Myappeal
13.
Theurgent challenge toprotect our common home includes a concern to bring the whole human
family together to seek a sustainable and integral development, for we know that things can change.
The Creator does not abandon us; he never forsakes his loving plan or repents of having created us.
Humanity still has the ability to work together in building our common home. Here I want to
recognize, encourage and thank all those striving in countless ways to guarantee the protection of the
homewhichwe share. Particular appreciation is owed to thosewho tirelessly seek to resolve the tragic
effects of environmental degradation on the lives of the world’s poorest. Young people demand
change. They wonder how anyone can claim to be building a better future without thinking of the
environmental crisis and the sufferings of the excluded.
14.
I urgently appeal, then, for a new dialogue about howwe are shaping the future of our planet.
We need a conversation which includes everyone, since the environmental challenge we are
undergoing, and its human roots, concern and affect us all. The worldwide ecological movement has
alreadymade considerable progress and led to the establishment of numerous organizations committed
to raising awareness of these challenges. Regrettably, many efforts to seek concrete solutions to the
environmental crisis have proved ineffective, not onlybecause of powerful opposition but also because
of a more general lack of interest. Obstructionist attitudes, even on the part of believers, can range
from denial of the problem to indifference, nonchalant resignation or blind confidence in technical
solutions. We require a new and universal solidarity. As the bishops of Southern Africa have stated:
“Everyone’s talents and involvement are needed to redress the damage caused by human abuse of
God’s creation”.
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All of us can cooperate as instruments of God for the care of creation, each
according to his or her own culture, experience, involvements and talents.
15.
It ismy hope that this Encyclical Letter, which is now added to the bodyof theChurch’s social
teaching, can help us to acknowledge the appeal, immensity and urgency of the challenge we face. I
will begin by briefly reviewing several aspects of the present ecological crisis, with the aimof drawing
on the results of the best scientific research available today, letting them touch us deeply and provide a
22
SOUTHERNAFRICAN CATHOLIC BISHOPS’ CONFERENCE,
Pastoral Statement on the Environmental Crisis
(5
September 1999).
