213. Ecological education can take place in a variety of settings: at
school, in families, in the media, in catechesis and elsewhere. Good
education plants seeds when we are young, and these continue to bear
fruit throughout life. Here, though, I would stress the great importance
of the family, which is “the place in which life – the gift of God –
can be properly welcomed and protected against the many attacks to which
it is exposed, and can develop in accordance with what constitutes
authentic human growth. In the face of the so-called culture of death,
the family is the heart of the culture of life”.[149]
In the family we first learn how to show love and respect for life; we
are taught the proper use of things, order and cleanliness, respect for
the local ecosystem and care for all creatures. In the family we receive
an integral education, which enables us to grow harmoniously in
personal maturity. In the family we learn to ask without demanding, to
say “thank you” as an expression of genuine gratitude for what we have
been given, to control our aggressivity and greed, and to ask
forgiveness when we have caused harm. These simple gestures of heartfelt
courtesy help to create a culture of shared life and respect for our
surroundings.
The culture of life is sincere where Pope Francis is concerned. He doesn't slice up the idea that a culture of life is political dogma that is about pregnancy so much as the entire lifespan of a human being. The culture of life Pope Francis speaks of is all inclusive. It honors others, animals and the ecosystems of Earth. Basically, the Republicans of the USA dishonor the culture of life by secluding all aspects of their definition away from Wall Street definitions. The USA Republicans define their culture of life as a woman's pregnancy, but, all else is off limits. Pope Francis and the USA Republicans are eons different in their embrace of the culture of life.
214. Political institutions and various other social groups are also entrusted with helping to raise people’s awareness. So too is the Church. All Christian communities have an important role to play in ecological education. It is my hope that our seminaries and houses of formation will provide an education in responsible simplicity of life, in grateful contemplation of God’s world, and in concern for the needs of the poor and the protection of the environment. Because the stakes are so high, we need institutions empowered to impose penalties for damage inflicted on the environment. But we also need the personal qualities of self-control and willingness to learn from one another.
215. In this regard, “the relationship between a good aesthetic education and the maintenance of a healthy environment cannot be overlooked”.[150] By learning to see and appreciate beauty, we learn to reject self-interested pragmatism. If someone has not learned to stop and admire something beautiful, we should not be surprised if he or she treats everything as an object to be used and abused without scruple. If we want to bring about deep change, we need to realize that certain mindsets really do influence our behaviour. Our efforts at education will be inadequate and ineffectual unless we strive to promote a new way of thinking about human beings, life, society and our relationship with nature. Otherwise, the paradigm of consumerism will continue to advance, with the help of the media and the highly effective workings of the market.
The culture of life is sincere where Pope Francis is concerned. He doesn't slice up the idea that a culture of life is political dogma that is about pregnancy so much as the entire lifespan of a human being. The culture of life Pope Francis speaks of is all inclusive. It honors others, animals and the ecosystems of Earth. Basically, the Republicans of the USA dishonor the culture of life by secluding all aspects of their definition away from Wall Street definitions. The USA Republicans define their culture of life as a woman's pregnancy, but, all else is off limits. Pope Francis and the USA Republicans are eons different in their embrace of the culture of life.
214. Political institutions and various other social groups are also entrusted with helping to raise people’s awareness. So too is the Church. All Christian communities have an important role to play in ecological education. It is my hope that our seminaries and houses of formation will provide an education in responsible simplicity of life, in grateful contemplation of God’s world, and in concern for the needs of the poor and the protection of the environment. Because the stakes are so high, we need institutions empowered to impose penalties for damage inflicted on the environment. But we also need the personal qualities of self-control and willingness to learn from one another.
215. In this regard, “the relationship between a good aesthetic education and the maintenance of a healthy environment cannot be overlooked”.[150] By learning to see and appreciate beauty, we learn to reject self-interested pragmatism. If someone has not learned to stop and admire something beautiful, we should not be surprised if he or she treats everything as an object to be used and abused without scruple. If we want to bring about deep change, we need to realize that certain mindsets really do influence our behaviour. Our efforts at education will be inadequate and ineffectual unless we strive to promote a new way of thinking about human beings, life, society and our relationship with nature. Otherwise, the paradigm of consumerism will continue to advance, with the help of the media and the highly effective workings of the market.
