At the time of this writing, The Letter has been seen by more than one million people and it has only been 3 days since its premiere. 

Each of the people who have taken the time to see it is a reason to hope. 

The Letter is a concrete result of the encyclical Laudato Si, in which Pope Francis invited us to “a conversation which includes everyone, since the environmental challenge we are undergoing, and its human roots, concern and affect us all” (LS #14).

And so I write with hope.

The Letter is, without a doubt, the biggest project this Laudato Si’ Movement has embarked on so far. It has been a lengthy project due to the difficulties caused by COVID-19 and countless setbacks, but God uses our gifts as well as our limitations and does wonderful things. 

Each and every one of those who have seen The Letter, and those who will see it, are called to take concrete action and to never again be indifferent to the suffering caused by the climate crisis.

It is now or never. We are at a turning point and the world that future generations, my children and grandchildren, will inherit depends on what we do now. 

As Nicolas Brown, the director of The Letter, said at the press conference on October 4th, it is easy to lose hope.

It’s normal to lose hope. Our brain perceives suffering and simply blocks it, immobilizes us and it seems that there is nothing we can do to change the future.

But The Letter, and the hundreds of thousands of people who have already seen it, tell us otherwise. If we act, if we do it together, we can change the future. “We know that things can change” (LS #13).

A phrase of Pope Francis is engraved in my heart: “Don’t let them rob you of hope.” (Christus Vivit #15), and I recognize that there are days when I find it difficult to prevent this from happening.

There are two groups that want us to lose hope, that want to steal it from you. Those who inoculate the virus of fear and the virus of indifference.

The first are those who tell you that the crisis is of such magnitude that there is nothing to be done, those who present an unpostponable apocalypse.

The latter are those who tell you that the crisis does not exist, that it is an invention, that it is the result of leftist ideologies or environmental activists.

In the end, the two groups are the same, they are those who want you to do nothing, those who want you numb, because what they want is to continue plundering and destroying creation only for their personal benefit.

But The Letter brings about a new time in which “what was hidden is now being uncovered” and teaches us that individual actions and dreams, when shared, can change history.

If you haven’t done so yet, you can watch The Letter here. 

If you have already done so, share it, talk about it, organize a meeting with friends and family to see it together and make commitments (if you don’t know what to do, here are some ideas). 

There are reasons for hope, far more than a million.

By Gabriel López Santamaria, Director of Communication, Laudato Si’ Movement