Review article
https://doi.org/10.34075/cs.57.3.3
Sins Against Nature and Ecological Conversion. Paradoxicality of Sin in the Light of Pope Francis' Encyclical Laudato Si'
Martina s. Ana Begić
orcid.org/0000-0001-9863-5474
; Catholic Faculty of Theology, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Mislav Kutleša
; Catholic Faculty of Theology, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
The book of Genesis points out that God created man in his own image and entrusted him with the care of the world to continue his work of creation. However, through sin, man failed the task entrusted to him and in his haughtiness infringed his relationship with God, his neighbour and nature. It is paradoxical that by this act, man actually harmed himself the most, because sin always has a destructive force in it and by its very nature destroys all of man's relationships. Starting from the anthropology of sin, and in the light of the encyclical Laudato Si', in this paper we want to take a closer look at concrete sins and their devastating consequences. They are manifested in sinful actions towards God, neighbour and nature, and they are manifested, first of all, as ecocide, culturocide, a sin against justice and intergenerational solidarity, or, in general, as a sin against human ecology that is directly aimed at the dignity of the human person. Sins against nature are no less serious than sins against God and man. On the contrary, they form an inseparable entirety, and in the last part of the paper, the importance of ecological conversion is especially pointed out, since Pope Francis proposes it as the only way out of the present crisis and the way by which man can be cured of blind arrogance and in this way take responsibility for the world again which God entrusted to his care.
Keywords
man; image of God; governor; sin; arrogance; ecology; conversion
Hrčak ID:
281809
URI
Publication date:
26.9.2022.
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