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Receiving “Laudato Si”: will Pope Francis be heard?

Pope Francis’ recent encyclical, Laudato Si, will be surrounded for some time by intense debate among and between journalists, columnists, Catholic journals, political leaders, and environmentally-focused scientists and NGOs. In other words, the fight over how it’s received is well underway.

In the 125 years or so that papal social encyclicals have been written, their reception has been hotly debated, with the most infamous such episode occurring in the pages of the National Review. In response to the document entitled Mater et Magistra, which emphasized ideas like public property and state intervention in the economy, the editors led with “mater si, magistra no” (mother yes, teacher no).

This aspect of reception turns on the notion of what is authoritative, a mostly intra-Catholic question about what the Pope—or more correctly, the magisterium—is competent to speak about. In the decades since that episode, Catholic opponents and critics of a social encyclical’s message have sometimes avoided the substance of disagreement by simply arguing that Catholics can prudentially disagree about whether theological concepts align (or not) with scientific knowledge and public policy. After climate science deniers and supporters of an unrestrained free market tire of challenging the Pope’s actual arguments, this will be the argument for simple dismissal of Laudato Si.

The most fruitful outcome for the Pope’s viewpoint in general public debate will likely be on the level of mid-range interpretive principles that tack between theological argument and public action, or what the Pope calls “lines of approach and action” (#163-201).

But to understand what the document means among rank-and-file Catholics, and how that might support the widespread change the Pope envisions, reception needs to be analyzed in two ways: the means by which Catholics hear about the encyclical and the organizational structures that Catholics have to reflect and act on it.

It’s fair to say that most Catholics will not have heard—or at least not have heard much—about Laudato Si in the news. Two days after the encyclical’s release, related daily Google searches were less than half of their peak on the day of its release. A similar Catholic pronouncement on nuclear weapons by the National Conference of Catholic Bishops in the mid-1980s, which drew extensive news coverage, was heard of by, at most, one third of Catholics.

If Catholics do hear about the encyclical, it is likely to come through parish-connected sources: bulletins, homilies, discussion groups, visiting speakers, and awareness campaigns. Research on congregations and parishes in the past decade has highlighted the role of clergy and parishioner social networks in shaping political opinion, albeit often in indirect, weak ways. In the mid-1980s, those Catholics that lowered their support for nuclear weapons, presumably in response to the Bishops’ interventions, were those most involved with their parish in terms of attendance and donations. That suggests the possibility of some parishioners receiving the Pope’s message on the environment and shifting their attitudes.

Francis’ high popularity could be an extra bolster in this regard, as a past Pope’s popularity appears to have influenced some Catholics’ opinions on two issues visibly promoted by that Pope, the death penalty and abortion.

The biggest challenge to reception among Catholics, however, is related to the organizational structures that could facilitate reflection and action. The translation of parishioner concern to public and political behavior seems to be a weakness in Catholic organizational life. Catholic parishes in particular seem to suffer an engagement deficit—a lower proportion of giving, volunteering, and participating than non-Catholic congregations. The causes are multiple: size, governance structure, resources base, and cultural norms that silence controversial speech. As a result, there is little opportunity or urgency for Catholics in most parishes. Without spaces to link religious identity to the environment, much less to organize action that transcends the gulf between individual charity and public need, it is unlikely that parishes will be the starting point for a Pope-inspired social transformation.

Neither Francis the spiritual leader nor Francis the pragmatic institutional head is relying on parishes, though. If the Pope has articulated a message that is even minimally received in the pews, that only adds to the intensive mobilization already seen among environmental advocacy groups and NGOs, Catholic or not. This could be an environmental turning point. If it is, it will echo Francis’ historical namesake, a person whom received a vision in a dilapidated chapel and, through life-long agitation among political, economic, and religious authorities sparked a wide-ranging social transformation.

Image credit: St. Rita of Cascia Catholic Church, Tacoma by Tony Webster. CC BY 2.0 via Flickr.

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