St. Francis: The First Environmentalist? – Podcast

In this podcast, Dr. Italy discusses why St. Francis, despite all his love for animals, is not at all the first environmentalist or the patron saint of the environment.

Statues of St. Francis of Assisi with a bird perched on his shoulder are found in gardens of people of all faiths and no faith, around the world. He certainly is distinguished for his love of animals and all creatures. But his love was not for “the environment,” but for creation and it’s maker. This distinction, which may sound subtle, is actually critical. This podcast discusses Francis’ inspiring creation spirituality, Pope Francis’ spiritual teaching in Laudato Si, and why they both are quite different in spirit and goals than what we’ve known since the 70’s as environmentalism.

St. Francis’ feast day is October 4.  For more about St. Francis & the environment, see the ST. FRANCIS OF ASSISI LIBRARY of the Crossroads Initiative

Dr. Italy appears weekly on the Sonrise Morning show, a production of Sacred Heart Radio.  You can listen to this show broadcast live Monday through Friday via the EWTN Global Catholic Radio, a network of over 120 local affiliate stations in the US.  You can find podcasts from the Sonrise Morning on both Sacred Heart radio site and www.crossroadsinitiative.com.

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