Pope Francis Considers Environmental Sin in Church Teachings

Pope Francis spoke about the creation of an environmental sin during the 20th World Congress of the International Association of Penal Law in Rome on “Criminal Justice and Corporate Business”. It consisted of experts in penal law and criminology.

Francis is strongly considering adding ‘ecological sin’ as a category to the Catholic Churches' official compendium of teachings. This is to urge a continuous fight against ecocide by global capitalism. He described climate emergency as being created from egoism and self-interest and that creation instead should become a place of sharing and community instead of conflict and competition.

"We have to introduce, we are thinking about it, in the catechism of the Catholic Church, the sin against ecology, the sin against our common home, because it’s a duty".

The pope has associated environmental waste as hatred, which has been caused by capitalism. He explained that crimes against the environment are a fifth category of crime against peace that the international community should recognize. He believes that corporations should be punished for the crimes they commit.

"Global financial capital is at the origin of serious crimes not only against property but also against people and the environment”.

The pope also condemned how the macro-delinquency of corporations is given very little attention. He believes they are committing crimes against humanity, which leads to environmental destruction, poverty, hunger, migration, death from preventable diseases and the murder of indigenous people.

Francis urged all the lawyers to ask themselves what they can do with the phenomenon of profit maximization, which has led to a model of exclusion. It is that which attacks those who are already suffering the economic and social costs and it condemns future generations to pay the environmental costs. This requires the lawyers to consider how the development of humanity is at risk and that these crimes do not go (and should not go) unpunished.