It is not wrong to say that Laudato Si’ is an encyclical about ecology or climate change. But nobody gets full marks for that answer.
“People don’t read encyclicals,” points out Regina archdiocesan theologian Brett Salkeld. “They read about encyclicals. That means they are very subject to really superficial readings of them.”
But there’s nothing superficial about Pope Francis’ reading of the Gospel, his relationship with Christ or his insistence on the reality of God. About three-quarters of the way through 40,000 passionate words, Pope Francis gets down to what he’s really talking about in Laudato Si’.