Italy
«I care» è l’esclamazione che sintetizza la vocazione e la missione incarnate dal prete di Barbiana Lorenzo Milani; il suo impegno ministeriale si è svolto – primieramente – a vantaggio delle giovani generazioni che necessitavano di istruzione e di formazione. “Mi interessa”, “mi sta a cuore” sono ulteriori traduzioni di questo tipo di sensibilità.
Immersed in the current weeks of the summer season, we are constantly reached by tragic news telling us of the spread of dozens and dozens of fires affecting various regions of our peninsula; the south, above all, remains the main “victim” affected by the wildfire phenomenon.
The expression “I care” – therefore – should belong to us: entire forests burn, vast areas of vegetation disappear, the air we breathe becomes unhealthy, rescue workers and equipment become increasingly insufficient to contain the emergencies.
Already in 2015, with the encyclical Laudato si’, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, asked himself about «what is happening to our home» (chapter one), in order to «become painfully aware, to dare to turn what is happening to the world into our own personal suffering and thus to discover what each of us can do about it» (19). Saint Francis of Assisi – even after eight hundred years – testifies that all creation is a gift of divine goodness: «Most High, all-powerful, good Lord, yours are the praises, the glory, and the honor, and all blessing» (Canticle of the Sun, Franciscan Sources 263); we are its guests, «pilgrims and strangers in this world» (Bulled Rule VI, Franciscan Sources 90), custodians of every gift. On the other hand, however, the ever-creeping temptation seduces us toward technocracy, prevailing economics, «”private”» power (Leo XIV, Magnifica Humanitas 5), the absolutization of the human and its claim to self-sufficiency (cf. Magnifica Humanitas 7).
The human person of good will, who lives with responsible freedom, is capable of detachment, sobriety, respect, building up the good, far-reaching perspectives, and harmony in fraternity. These are also the foundations of the Social Doctrine of the Church, which are articulated in: the common good, subsidiarity, solidarity, universal destination of goods, participation, the right to family and work, and care for creation.
La sfida perenne degli eventi critici – che siano catastrofi naturali o mano dell’uomo – rimane una chiamata alla responsabilità personale e comunitaria. Vedere andare in fumo tanti ettari di bosco deve scuotere la nostra coscienza; al fine di orientarci verso la prevenzione, la sapiente custodia del territorio, il rispetto delle norme e del buon vivere civile, il saper lavorare in squadra, l’impegno nella sensibilizzazione, la vocazione della riconsegna della nostra madre Terra alle generazioni che verranno, la difesa dei più vulnerabili.
It is everyone’s responsibility! «God, who calls us to generous commitment and to give him our all, offers us the light and the strength needed to continue on our way. At the heart of this world, the Lord of life, who loves us so much, is always present. He does not abandon us, he does not leave us alone, for he has united himself definitively to our earth, and his love constantly impels us to find new ways. Praise be to him!» (Francis, Laudato si’ 245).
Digitally created image by spazio + spadoni
