Why Catholics should ignore Pope Francis Laudato Si

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Why Catholics should ignore what Pope Francis pronounces in Laudato Si’

Contrary to the claims made in Laudato Si’, burning fossil fuels is beneficial where the CO2 emitted by fossil-fueled power plants promotes plant growth, increases food production, and increases the water-use efficiency and drought resistance of plants.

Shutterstock.com Frits Byron Soepyan January 18, 2024 (LifeSiteNews) — Statements made by Pope Francis and others in a 1

documentary about the climate lack scientific basis and reflect an interpretation of humankind’s relationship with nature that is closer to that of a pagan than of a Catholic. In short, Pope Francis’s pronouncements should not be followed.

Now available on YouTube, The Letter: Laudato Si Film (which translates to “Praise Be to You”) shows Pope Francis discussing the purported climate crisis with a group of invited guests.

What is wrong with Pope Francis’s claims? For starters, while the climate is dynamic, there is no climate crisis.

As noted by Patrick Moore, a co-founder of Greenpeace who left the organization after its adoption of an anti-human world view: “The climate of planet Earth has never stopped changing since the Earth’s genesis, sometimes relatively rapidly, sometimes very slowly, but always surely.

Hoping for a ‘perfect stable climate’ is as futile as hoping the weather will be the same and pleasant, every day of the year, forever.”

Magnificat, a monthly Catholic spiritual guide, reiterates this from a theological perspective, saying, “Even today, human beings have no control over storms at sea, and sometimes very little control over storms in the heart. Only God has the power to still the tempest without and within.”

From a scientific perspective, while the reported number of natural disasters increased during 1900-2000 (due to better reporting), from 2000 to the present, the reported number of natural disasters decreased. In fact, the number of deaths from natural disasters has dropped by more than 90% from the 1920s to the 2010s.

Meanwhile, the global average yields of corn, rice, soybean, and wheat increased during 1961-2019, in part because of modest natural warming and increasing levels of carbon dioxide, which is a necessary plant food.

READ: Al Gore compares ‘climate change’ to the Book of Revelation at 2024 WEF summit in Davos As for the temperature, Roman pruning hooks and the remains of Roman vineyards were found in England, which suggests that England was warmer during the time of the Roman Empire than it is today. Similarly, the remains of 1,000-year-old barleys in Greenland suggest that the island was 2

warmer in the past than it is now. These findings refute the claims made in Laudato Si’ regarding global warming. Moreover, the Antarctic has not warmed in the last 70 years, and during 2009-2019, the area of the Antarctic ice shelf increased by more than 2,000 square miles. Meanwhile, in the contiguous United States, the average maximum temperature for July 4 shows a decreasing trend during 1895-2022.

In the United States, there has also been a decrease in the number of wildfires and the areas burned by wildfires from 1926 to 2022. Vegetation on Earth has increased by about 14% in 1981-2014, with 70% due to CO2, and this growth area is twice as large as the United States, and more biomass is added than lost from deforestation.

US Canada Catholic Given that there is no climate crisis, any claims made in Laudato Si’ regarding climate refugees are false. If further evidence is needed, the populations of a sampling of coastal and island nations have increased manyfold since 1950. For instance, the population of Senegal (the home country of Arouna Kandé, one of Pope Francis’s guests) has risen to nearly 17 million from 2.5 million; Bahamas, to nearly 408,000 from less than 82,000; Seychelles, to about 106,000 from about 38,000; and Solomon Islands, to nearly 708,000, from about 105,000.

Such increases in population refute claims regarding climate refugees, as the population would have decreased if a significant portion of the population emigrated due to the climate. Furthermore, migrants were mentioned in Laudato Si’, but most migrants are young men. If migrants truly are climate refugees, then, there would have been approximately equal number of men and women, and their ages would vary.

In Laudato Si’, Dr. Greg Asner (one of Pope Francis’s guests) pointed at the Pacific Ocean to indicate “where the climate is changing.” However, powerful Pacific fluctuations that influence global weather are quite natural.

Normally, in the Pacific Ocean, the trade winds blow westward, pushing warm surface waters from South America to Asia. However, during El Niño, a natural phenomenon, trade winds weaken, and warm surface water moves in the opposite direction. In contrast, during La Niña, another natural phenomenon, the trade winds are stronger than usual, and more 3

warm water is blown towards Asia. These phenomena cause some regions in Canada and the United States to become warmer and drier and other regions to become cooler and wetter.

Dr. Asner also claimed that the rising sea temperatures are threatening the coral population. In contrast, according to Patrick Moore, corals have survived for millions of years, including during times when the temperatures were warmer than today. In fact, corals tend to thrive in warmer temperatures than in colder temperatures. For instance, the warmest seas in the world are located in Indonesia, the Philippines and the Solomon Islands. This region is known as the Coral Triangle, and has about 76% of all coral species, 37% of all reef fish species, and six of the seven marine turtle species.

Finally, in regards to the oceans, rising sea level is nothing new. Sea level began rising more than 15,000 years ago. In 1901-2010, the sea level rose about 7.5 inches, or 0.07 inches/year, but the rate of sea level rise has been decreasing. In terms of theology, Magnificat reminds us that only “God could give orders to the seas and domesticate them,” and there is nothing we can do to control the seas, including how the seas rise or ebb.

Furthermore, according to Jeremiah 5:22, God has “set the sand a bound for the sea, an everlasting ordinance, which it shall not pass over: and the waves thereof shall toss themselves, and shall not prevail: they shall swell, and shall not pass over it.” Therefore, sea-level rise is nothing to be concerned about, as God will not allow the sea to cross over the boundary He has set.

Contrary to the claims made in Laudato Si’, burning fossil fuels is beneficial where the CO2 emitted by fossil-fueled power plants promotes plant growth, increases food production, and increases the water-use efficiency and drought resistance of plants. Fossil fuels also prove to be reliable and low-cost sources of energy, and are used to produce fertilizers and pesticides, which are essential for food production.

On the other hand, wind turbines and solar panels (both of which are shown in Laudato Si’) are intermittent, have low energy density, require backup power or storage batteries (which increases costs), and become more expensive as they contribute more to the electricity grid.

Wind and solar energy systems are also unreliable and harmful to the 4

environment. For instance, the mining of the rare earth metals needed for electric vehicles and wind and solar energy systems has led to deforestation (a subject discussed in Laudato Si’). In addition to deforestation, the environmental damages that result from the mining of rare earth metals include soil erosion, land degradation, air pollution, water contamination, destructions of wildlife habitats, and changes in landscape structure. Wind and solar energy systems are not environmentally friendly.

To make matters worse, solar panels contain toxic materials (including lead and cadmium) that can leach into soil if disposed in a landfill. Furthermore, wind turbine blades last for only about 10 years and are expensive to ship and dispose. Wind turbines have also killed bats, and wind and solar facilities have killed birds.

In terms of theology, during Adult Confirmation preparation class, I learned from Michael Gormley that the Bible, especially the Book of Genesis, “demythologizes” Earth. Unfortunately, throughout Laudato Si’, Earth is mythologized. Pope Francis and his guests, Ridhima Pandey and Chief Dadá Borarí, referred to “Mother Earth,” and Pope Francis personified Earth by referring to the “cries of the earth,” and claiming that “nature is starting to complain” and “is screaming.”

Catholics should not be referring to “Mother Earth.” Saint Paul (Romans 1:25) warned us of people “who changed the truth of God into a lie; and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever.” By mythologizing Earth, people fall into the trap that Saint Paul warned about, where Earth (creation) is venerated instead of our Creator.

Furthermore, Father Michael P. Orsi warned us that the obsession with “Mother Earth” could provide demons with opportunities to enter into our hearts, just like the ancient Canaanites’ worship of various gods representing a force of nature opened their hearts to “demonic influence.”

Other instances of nature being venerated include Dr. Lorna Gold (chair of Laudato Si’ Movement) encouraging “a deeper communion with the natural world.” As Catholics, we do not need to be in a “deeper communion with the natural world,” but instead, we need to be in deeper communion with God and the supernatural.

Along the same line, Martin Palmer (co-founder of the Religions and Environment movement) said, “We just felt that somehow here there was something more wonderful and mysterious and majestical and powerful at

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work. So, we called it ‘Sacred.’ And I think we need to bring that sacred back. Tapping into that deep need to feel that there are some places where the veil between Heaven and earth is gossamer thin.” If by “it” (boldfaced in the quote above), Martin Palmer is referring to nature or the planet, then, this is akin to idolatry. As Catholics, we believe that the place where Heaven and Earth meet is the Church.

In Laudato Si’, Pope Francis also said that the “Biblical story of creation is a mythical form of expression to explain our history,” and that “Biblical images are historical with mythical meaning, that is, to help us understand values.” How can Pope Francis refer to any of the contents of the Bible as “mythical”? As Catholics, we believe that the Bible is the absolute truth. In fact, Saint Gregory the Great said that “The Bible is a letter from God,” and Pope Leo XIII described the Bible as “a Letter, written by our heavenly Father, and transmitted by the sacred writers to the human race in its pilgrimage so far from its heavenly country.”

Unfortunately, Laudato Si’ contains more theological errors, where aspects of different religions are shown and promoted, including Islam, paganism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and the lack of religious practice.

Is Laudato Si’ promoting other religions? As Catholics, we should not be claiming that all religions are “correct.” In John 14:6, Our Lord Jesus Christ said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No man cometh to the Father, but by Me.” To reinforce this message, Bishop Athanasius Schneider has spoken out against promoting a “supermarket of religions,” as Our Lord Jesus Christ is “the only one [true God],” and that “there is only one true religion, which is the Catholic Church, founded by God Himself.” In fact, Bishop Schneider referred to the belief that all religions are equal and can lead to heaven as a heresy.

In conclusion, given the false claims made regarding the climate and the theological errors in Laudato Si’, it would be better for Catholics to reject its teachings.

Frits Byron Soepyan has a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from The University of Tulsa and has worked as a process systems engineer and a researcher in energy-related projects.

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