Pope Francis Knows History
Brian Patrick Green
Center Assistant Director of Campus Ethics Brian Green writes in the San Jose Mercury News on Pope Francis' call to leaders in the United States to learn from the errors of the past:
Pope Francis states that the mission of the Catholic Church is to "above all protect mankind from self-destruction." The future is at stake. Yet things are not too far gone.
We can still make a better future, but we can't count on that better future happening on its own. We have to make it happen.The Pope mentions many ways to work toward a better future, but in following the major themes of his pontificate, he holds up for particular emphasis the creation of a "culture of care" and an "integrated approach to combating poverty, restoring dignity to the excluded, and at the same time protecting nature."Everything is connected, from fighting poverty to caring for the Earth. But to do this requires a change of heart.
When we change our hearts, "The right use of natural resources" and "the proper application of technology" becomes much more obvious.Rather that spending so much on developing new weaponry, we could develop new cleaner sources of energy. Rather than developing insidious new ways to hack into computers around the world or spy on people, we could spend more on education and health care. Rather than expending effort to repel immigrants and refugees from our borders, we could provide assistance to immigrants and the poor and vulnerable, or better yet, help stabilize and develop the nations from which these people come.