José Ignacio García, SJ Ecology has become a crucial topic of our time. The present model of economic development based on huge industrialization and the consequent consumerism has become the core of our social life. This model is sustained by other important elements such as technological innovation, the advertising industry, and financial activity. There is no doubt that we live moments of wellbeing unknown until now, and this good reaches a great number of people around the world. Although simplifying the analysis, the price we are paying is too big for, what seems increasingly clear, a model of development...
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Gabriel Lamug-Nañawa, SJ Cambodia is usually known for its ancient stone temples, of which Angkor Wat is the most famous, or for the genocide that happened at the hands of the Khmer Rouge during the period of 1975-1979, which claimed around two million people. Cambodia also used to be the country with the most casualties in the world due to landmines and cluster bombs. But thankfully, the number of known victims due to post-war munitions has steadily decreased over the years, from 1,249 in 1998 to 186 in 2012. A lesser known fact is that Cambodians are the largest...
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Wendy Clavano and Joshua Ruizo The Manila Observatory (MO), a Jesuit research institution in the Philippines, celebrates 150 years of existence that started with simple instruments to study the weather and continues now to contribute to advancing the awareness and understanding of the natural environment. A conference on Scientific Frontiers: Serving the Peripheries in Times of Change was held last 25 September 2015, gathering colleagues and friends to share past successes, present challenges, and hopes for the future in using science in the service of the greater good amidst the threat of climate change and disaster risk. Science is...
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Pedro Walpole “Do not be afraid” could well have been Pope Francis’ opening words in this encyclical, as he asks us to go deeper, and not to fear going deeper, into our daily life experience: “Inner peace is closely related to care for ecology and for the common good because, lived out authentically, it is reflected in a balanced lifestyle together with a capacity for wonder which takes us to a deeper understanding of life” (n.225). As we read this encyclical, we grow spiritually so as to express our concern, act with environmental justice, and seek reconciliation with the...
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