Yesterday, October 4th, on the Feast of St Francis of Assisi, Pope Francis released Fratelli Tutti.
In this encyclical Pope Francis lays out a comprehensive vision of how the world should change after the coronavirus pandemic. He imagines societies that are more caring, more focused on helping those in need and fundamentally less attached to the principles of unfettered market capitalism. The continuing global health crisis makes it "all the more urgent that we rethink our styles of life". Among other issues he discusses trickle-down economics, the world's unfair distribution of wealth, continued use of the just war theory and the death penalty, and populist leaders who appeal to people's "basest and most selfish inclinations". Very much in tune with his patron Saint Francis’ vision of how everything in the world is connected and related, it presents an inspiring vision for the future in these turbulent times.
