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Pope Francis has helped countless Catholics regain and reclaim their faith.
He stands up for the most ignored in society. He loves to hang out with the poor. He washes the feet of the destitute. He spends time with people who have leprosy. In doing all this, he is following Jesus Christ’s example.
And he speaks truth to power. The pope is the world’s best spokesperson on environmental and immigration issues. The challenge for politicians in the United States and other world leaders is to respond with real action.
The United States, Europe, India, China and other global powerhouses are the biggest polluters on the planet. And a number of countries have contributed to creating the instability that has caused the refugee crisis.
The pope is teaching the world that greed destroys our environment.
“A selfish and boundless thirst for power and material prosperity leads both to the misuse of available natural resources and to the exclusion of the weak and disadvantaged,” he said in his speech to the United Nations. “Economic and social exclusion is a complete denial of human fraternity and a grave offense against human rights and the environment.”
Immigrants and refugees are suffering throughout the world, and Pope Francis is setting a great example that we have to “love thy neighbor.”
He is nudging the United States to advance on immigrant rights. It would be a momentous occasion if Congress were to favorably respond.
On the environmental front, the United States can set an example for the rest of the world by adopting the major resolutions that will be proposed at the climate conference in Paris at the end of this year.
Let all of us — Catholic and otherwise — pray for Pope Francis to be successful in his quest to truly change hearts and minds on the environment and immigrant rights. We cannot afford to wait any longer.
Randy Jurado Ertll is the executive director of the California Latino Environmental Advocacy Network. He wrote this for Progressive Media Project.
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