Light On Dark Water

As I've said here more than once, I'm among those who have some reservations about Pope Francis. I'm not so sure about his governance of the Church, but I think he's an excellent pastor in many ways. As I've probably also said, it would probably be great to have him as a parish priest. Partly as an effort to focus on what I think is best about him, and partly just because it's Lent, I'm going to try to post a quote from him every day during Lent. Chances are good that I'll miss a few days, but I'll try to keep up. This is from the first page I saw when I opened up Laudato Si earlier today.

Moreover, when our hearts are authentically open to universal communion, this sense of fraternity excludes nothing and no one. It follows that our indifference or cruelty towards fellow creatures of this world sooner or later affects the treatment we mete out to other human beings. We have only one heart, and the same wretchedness which leads us to mistreat an animal will not be long in showing itself in our relationships with other people. Every act of cruelty towards any creature is "contrary to human dignity" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2418). We can hardly consider ourselves to be fully loving if we disregard any aspect of reality.

—Laudato Si, 92