What the Pope said. Should we listen?

Pope Francis’s encyclical letter, Laudato Si’, is one of the most profound and stirring documents on poverty and climate change.

The underlying theme of the letter is that everything is connected, to use the Pope’s word, “integral.” It is not easy reading. It is also pessimistic about man and his future. But, it is unforgettable; the Pope’s complex mind is in full display; its imagery is a vivid as the poetry of Thomas Merton.