Michael Amaladoss, S.J.
According to Pope Francis
The focus of the recent encyclical of Pope Francis, Laudato Si’, is to save our sister Earth, our common home, from total destruction by the irresponsible use that we humans make of it. We have reached a stage that, if we do not take appropriate steps to save the earth, it might become unlivable in the not too distant future. In the process of making his case in defense of the earth, Francis has outlined a theology and spirituality of creation, which is new in many ways and which resonates with Asian religious traditions. In the following pages I would like to focus on this ‘new’ vision and spirituality so that we may more easily understand the prophetic vision and demands of Francis and collaborate with all people of good will in saving the earth, not only for future generations, but for its own, God-intended, fulfillment. Before I go ahead, let me start with a brief presentation of Francis’ vision.
Creation is God’s gift to humanity. In collaboration with God, who continues to be present in it and with creation itself, we are called to cultivate it creatively and lead it to the fullness in Christ which is its and our destiny. We have to share it with everyone and not selfishly exploit and destroy it. Our own fullness, as spirits-in-bodies, depends on it. Our relationships to God, to others and to creation have become conflictual because of our sinfulness. But in the risen Christ, returning to our original innocence, like St. Francis of Assisi, we can praise God: “Praise be to you, my Lord, through our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, and who produces various fruit with coloured flowers and herbs.” (1) Let us now explore this vision in detail.
Why Creation?
It is God who has created this universe, not out of some compulsion or through some sort of emanation, but out of love. This love is not only for the universe but also for us, whom God has created and to whom God has gifted it. God has asked us, not to dominate and exploit it, but to cultivate it creatively and use it for universal good. Here we see the inter-relationship between God, the humans and creation. God has a plan for this creative project. God has not created the humans and the earth as perfect beings. They are meant to grow and develop through mutual interaction. God is leading everything to fullness in Christ. Paul outlines this vision for us. Speaking of Christ, he says (sings?):
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible… For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, but making peace through the blood of his cross. (Col 1:15-16, 19-20)
1. The numbers within brackets, here and later in the article, refer to the encyclical Laudato Si’ by Pope Francis.
2. The quote is from the Canticle of Creatures of St. Francis of Assisi.
Francis shows us how the Trinity is involved in this creation event.
The Father is the ultimate source of everything, the loving and self-communicating foundation of all that exists. The Son, his reflection, through whom all things were created, united himself to this earth when he was formed in the womb of Mary. The Spirit, infinite bond of love, is intimately present at the very heart of the universe, inspiring and bringing new pathways. (238)
So creation is the self-gift of the Triune God. By his incarnation, the Son unites himself with the earth. The Spirit is at the heart of the universe. When John Paul II declared that the Spirit of God is present in all cultures and religions it was widely welcomed. Now we are assured that the Spirit is also present ‘at the very heart of the universe.’ The universe is not out there as a material object. It is a ‘subject’ energized by the Spirit, who however takes into account both the limitations and the autonomy of the creature, to create newness. Francis explains this in the context of God’s creative plan for the universe.
Creating a world in need of development, God in some way sought to limit himself in such a way that many of the things that we think of as evils, dangers or sources of suffering, are in reality part of the pains of childbirth which he uses to draw us into the act of cooperation with the Creator. God is intimately present to each being, without impinging on the autonomy of his creature, and this gives rise to the rightful autonomy of earthly affairs. His divine presence, which ensures the subsistence and growth of each being, “continues the work of creation”. The Spirit of God has filled the universe with possibilities and therefore, from the very heart of things, something new can always emerge. (80)
We are so accustomed to objectify the universe (82) and look on it as brute matter without life, as science has persuaded us, that this vision comes as a shock. (In passing, Francis also refers to an aspect of the well-known ‘problem of evil’.) Francis insists that the material universe has its own dignity and purpose that we have to respect. (84-85) Its destiny is the fullness of God, already achieved in the risen Christ, as Paul told us. The universe is not simply meant for the humans. “All creatures are moving forward with us and through us towards a common point of arrival, which is God, in that transcendent fullness where the risen Christ embraces and illumines all things.” (83) The humans too have a role in attaining this objective. The universe is not simply the ‘field’ in which the humans work out their salvation. It is not either an object meant to be used by the humans for their own needs and purposes. “Human beings, endowed with intelligence and love, and drawn by the fullness of Christ, are called to lead all creatures back to their Creator.” (83) The humans, therefore, are not merely responsible for their own salvation or fullness. They are also responsible for the universe so that it may reach its goal. The humans have been given ‘intelligence and love’, not only to relate to each other and to God, but also to help the universe. The humans have to do this, not by doing violence to the processes of nature, but acting in conformity with them.
Francis, therefore, offers us a vision of the created universe and its goal and the role of the humans in it. So far we were worried mostly about our own journey towards fullness. Now we know that we are responsible also for the journey of creation towards its ultimate goal of fullness in Christ and God. The whole history of the universe, starting with the ‘Big Bang’, becomes a history of salvation, though it has to be achieved in stages and in a differentiated manner.
3. Cf. Redemptoris Missio, 28.
4. It is significant that Francis in a footnote refers, among others, to Teilhard de Chardin in the first place. See note 53 in the encyclical.
Creation and the Humans
How can the humans help to achieve its goals? Francis makes a distinction between ‘Nature’ and ‘Creation’. (76) We can look at the universe as ‘nature’, something given, an object that we can ‘play with’, manipulate and exploit for our own purposes. The universe is not mere ‘nature’. It is ‘creation’, created by God out of love. (77) Because it is created it is not divine. (78) We do not need to worship it. But we have to respect it and treat it in accordance with its own inner character and the goal God has set for it. It is fragile and we have to protect it. We can use it well or abuse it. (79)
In creation, not all creatures are equal; the humans stand out. (90) They have the special dignity of being created in the ‘image of God’ (Gen 1:27). They are endowed with self-knowledge, self-possession, and the capacity of giving themselves as gift. They are capable of conscious relationships. (65) They relate to God, to the others and to the earth. (66) These relationships became conflicted because of sin. But they can be restored, as St. Francis of Assisi showed in his life and, especially, in his relationship to the earth and to the animals.
God is the creator of the universe. God is the Lord and “the Earth is the Lord’s” (Ps 24:1). The humans are not the absolute owners of the universe. (67) They are trustees who have to use it according to God’s purposes. In the past, some have used the text of Genesis “fill the earth and subdue it” (Gen 1:28) to justify the total dominion of the humans over the Earth. Francis disabuses them and focuses rather on the text: “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.” (Gen 2:15)
“Tilling” refers to cultivating, ploughing or working, while “keeping” means caring, protecting, overseeing and preserving. This implies a mutual responsibility between human beings and nature. Each community can take from the bounty of the earth whatever it needs for subsistence, but it also has the duty to protect the earth and to ensure its fruitfulness for coming generations.” (67)
The Old Testament indicates various ways in which the earth has to be cared for. (68) We should help fallen animals. We should not harm birds hatching their eggs. (cf. Dt 22:4,6) The Sabbath is not meant only for human beings, but also so “that your ox and your donkey may have rest” (Ex 23:12) The earth too should have its rest every seventh year. (cf. Lev 25:1-4) Every fifty years the land has to be redistributed. (cf. Lev 25)
The Psalms invite all the creatures to join us in praising God. (cf. Ps 148:3-5) St. Francis of Assisi did the same in his Canticle of the Creatures. The only difference is that he speaks of Brothers Sun, Wind and Fire and Sisters Earth, Moon and Water. (87) The task of the humans with regard to creation is to care for it and enable it to achieve the goal that God has set for it. To accept God as Creator of the earth is to avoid, on the one hand, worshipping earthly powers and, on the other hand, usurping God’s place by trying to dominate the earth. (75)
Francis, however, insists that “nature as a whole not only manifests God but is also a locus of his presence. The Spirit of life dwells in every living creature and calls us to enter into relationship with him,” (88) though we should never forget the infinite distance between God and creation. As creatures we do share a common bond and form together “a kind of universal family, a sublime communion, which fills us with a sacred, affectionate and humble respect.” (89) Francis goes on to quote a poignant passage from his Apostolic Letter, the Joy of the Gospel: “God has joined us so closely to the world around us that we can feel the desertification of the soil almost as a physical ailment, and the extinction of a species as a painful disfigurement.” (89)
Such a concern for creation should go hand in hand with a concern for the poor. Francis regrets the fact of great inequalities among people, with some people pretending to be more entitled to enjoy the earth’s goods than the others. (90) Real tenderness and compassion cannot be selective. “It is clearly inconsistent to combat trafficking in endangered species while remaining completely indifferent to human trafficking, unconcerned about the poor, or undertaking to destroy another human being deemed unwanted.” (91) Everything in the world is related and our common pilgrimage towards God recognizes the love he has for every creature and unites us with them. (92)
5. The quote is from Evangelii Gaudium, 215.
Creation to be Shared by All
As we have already seen, the earth – the universe – is God’s gift to all peoples and is meant to be shared. Every human has a right for a share of the Earth, sufficient to meet his/her needs. (94) “The earth with its fruits belongs to everyone,” especially the poor, the orphans, the widows and the foreigners. (71) The direction is graphic.
When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field to its very border, neither shall you gather the gleanings after the harvest. And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner.” (Lev 19:9-10)
Francis affirms that the right to private property is subordinate to the universal destination of goods. Everyone has a right to use them. (93) He quotes the bishops of Paraguay to say that the peasants lave the right not only for a piece of land to build a home and to cultivate but also other means to make their ownership fruitful. (94) “The natural environment is a collective good, the patrimony of all humanity and the responsibility of everyone. If we make something our own, it is only to administer it for the good of all.” (95)
The Gaze of Jesus
Jesus shows himself close to nature. He speaks of the lilies of the field and of the birds of the air, of seeds, trees and harvests. All of them have lessons for us. Unlike John the Baptist, he lived a normal life in the world, enjoying the world’s goods. He worked with his hand as a carpenter. (96-98) “From the beginning of the world, but particularly through the incarnation, the mystery of Christ is at work in a hidden manner in the natural world as a whole, without thereby impinging on its autonomy.” (99) As risen from the dead, he is also “present throughout creation by his universal lordship”. (100) We see here the image of the ‘cosmic Christ’ proposed by Teilhard de Chardin and others.
Personal Conversion
If we look around the world today we can become aware of a spirit of anthropocentrism that does not respect the rest of creation, but rather abuses and exploits it, the unbridled consumerism and the power and technology that promote it, not hesitating to consume the resources of the earth in a disproportionate manner, the misappropriation of the earth’s goods that increases inequality among peoples, the growing impoverishment and desertification of the earth, the arrival of biotechnologies that interfere with the processes of nature, the growth of technology and the sense of power that it gives that make a few believe that they are the masters of the earth, an attitude of secularism that has no place for God in the world and in human lives, an unjust economy based on a free market which has only increasing profit as its goal, a spirit of relativism that does not acknowledge universal values and a throw-away culture that produces mountains of waste. I am not going to explore these themes here. (They could be treated in another article.) But they tell us what is wrong with the human groups dominating the world today. They also indicate a culture that may attract even the poor.
The spirituality of creation according to Francis, which I have outlined above, will help a change of attitudes and practices. We need a new life-style. We have to live in harmony with nature, aware of our responsibility to lead it to the cosmic fullness in Christ to which it is destined. In practice it would mean that we avoid consumerism and any practices – food and style of life – that can be destructive of nature and its resources. We should not encourage any industrial processes that are harmful to nature. We have to avoid the throw-away culture. Francis is down to earth talking of “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 transport or car pooling, turning off unnecessary lights.” (211)
We have to struggle against merely profit-oriented free market capitalism and the industrial infra-structure that supports and demands it. We have to be sensitive to the poor and their needs and seek to promote economic and social equality. “A Christian proposes a growth marked by moderation and the capacity to be happy with little” – “less is more”. (222) Simplicity, humility, sobriety, awareness of the limits of needs and resources and a sense of communion with creation and with others can bring us a sense of peace and joy. Francis even mentions little things like switching off unneeded electric lights. Francis speaks of a “serene attentiveness, which is capable for being fully present to someone without thinking of what comes next, which accepts each moment as a gift from God to be lived to the full.” (This reads like a Buddhist precept.) This is a way to overcome that “unhealthy anxiety which makes us superficial, aggressive and compulsive consumers.” (226)
We have to adopt a sacramental outlook on life, becoming mystics in the process. Francis says:
The universe unfolds in God, who fills it completely. Hence, there is a mystical meaning to be found in a leaf, in a mountain trail, in a dew drop, in a poor person’s face. The ideal is not only to pass from the exterior to the interior to discover the action of God in the soul, but also to discover God in all things. (233)
We find this outlook in many mystics: St. Francis of Assisi, of course, St Ignatius of Loyola in his Contemplation to Obtain Love in his Spiritual Exercises, St. John of the Cross (234) and many others. This sacramental perspective reaches its summit in the Eucharist. Jesus comes to us in the form of bread and joined to him the whole cosmos gives thanks to God. “The Eucharist is also a source of light and motivation for our concerns for the environment, directing us to be stewards of all creation.” (236)
6. Francis refers here to a Sufi mystic Ali al-Khawas: A first in a solemn papal document referring to a writer from another religion, recognizing him as a mystic.
Cosmic and Trinitarian
Normally our spirituality is anthropocentric, redemption-centric and Christocentric. When we think of salvation and the way of achieving it we only think of ourselves/humans being saved. We hardly think of creation – nature, plants and animals – participating also in salvation. It is true that Paul spoke of God gathering all thing together (Eph 1:3-10), God being all in all (1 Cor 15:28) and God leading everything to fullness in Christ. (Col 1:15-20) But we do not normally think of including creation in this gathering. Now Francis is doing this explicitly. For him salvation is cosmo-centric, including the humans, of course, and not merely anthropocentric.
Secondly, when we speak of salvation we think immediately of our sins and the punishment due to them and of our being redeemed from all of them. Francis refers to the sin of Adam once in so far as it upset our relation to the universe. But there is no talk of satisfaction, of Christ on the cross. The focus is rather on creation and on re-creation. Traditionally total re-creation or redemption is supposed to happen only on the last day. We are in the ‘vale of tears’ in the meantime, though we have become children of God in Baptism. But Francis says: “St. Bonaventure held that, through universal reconciliation with every creature, St. Francis in some way returned to the state of original innocence.” (66) St. Francis did not have to wait till the final judgment. I have always wondered why, if we are now suffering the consequences of the sinful doings of the first Adam, we are not also enjoying the consequences of the achievements of the second Adam through his love and obedience. (cf. Rom 5:12-21; Phil 2:6-11) This seems to have been possible for St. Francis. (10-12) I suppose that anyone who is sincerely converted can return to the state of original innocence in this manner and this may certainly have been possible at least for many saints and mystics.
Thirdly, our spirituality and theology is also Christocentric. For Francis it is centred on the Trinitarian God, the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. This is clearly seen in the second prayer at the end of the encyclical. We are all creatures of the Father filled with his presence and tender love; Jesus became part of the earth and is alive in every creature in his risen glory; the Holy Spirit guides this world and accompanies creation as it groans in travail. (246) When he speaks about Jesus in chapter VII, he starts with the eternal Word, passes to the incarnation and goes on to the resurrection. (99) The focus is on the Triune God that includes Christ. Thus the spirituality of creation of Francis is cosmic and Trinitarian.
7. As an example of such a dialogue between religion and science, let me quote Teilhard de Chardin: “Since the emergence in our consciousness of the “sense of evolution” it has become physically impossible for us to conceive or worship anything but an organic Prime-Mover God, ab ante.” Quoted from Christianity and Evolution in Ilia.
A Dialogical Spirituality
Francis speaks of two types of dialogue. The dialogue with science should not really be difficult since science and religion have different objectives. While science looks for facts, religions look for ethical and spiritual values. Without ethical inspiration merely technical solutions may not work. (199-200) The second dialogue is between religions. Religions should “dialogue among themselves for the sake of protecting nature, defending the poor, and building networks of respect and fraternity.” (201) The common prayer that Francis has given at the end of the encyclical is a big gift for people trying to live a dialogical spirituality. When John Paul II invited leaders of all religions to come together at Assisi to pray for peace in 1986, they were not able to pray together. When Benedict XVI had a similar gathering 25 years later in 2011, they did not pray at all. But now Francis is proposing a common prayer which “we can share will all who believe in a God who is the all-powerful Creator.” Inviting the reader to use the prayer in interreligious gatherings, I draw your attention to a small passage: “Teach us to discover the worth of each thing, to be filled with awe and contemplation, to recognize that we are profoundly united with every creature as we journey towards your infinite light.” (246)
An Indian Perspective
The spirituality of creation outlined by Francis in Laudato Si’ is really something great and original in the Catholic Church. Some of the themes may be found individually in various writings earlier as Francis’ foot notes testify to. But Francis has given a new holistic vision. This is very attractive especially to the Easterners like us. I shall not elaborate this here too much, not to take away the freshness of the insights of Francis. However, encouraged by the call of Francis for dialogue, I shall just indicate a few directions for future reflection and elaboration in view of interiorizing Francis’ perspectives more deeply as Indians.
From the point of view of creation, there used to be basically two tendencies in the West. One said that God creates the world outside Godself as an object out there, like a watch maker making a watch. The world is on its own, operating according to its own in-built laws. Scientists, of course, study this universe and try to understand it on its own terms. They do not need a God to explain it. Many believers today would almost agree with this, except for the fact that some of them would accept some divine ‘influence’ now and then in the form of miracles. The second tendency is to see the universe emerging out of God. One would call this emanation rather than creation. The world then is divine. This would be pantheistic.
Some of the Indian philosopher-theologians took a middle path. They did not posit a universe outside God. God is Absolute Brahman. The universe is totally dependent on God. Some would say that this dependence is so absolute that the world is almost nothing, no-being, maya. Others would accept the world as a totally dependent being. This dependence is such that God and the world are neither two beings nor one, but not-two: A-Dvaita. Both the absoluteness of God and the absolute dependence of creation are affirmed. The Upanishads use various images to understand this. Brahman is the “inner controller” (Brihadaranyaka Up.). “From his light all these give light, and his radiance illumines all creation.” (Katha Up.; also Mundaka Up.) “This is the God whose light illumines all creation, the Creator of all from the beginning.” (Swetasvatara Up.) “Behold the universe in the glory of God… The Spirit filled all with his radiance. He is incorporeal an invulnerable, pure and untouched by evil. He is the supreme seer and thinker. He placed all things in the path of Eternity.” (Isa Up.) The Vaishnavite saint-poet, Nammalvar sings: “My lord who swept me away forever into joy that day, made me over into himself and sang in Tamil his own songs through me.” Basavanna, a Virashaivite poet sings: “Make of my body the beam of a lute, of my head the sounding gourd, of my nerves the strings, of my fingers the plucking rods. Clutch me close and play your thirty two songs.” The Upanishads and the poets are using symbolic language.
8. I am using the translation of Juan Mascaro, The Upanishads. (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1965)
Ramanuja, a philosopher-theologian, suggests the image of the World-as-the-Body-of-God. The world has a certain autonomy, but is totally dependent on God, so that it cannot exist and function by itself. God is infinitely transcendent. Still he deigns to animate the world, becoming immanent. In the Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna has a vision of Krishna: “If the light of a thousand suns suddenly arose in the sky, that splendor might be compared to the radiance of the Supreme Spirit. And Arjuna saw in that radiance the whole universe in its variety, standing in a vast unity in the body of the God of gods.” (11:12-13) So we can say that, in this image, God and the universe are neither one nor two, but not-two: a-dvaita. I do not wish to explore this here further. I am sure that those who wish will find material to work on. As a matter of fact, in Jesus, through his incarnation, the world becomes actually the ‘body of God’. The Greek Fathers insisted that the Son of God had to assume what he had to transform and divinize – that is the whole universe. In this background we can appropriate all that Francis is saying with regard to God and creation.
Just as St. Francis spoke of ‘brother sun’ and ‘sister moon’, Hindus too consider nature as animated and look on the sun, the moon, the fire and the earth as gods and goddesses. Let us remember that in the Hindu tradition gods and goddesses are also creatures – like angels in the Christian tradition. The practice of non-violence or ahimsa concerns, not only the humans, but also the cosmos. The traditional Indian dancer takes the permission of the earth before stamping on it. In the ritual tradition, there is the practice of the ‘fivefold sacrifice’ (panchayagna). The house holder, before having the main meal of the day, is expected to offer some food to the gods, the ancestors, to birds/animals and to human guests, before eating oneself. There is certainly a sense of cosmic responsibility here and we can be inspired by it. A scholar of the Indian religious traditions says:
9. A.K.Ramanujan, Hymns for the Drowning. Poems for Visnu by Nammalvar. (New Delhi: Penguin, 1993), p. 85.
10. A.K.Ramanujan, Speaking of Siva. (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1973), p. 83.
11. Juan Mascaro, The Bhagavad Gita. (New Delhi: Penguin, 1994), p. 90.
12. See Raimon Panikkar, The Rhythm of Being. (Maryknoll: Orbis, 2010) I believe that this will offer a metaphysical basis for what Francis is saying. Another book of Panikkar will also be helpful to explore the interrelations of God, the human and the world. See his The Cosmotheandric Experience: Emerging Religious Consciousness. (Maryknoll: Orbis, 1993) In a simpler, more popular style, see Michael Amaladoss, Quest for God: Doing Theology in India. (Anand: Gujarat Sahitya Prakash, 2013), pp. 119-122.
Ritual, quietly observed, perhaps in a salutation to the sun, or the kindling of a flame, or the careful arrangement of flowers, promotes a deep link with the earth goddess, the god of the breath and wind, and the vast expanse of the heavens. Through Yoga, one realizes the connection between oneself, other people, that which is below, and that which is above. For one attuned to the ritualism and artistry of the Hindu tradition, the practice of religion cannot be separated from an appreciation of the earth. Hindu ecology makes us catch our breath and enter into that special moment where our senses become filled, our mind becomes stilled, and we dwell, even if for just an instant, in a state of perfection and gratitude.
We can also explore the role of ‘Energy’ in the Indian and the Chinese traditions. At the ‘great arathi’ accompanying the doxology at the end of the Eucharistic prayer in the Indian form of the Latin rite liturgy, fire, incense and flowers are waved as signs of honour and self-offering to God. A cosmic dimension is certainly lived here.
Conclusion
The theory of evolution today brings in another dimension. The universe and its functioning are not fixed once for all like a watch or a machine. It is evolving. It has its own inner principles of change and transformation, which are not predictable. A believer can ask whether the evolution of the universe is simply left to chance or can, in some way, be directed by God who is present and active in creation. Saints like Francis of Assisi and Ignatius Loyola have said this and Francis is happy to assert this. This transforms the way we look at creation even in the era of evolution.
Let me conclude with the words of Francis: “Knowing that all the good which exists here will be taken up into the heavenly feast… in union with all creatures, we journey through this land seeking God… Let us sing as we go. May our struggles and our concern for this planet never take away the joy of our hope.” (244) Yes, let us join St. Francis and Pope Francis in singing the Canticle of the Creatures: Laudato Si’: Praise be to you!
13. Christopher Key Chapple, “Hinduism and Ecology”, Tikkun 20,2 (2005) 32.
15. Cf. “The Contemplation to Obtain Love” in The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola, 230-237.
16. See note 7 above on Teilhard de Chardin.