IT was to be a benign tree-planting ceremony, a consecration of the Amazonian Synod to St. Francis. The event was not organized by the Vatican but the Order of Friars Minor, the World Catholic Movement for Climate (GCCM) and REPAM (Pan-Amazonian Ecclesial Network). The Pope, flanked by other hierarchy, gathered in the Vatican Gardens along with indigenous folk from the Amazon. A canoe, a basket, wooden statues of pregnant women and other “artifacts” were set in front of the Holy Father. What happened next, however, sent shockwaves throughout Christendom: several people present suddenly bowed down before the “artifacts.” This no longer seemed to be a simple “visible sign of integral ecology,” as stated in the Vatican’s press release, but had all the appearances of a pagan ritual. The central question immediately became, “Who were the statues representing?”Continue reading →