Laura Nanni, from Rome, tells us how faith, study, and service can become concrete signs of integral ecology at the Laudato Si’ Center.
Pope Francis’ encyclical rekindled my empathy for the Franciscan spiritual and life experience. When I encountered the Laudato Si’ Movement, I had the opportunity to delve deeper into the full meaning of the Canticle of the Creatures. Just as God became incarnate to embrace humanity through Christ, Francis reminds us that we too are part of Creation and called to care for it.
Studying the scientific and economic dimensions of integral ecology through the master’s program at the pontifical universities helped me understand how spirituality and ethics should guide personal, political, and economic choices. It is a shared responsibility: as citizens, teachers, and parents, we can contribute to spreading this awareness and promoting respect, dignity, and beauty for all humanity.
The opportunity to bring Sheela with me, a creature herself, whom Angelica and Antonio welcomed along with their Jumpy, was a significant sign of attention and hospitality that does not exclude our little friends who make us feel close to the simple dimension of life with all our brothers and sisters in Creation.
In my daily life, as a teacher and as a citizen, I try to embody these values by supporting concrete actions together with the Laudato Si’ Center. Hope is built step by step, through small gestures that, when added together, generate change. As Spinoza said, “Deus sive Natura”: immersing ourselves in the contemplation of nature brings us closer to the Spirit and invites us to love and respect Creation.
Walk with us towards a sustainable future: become a volunteer at the Laudato Si’ Center.
