Vatican unveils new documentary on climate change

By Christopher Wells

A new documentary by filmmaker Nicolas Brown “highlights the key concept of dialogue,” Cardinal Michael Czerny explained on Tuesday, at the presentation of the film “The Letter” at the Holy See Press Office.

The film itself is aimed at conveying the messages of Pope Francis’ encyclical letter Laudato si’. Despite the encyclical’s “widespread impact on the global stage” since its publication seven years ago, “the environmental crisis of our common home has worsened drastically,” the Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development said.

Voices from the peripheries

This led to the DPIHD to collaborate with Brown and his Off The Fence Productions team, as well as the Laudato Si’ Movement and the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication, to arrange a dialogue between Pope Francis and a variety of voices from “the peripheries”, including an indigenous leader, a climate refugee, a youth activist, and a group of scientists.

These “remarkable leaders,” said Cardinal Czerny, can speak for the often neglected voices of the peripheries, first through their dialogue with Pope Francis, and then by sharing their own stories. “The film and the personal stories powerfully show that the ecological crisis has arrived and is happening now,” the Cardinal said, while warning of the negative effects of climate change that continue to grow.

"Act together! Act now!"

Cardinal Czerny insisted, “The time is over for speculation, for scepticism and denial, for irresponsible populism.” Instead, the challenges humanity faces in caring for our common home must be resolved together. The film “The Letter,” he said, provides a pathway for the “encounter and dialogue” called for by Pope Francis in Laudato si’. “This beautiful film,” Cardinal Czerny concluded, “heartbreaking yet hopeful, is a clarion cry to people everywhere: Wake up! Get serious! Meet! Act together! Act now!”

“The Letter” is set to premiere on the YouTube Originals channel at 6:30 pm CEST on Tuesday, the same day the Holy See becomes the latest nation to enter into the landmark 2015 climate accords known as the Paris Agreement.