Leo XIV adopts Francis’ ecological language in ‘Care of Creation’ message

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Leo XIV adopts Francis’ ecological language in ‘Care of Creation’ message
Leo XIV's message for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation continues Pope Francis' environmental framework, linking war to ‘ecological degradation.’



Pope Leo XIV
Antonio Masiello/Getty Images

Aug 21, 2026
(LifeSiteNews) — Pope Leo XIV has called the faithful to “an authentic ecological conversion” in his message for the 2026 World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation.

On Thursday, the Holy See Press Office released Leo XIV’s message for the 11th World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, to be observed on September 1 under the theme, “They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks,” from Isaiah 2:4.

In his message, dated August 15 and published August 20, the Pope links war, poverty, and “ecological degradation,” arguing that “where hearts are renewed, new possibilities begin to open.” This renewal, according to Leo, is “the path of an authentic ecological conversion” – echoing core “green” agenda themes of the Francis pontificate, particularly those articulated in his 2015 encyclical Laudato Si’.

“Let us imagine a world in which the energies currently invested in war are directed toward integral human development, to overcoming poverty, protecting human dignity and reconciling divided peoples. Such a vision reflects faith in the coming of God’s Kingdom,” Leo wrote.

The Pope’s message presents war and “social and ecological destruction” as interconnected manifestations of a deeper disorder. “Moreover, the interaction between armed conflicts and environmental degradation often creates a vicious cycle, which destroys ecosystems, contaminates essential resources, such as air and water, and undermines food security. This fuels poverty, inequality, and new social tensions that can contribute to the emergence of further conflicts,” the Pope wrote.

Leo locates the root of these problems within “the human heart.” Referring to [Vatican II's] Gaudium et spes, he describes “violence, injustice, and ecological degradation” as symptoms of “the deeper dichotomy that is rooted in humanity itself.”

“The wounds of war and the degradation of the earth, then, are profoundly linked to the condition of the human heart.… In order to build a peaceful society, therefore, we must not only reform structures but also renew our hearts. The deep-set causes of conflict and the exploitation of creation stem from an ethical and cultural crisis, including the loss of a sense of limits, the desire for domination, the pursuit of immediate profit, and the inability to recognize the God-given dignity of each human person,” the Pope stated.

According to Traditional Catholic teaching, true peace is not simply the result of political negotiation or social compromise but the fruit of conversion to the Social Kingship of Jesus Christ, that is, to the Catholic faith. “When once men recognize, both in private and in public life, that Christ is King, society will at last receive the great blessings of real liberty, well-ordered discipline, peace and harmony,” Pope Pius XI taught (Quas Primas, n. 19).

In Catholic theology, every human activity – political, economic, or spiritual – finds its meaning only when it acknowledges Christ’s sovereignty over individuals and nations. Without this conversion, all human projects, however noble, remain fragile and ultimately doomed to fail, because they attempt to build peace apart from the Prince of Peace Himself.

Additionally, Traditional social doctrine teaches that disorder within creation is not merely the result of human-driven pollution or capitalist economics, but of the deeper wound of original sin. As St. Paul writes, “the whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now” (Romans 8:22).

Leo XIV’s message explicitly adopts modern ecological terminology strongly associated with the pontificate of Francis, citing Laudato Si’ and describing several “ecosystems” that Christians are called to safeguard: creation, human relationships, and “the human heart itself.”

The World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation was first established in 1989 by Ecumenical Patriarch Dimitrios I of Constantinople, who invited Christians to dedicate September 1 to prayer and reflection on the environment. The initiative also draws on Jewish creation theology, as stated on the official page of the initiative.

Pope Francis extended the observance to the Catholic Church in 2015, framing it within the vision of the encyclical Laudato Si’ and calling believers to “ecological conversion.”