Cardinal Turkson comes to Town

Difficile est saturam non scribere. (Juvenal, sat. 1,30)

In February Cardinal Turkson paid a  – rather low profile – visit here to preach the environmental Gospel of Pope Francis. First, to Molloy College on Long Island.

Thank you for the invitation to introduce the Encyclical, and then to reflect on “Catholics, Capitalism and Climate” with the help of Fr James Martin as moderator and three distinguished panellists Meghan Clark, R.R. Reno, and Erin Lothes. (my emphasis)

Today, we must discover the “fundamental and astounding” steps we need to take to address global warming, environmental and social degradation, or else face cataclysms like the more frequent and higher coastal floods that are predicted here in New York.

Vatican Radio

And later, he travelled to Philly and spoke at Villanova University. There he offered, as part of a”Lenten Reflection,”  a Bergoglian “better translation” of the corporal and spiritual works of mercy:

You may remember the Works of Mercy from catechism, or they may have slipped your mind, and I hope you have found them printed in this evening’s program. “They are still valid, still current… they remain the basis for self-examination,” says Pope Francis. “Perhaps some aspects could be better ‘translated’” for our situation, our society. It is just such a “better translation”, inspired by
Laudato si’, that I would like to share with you this evening. 8) Let me read the Works to you slowly.

First, here are the 7 corporal ones:
1. to feed the hungry; especially those who suffer from poverty and drought.
2. to give drink to the thirsty; especially those who lack clean, abundant water.
3. to clothe the naked; especially those exposed to the cold of winter and the sting of indifference.
4. to give shelter to the homeless; especially victims of war, storms, and rising seas.
5. to care for the sick; especially those who have been poisoned by the wastes of our industries.
6. to ransom the captive; especially those oppressed by cruel economic and political systems, or from addictions to the pleasures of the world.
7. to protect the dignity of the human person, especially in reverently burying the dead.
And here is an additional 8th:
8. to care for our common home.

Now, here are the 7 spiritual ones, again with the same additional 8th:
1. to teach those who do not see how their lifestyles harm others.
2. to offer hope to those who despair for the future of loved ones or the future of the world.
3. to admonish those who sin against neighbor, the natural order, or the laws of nature.
4. to patiently bear the sufferings inflicted by gluttony and greed.
5. to willingly forgive offences committed against humanity and the goodness of creation.
6. to comfort those afflicted by corruption, by changes to our climate, and by unwholesome desires.
7. to desire always to pray for the living and the dead and future generations.
And again here is the additional 8th:
8. to care for our common home.

8) Written by Bill Patenaude for the Global Catholic Climate Movement (Cardinal Turkson’s note)

Source

(Thanks to Catholic World News)