Francis' message is headed to U.S. pews

The church bulletin inserts are nearly ready to go. So are the e-mails to every Roman Catholic parish in the United States with preaching suggestions for the first Sunday after Pope Francis releases his encyclical on the environment.

On June 28, churches worldwide are being asked to ring their bells at noon to commemorate a "Thank you, Pope Francis" march in Rome being held that day.

Never before, church leaders say, has a papal encyclical been anticipated so eagerly by so many. With Francis expected to make the case that climate change, unchecked development and overconsumption are exacerbating the suffering of the poor, advocates for the environment and the poor are thrilled.

The leaders of the Catholic Church in the U.S. may be harder to win over. At a U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops meeting this month, bishops said they were withholding enthusiasm.

Some said they were wary about getting the church enmeshed in the debate over climate change. They also expressed concern about allying with environmentalists, some of whom promote population control as a remedy.

Some bishops have received hate mail from Catholics skeptical of climate change. Cardinal Theodore McCarrick said, "When the encyclical comes out they'll all get behind it, but they're waiting to see what's in it."

Their wariness is one of many signs of the challenges Francis faces with U.S. Catholic leaders, who are more cautious and politically conservative than he seems to be on certain issues. Most were appointed and shaped by Francis' more conservative predecessors, Popes Benedict XVI and John Paul II.

New York Times