Merapi is forbidden area, and the people are implored to move to relocation areas, but most of them refuse the offer. They do not believe that the relocation areas could guarantee the safety of their future. They trust grandpa Merapi more than the safety of the relocation areas. Ironically, after the eruption, many exploited the tonnages of sand which is the by-product of the eruption. Day and night, dozens of sand-trucks drive back and fro, loading the sand and carry them to the big cities to become construction materials. We can learn from the attitude of the Merapi people in regard to water, but unlearn the attitude of the exploiters. In the framework of modernity, the ambiguity of nature is disregarded. Nature is an object to be tamed and exploited, its sacredness is eliminated, and its usefulness is emphasized.

4. Only 15 miles from the location of the volcano, in the city of Yogyakarta itself, people are concerned about the fate of a spring called Umbul Wadon (“female fountain”). Traditionally it belongs to the community, who regularly take water from the spring for their livelihood. But to their surprise, one day they discover that it has been sold to a company, who plans to produce and sell bottled water. They organized protest meetings, and in the end the com-pany and the community agree to compromise: on certain hours, the community is allowed to take water from the spring. But still, the company uses every effort to lessen the amount of hours or even to cancel the agreement. We have seen above concerning the buying and selling of water, that it is an accepted old custom which can also be witnessed in ancient Israel and other places which often face scarcity of water. But it is a different matter if an area which formerly has sufficient water, now are facing shortage of water, because the water source is now owned by a company who sells the water to anyone in need. The problem is that the shortage is engineered and not because of natural causes. The Umbul Wadon case is only a small incident, but what will happen to our planet, if all the water sources are owned by private companies and they hold monopoly rights over these sources? What will happen if the scarcity of water is not caused by natural causes but is the result of human engineering, in order to gain a big profit?


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ISBN 978-3-7022-3193-4492 Seiten; 22.5 cm x 15 cm

José María VIGIL nähert sich dem Thema des religiösen Pluralismus durch eine "latei-namerikanische" Methodologie, die dem bekannten Schema "Sehen, Urteilen, Handeln" folgt. Aus historischer und aktueller Perspektive entfaltet er zunächst die Tatsache der religiösen Pluralität in der Welt. Im zweiten Schritt stellt er verschiedene Instrumenta-rien vor, die diese Wirklichkeit erläutern und interpretieren helfen. Er bespricht verschie-dene Paradigmen des religiösen Pluralismus und betrachtet ihn unter biblischem, ekklesiolo-gischem und christologisch-dogmatischem Blickwinkel. Schließlich führt er im letzten

Tyrolia Verlag | http://www.tyroliaverlag.at Innsbruck, Österreich, Austria.

Theologie des Religiösen Pluralismus

Eine lateinamericanische Perspective

Teil des Buches wieder in die konkrete Lebenswelt der Menschen, zum "Han-deln", und entfaltet eine neue Spiritualität und eine neue Dialogpraxis. Das gesamte Buch versteht sich als ein Glaubenskurs, der in einer Grup-pe durchgeführt werden kann aber auch zur persönlichen Lektüre dient. Deshalb stellt Vigil in jedem Kapitel Texte zur Diskussion, empfiehlt Übungen und stellt Fragen zur persönlichen Standortüberprüfung.

José María VIGIL

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The Authers / Autores/AS

María Pilar AQUINO. Originally from Mexico, since 1993 she is professor of theology and religious studies at the University of San Diego, in California, and serves in the International Advisory Committee of the World Forum on Theology and Liberation, of the World Social Forum.

Mexicana de origen, desde 1993 ella es profesora de teología y estudios religiosos en la Universidad de San Diego, en California, y presta sus servicios en el Comité Consultivo Internacional del Foro Mundial de Teología y Liberación, del Foro Social Mundial.

Yolanda CHÁVEZ. Originally from Mexico, she has worked in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, California, for more than ten years, where she earned a Master of Arts in Catechetics, and is currently enrolled in the Master of Divinity Program at Fuller Theological Seminary, in Pasadena, California.

Originaria de México, ha trabajado por más de diez años en la Arquidiócesis de Los Ángeles, California, donde obtuvo la Maestría en Catequética, y actualmente realiza estudios de Maestría en Divinidad en el Seminario Teológico de Fuller, en Pasadena, California.

Adam K. arap CHEPKWONY. A professor of religion at the University of Kabianga, in Kericho, Kenya, he specializes in the study of comparative religions, liberation theologies, and African religion and theology, and is the current Vice President of the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians.

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Adam K. arap CHEPKWONY. Profesor de religión en la Universidad de Kabianga, en Kericho, Kenia, él se especializa en el estudio compara-tivo de las religiones, teologías de la liberación, y la religión y teología africanas, y es el actual Vicepresidente de la Asociación Ecuménica de Teólogos y Teólogas del Tercer Mundo.

Jojo M. FUNG, s.j. A member of the Malaysia-Singapore Region of the Society of Jesus, he is assistant professor of systematic theology and contextual theologies at the Ateneo de Manila University Campus of Loyola School of Theology, in Quezon City, Philippines.

Pertenece a la Región Malasia-Singapur de la Compañía de Jesús, él es profesor asistente de teología sistemática y teologías contextuales en el campus de la Universidad Ateneo de Manila, de la Escuela de Teología Loyola, en Quezon City, Filipinas.

Diego IRARRÁZAVAL. Diego, is a resource person in several pla-ces in Latin America. Teaches theology and is assistant pastor in Santiago (Chile). Author of Raíces de la Esperanza (Lima: CEP, 2004), Indagación cristiana en los márgenes (Santiago: Universidad Alberto Hurtado, 2013), Levadura en la Harina (Bogotá: PPC, 2015), and other books.

Diego IRARRÁZAVAL. Profesor de Teología y Sacerdote en Santiago de Chile. Asesor en Chile y en otros lugares de América Latina. Autor de muchos libros y artículos, entre ellos Indagación cristiana en los márgenes (2013), Levadura en la Harina (2015).

Guillermo KERBER. Originally from Uruguay, he has served as the coordinator of the Programme on Care for Creation and Climate Justice at the World Council of Churches, and is currently a faculty member at the Atelier Oecuménique de Théologie, in Geneva, Switzerland.

Guillermo KERBER enseña en el Taller Ecuménico de Teología (Atelier Oecuménique de Théologie) en Ginebra, Suiza. Uruguayo de nacimiento, tiene grados académicos en Filosofía y Teología (ITU, PUG, Montevideo). Su tesis doctoral en Ciencias de la Religión (UMESP, São Bernardo do Campo, Brasil) fue publicada en portugués con el título “O ecológico e a teologia latino-americana. Articulação e desafios” (Porto

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Alegre, Sulina 2006). Ha trabajado y publicado artículos y libros sobre ecología y teología desde fines de 1980, coordinando el programa de Cuidado de la Creación y Justicia Climática del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias, de 2006 a 2016. Correo: [email protected]

Eleazar LÓPEZ HERNÁNDEZ. A pioneer of Teología India from Latin America, he is a founding member of the Movement of Indigenous Priest of Mexico, currently serving as general coordinator of the Centro Nacional de Ayuda a las Misiones Indígenas, CENAMI, in Mexico.

Un pionero de la Teología India desde América Latina, él un miem-bro fundador del Movimiento de Sacerdotes Indígenas de México, quien actualmente funge como coordinador general del Centro Nacional de Ayuda a las Misiones Indígenas, CENAMI, en México.

Joshua R. SNYDER. With a research focus on the role of the Guatemalan Catholic Church as an agent of social change and transformation in civil society, he is assistant professor of theological ethics at Labouré College in Milton, Massachusetts, United States.

Con enfoque en la investigación sobre el papel de la Iglesia Católica de Guatemala como agente de cambio y transformación social en la sociedad civil, él es profesor asistente de ética teológica en Labouré College, en Milton, Massachusetts, Estados Unidos.

Olga Consuelo VÉLEZ CARO. Titular Professor and researcher of the Faculty of Theology at the Pontifical Javeriana University, at Bogotá, Colombia. Author of several books and many papers. Coordinator of the Latin American Women Theological Commission of EATWOT.

Olga Consuelo VÉLEZ CARO. Profesora titular e investigadora de la Facultad de Teología de la Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (Bogotá, Colombia). Autora de varios libros y numerosos artículos. Coordinadora del programa de Mujer de ASETT (EATWOT) en Latinoamérica.

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