LA “ECOLOGÍA” EN EL PENSAMIENTO DE LOS PADRES DE LA IGLESIA
“Ecology” in the thought of the Church Fathers

Summary/Abstract: To speak of “ecology” among the Fathers of the Church is to speak of the theology of creation. In the second century, the Church has to face trends, both external and internal, which regard creation, matter, and body as the source of evil and deriving from an imperfect demiurge or the God of the Old Testament, who is not the merciful Father of Jesus. Writers like St. Irenaeus prove that everything, including the material world, was created by God, is wanted and loved by God. Each of the divine Persons has left its mark on the created world. Irenaeus emphasizes in his writings that the created world is not only a passive participant in the history of salvation, but also takes an active and dynamic part in it: he received from the Creator a vocation that is gradually realized in history. His first fruits, i.e. bread and wine, become the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. The Christian is therefore obliged to care for a creature that reminds us of its Trinitarian dynamism, encourages us to live in holiness and shares with man the path to salvation. The created world is a home that needs constant care. He recalled this, as well as the responsibility of man for the creation of Pope Francis in the encyclical “Laudato si” .

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