Address by Pope Leo to Bishops, Clergy, Religious, and Families of Victims of Environmental Pollution
Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta (Acerra) – Saturday, 23 May 2026
The “Land of Fires” (Terra dei Fuochi) is an area in southern Italy’s Campania region that rose to prominence
in the mid-2000s due to organized crime syndicates belonging to the Camorra disposing of toxic waste there.
These syndicates are often defined as “eco-mafia.”
Ezekiel 1:1-10
The hand of the Lord was upon me, he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley; it was full of bones.
2 He led me round among them; and behold, there were very many upon the valley; and lo, they were very dry.
3 He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, thou knowest.”
4 Again he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.
5 Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live.
6 I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord.
7 So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold, a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to its bone.
8 And as I looked, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them.
9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.”
10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great host.
Pope Leo’s Address
In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Peace be with you!
I thank the Lord for the opportunity to meet with you again, returning to Campania just a few days after visiting the Shrine of Pompeii and the city of Naples.
As you know, Pope Francis would have liked to come here, to the “Land of Fires,” but it was not possible.
Today, we will fulfill his wish by recognizing the great gift that the encyclical Laudato Si’ represented for the Church’s mission in this land.
The cry of creation and of the poor among you has indeed been heard more dramatically because of a deadly concentration of dark interests and indifference to the common good. This has poisoned the natural and social environment.
It is a cry that calls for conversion!
In this cathedral, we are experiencing a significant moment: the ecclesial one.
I would even say it is more familiar than my previous visit.
Then, in the square, we will ideally meet the whole of society.
First of all, I have come to collect the tears of those who have lost loved ones to environmental pollution caused by unscrupulous people and organizations who have acted with impunity for too long.
However, I am also here to thank those who have responded to evil with good, especially the Church, which has dared to denounce and prophesy and gather people in hope.
Knowing that I would be visiting you on the eve of Pentecost, I searched the Sacred Scriptures for a passage to inspire and guide your journey.
I found it in the prophet Ezekiel’s grandiose vision, in which the Lord brought him to have an experience that would become a strong message of resurrection for the people in exile.
Ezekiel relates: “The hand of the Lord was upon me, and the Lord brought me out in spirit and laid me on the plain that was full of bones; He made me pass by them on all sides. I saw that they were in great numbers in the expanse of the valley, and they were all dried up” (Ezekiel 37:1-2).
My beloved, God placed man and woman in a garden to cultivate and care for it.
Everything was alive, beautiful, and fertile.
In ancient times, this land was called Campania Felix because of its fertility, products, and culture, which enchanted people and sang a hymn to life.
Yet here is death, of the earth and of men.
We can identify with the prophet’s bewilderment in the face of that expanse of withered bones.
We suffer from the devastation that has compromised this wonderful ecosystem and its places, stories, and memories.
In the face of this reality, there are two possible attitudes: indifference or responsibility.
You have chosen responsibility, and with God’s help, you have embarked on a journey of commitment and justice.
The Lord then asks Ezekiel a question:
“He said to me, ‘Son of man, can these bones live again?’
I answered, ‘Lord God, you know'” (Ezekiel 37:3).
Dear friends,
God has new questions for us that broaden our horizons.
He knows that our hearts seek life and yearn for eternity.
But they too easily send us back to an indefinite and distant time,
to a different world that does not yet exist.
Ezekiel, on the other hand, must serve his people in their current situation.
Similarly, our churches have the mission of making God’s word resonate here and now.
This Word asks us if we believe in its possibilities; it is the Word of life.
We meet today to respond to this Word.
We answer as follows: Lord, death seems to be everywhere. Injustice seems to have won. Crime, corruption, and indifference still kill.
Good seems to remain withered.
However, when you ask us, “Will these bones live again?” we believe and respond, “Lord God, you know!”
You know we can stand up because you take us by the hand.
You know our desert can bloom.
You know how to turn mourning into joy.
Brothers and sisters, all of this is very concrete.
It is a promise that is already becoming a reality.
In the encyclical Laudato Si’, Pope Francis denounced a paradigm of death and announced the silent eruption of new life.
After listing examples of people coming together to promote social and environmental justice, he writes:
“Authentic humanity, which invites us to a new synthesis, seems to dwell in the midst of technological civilization, almost imperceptibly […]. Will it be a permanent promise, in spite of everything, that blossoms as a stubborn resistance of what is authentic?” (Laudato Si’, 112).
Dear friends,
Be witnesses to this “obstinate resistance” that leads to rebirth, where the Gospel illuminates and transforms life.
The Second Vatican Council taught us this, particularly in the Constitution Gaudium et Spes. The Lord asks us new questions about how we live in our neighborhoods, our willingness to collaborate with one another and institutions, our passion for education, our honesty in work, the fair distribution of power and wealth, and our respect for people and all creatures.
Will these lands be able to flourish again?
Be the answer yourselves: a community united in faith and commitment.
Life will then flourish.
And here is the Lord’s command to his prophet: “Prophesy over these bones and proclaim to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.
Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will bring the spirit into you, and you will live'” (Ez 37:4-5).
Ezekiel obeys and observes: “I prophesied as I was commanded; While I was prophesying, I heard a noise and saw a movement between the bones, which approached each other, each to its correspondent. I looked, and behold, the nerves appeared above them; flesh grew, and skin covered them, but there was no spirit in them” (Ez 37:7-8).
Therefore, we understand that the miracle does not happen all at once.
The prophet is amazed by what he sees and hears, yet it is still not enough; something is missing.
The same is true for us. We need to trust, listen, and believe again.
The choices you have made, the ecclesial journey you have traveled, and the small and large restarts with which you have confronted pain are not everything.
If you stop, you will go back.
In fact, the Lord speaks again to Ezekiel: “Prophesy to the spirit. Prophesy, O son of man, and proclaim to the spirit, ‘Thus says the Lord God: Spirit, come from the four winds and blow on these dead, that they may live.”
I prophesied as he commanded me, and the spirit entered them. They came to life and stood up—they were a great army.” (Ezeciel 37:9-10).
Brothers and sisters, may the Holy Spirit grant you the ability to see an “army” of peace standing up and healing the wounds of this land and its communities.
May there be no more destructive fire, but rather a reviving and warming fire, the fire of the Spirit, igniting the hearts and minds of thousands of men, women, children, and the elderly, inspiring care, consolation, attention, and true love.
In particular, families who have experienced death, generate new life by passing on a sense of responsibility to your children, grandchildren, and neighbors.
This sense of responsibility has been lacking far too often until now.
Let resentment die.
Be the first to practice the justice you ask for.
Bear witness to life.
Educate others to care.
And you, ordained ministers, men and women religious, be living members of this people.
Demonstrate the authority of service daily: humility, accessibility, taking the first step, and forgiveness.
Indeed, the culture of privilege and arrogance that has not been held accountable has done too much harm to this land, as well as to many other regions of Italy and the world. This culture must be dismantled.
May the Spirit breathe from the four winds and inspire new forms of proclamation, cooperation, and environmental and social regeneration.
There is a spirituality of places, but it owes everything to the spirituality of people.
Changing the world always begins with the heart.
Ezekiel himself, before this prophecy of death and resurrection, announced the renewal of which God alone is capable: “Thus says the Lord God… I will give you a new heart, I will put a new spirit within you, I will take away from you the heart of stone and I will give you a heart of flesh. I will put my spirit within you and I will make you live according to my statutes and I will make you observe and do my regulations. You will dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you will be my people, and I will be your God” (Ez 36:22, 27-28).
May the risen Jesus grant us the ability to dwell together in this way, welcoming and putting the Word of God into practice.
May we be pilgrims here on earth and citizens of His eternity.