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Pope Leo XIV dispatched a message to a gathering of Scouts and Guides of France in Jambville recently during their “Clameurs!” rally, Vatican News reports.
Scouts et Guides de France (SGdF) is a Catholic scouting organization with values and practices typical of such groups.
“Clameurs!” translates to “clamors,” a direct allusion to Pope Francis’ groundbreaking 2015 papal encyclical Laudato Si’, a full-throated, sprawling call for Catholics around the world to act on climate change.
It’s difficult to convey how disruptive Francis’ Laudato Si’ proved to be — a scholarly analysis of its impact published in 2016 held that “audacity of the Laudato si’ encyclical is equaled only by the multiple efforts to deaden as much as possible its message and effects.”
Pope Francis maintained a sharp focus on ecological matters for the duration of his papal reign, populating the Vatican’s fleet with electric vehicles and undertaking an ambitious effort to make Vatican City the first 100% solar-powered nation state.
Late last year, Cardinal Robert Prevost spoke about Catholics’ duty to protect the environment at a conference in Rome. In April, Cardinal Prevost officially became Pope Leo XIV.
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Leo closely followed in Francis’ footsteps on climate, and on July 10, he held the Catholic Church’s first “green mass” outdoors at the papal summer residence, Castel Gandolfo.
SGdF’s Clameurs! rally kicked off on July 24 in Jambville. A page about the rally indicated that it had been a decade since Laudato Si’, well past “time for us to respond to the climate emergency and the distress of the most vulnerable.”
In his message, Leo spoke to SGdF members about the need to act locally and protect “our common home” amid the grave “environmental devastation that is occurring” around the world.
Leo also stressed a moral imperative to learn about and stay abreast of key climate issues.
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“In the face of pollution and climate change, the loss of biodiversity, the deterioration of life and social degradation, global inequalities, the lack of drinking water and access to energy for many populations, an ecological education is essential for everyone to reverse the order of things,” he wrote.
Leo acknowledged the scouts were “young” and “full of ideas and enthusiasm,” and he encouraged attendees to focus that energy on service.
Although the crisis in question is large, Pope Leo XIV further urged young environmentalists not to give in to climate doomerism as he concluded his message.
“Know that each of you is unique in creation, personally loved by the Lord. Never stop believing in a better world and in the coming of an authentic civilization of love,” Leo advised.
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