Lenny Belardo (The Young Pope):
“Captain Belo, Christ called fishermen to be apostles. Yet now I see fishermen being made into destroyers by the hunger of the world. The documentary End of the Line shows us what greed has done to the oceans—nets sweeping the seas clean, leaving no time for fish to be fruitful and multiply. Tell me, Captain, is there still hope?”
Captain Belo:
“Holiness, the hope is not yet lost. But the nets are indeed too big, the quotas too high, and the politicians too weak to say no to industry. If we wish for fish tomorrow, we must change our ways today.”
Lenny:
“And what are these changes, my son?”
Belo:
“Seven, Holy Father, like the sacraments:
- Marine Protected Areas – Sanctuaries of the sea, where no nets can touch, so fish may breed and replenish the waters.
- Stronger Quotas & Enforcement – Governments must set science-based catch limits and punish those who cheat.
- Ban Destructive Gear – Bottom trawlers and massive drift nets destroy not just fish but the very seabed, the cradle of life. They must be outlawed.
- Sustainable Certification – Consumers must be taught to choose only fish with a mark of sustainability, so the market rewards stewardship, not plunder.
- Community-Based Fisheries – Return power to local fishermen who have an interest in keeping the seas alive for their grandchildren, rather than faceless corporations.
- Aquaculture Done Right – Farmed fish can take pressure off the wild, but only if it avoids pollution, disease, and feeding farm fish with wild fish.
- Reduce Waste & Demand – One third of seafood caught is wasted. And the rich world eats more than its share. To waste less, to eat less, to share more—that too is salvation.”
Lenny (leaning in, whispering like a confessor):
“Captain Belo, you remind me of Saint Peter himself. You are right: salvation comes also through restraint. Perhaps the true miracle of the loaves and fishes is not multiplication—but distribution. To take only what is needed, and to leave the rest in the hands of God.”
Captain Belo (nodding, with a seaman’s humility):
“Then let us fish with conscience, Holy Father, so that our nets are never empty, and our children never hungry.”
Captain Belo (continuing):
“There is also an eighth solution, Holiness, one as sharp as the hook itself: Selective Catch Methods. Our nets and gear must be designed to let the small ones escape, and to spare the creatures we do not wish to kill. Larger mesh sizes, hook modifications, escape panels, and bycatch-reducing devices—these can ensure we catch only the mature fish that can feed us, and leave the young to grow and breed.”Lenny Belardo (smiling faintly):
“Ah, Belo, you speak like a true shepherd of the sea. To let the small live, so the many may thrive—that is mercy itself. This is not just fishing, it is discernment. Selective catching is like confession: separating sin from virtue, the waste from the worthy, so that life may continue.”