The Green Pope

“It's tantalizing to imagine the moral force and power of persuasion a green pope might have on the world,” pondered the website WorldChanging, a global network of secular journalists dedicated to finding solutions to the environmental issues facing the earth, upon the death of Pope John Paul II in 2004.

No one imagined Cardinal Josef Ratzinger would become that pope.

When he was elected the 266^th pope, the world anticipated the scholarly German theologian would spend his years issuing edicts on morality, faith, doctrine and dogmas, not making what amounts to virtual campaign speeches on the need for clean water, solar energy and the reduction of CO2 emissions. Much to the surprise of fans and foes alike, the man who was once seen as the Pope’s Rottweiler has quietly, with passionate resolve, spread a message that seems more in keeping with an environmental scientist than a spiritual leader—“Save the planet!”

Perhaps realizing that at his age, he had little time to waste, the Holy Father even spoke about the environment in his homily at the inauguration of his papacy:

The external deserts in the world are growing, because the internal deserts have become so vast. Therefore the earth’s treasures no longer serve to build God’s garden for all to live in, but they have been made to serve the powers of exploitation and destruction. The Church as a whole and all her Pastors, like Christ, must set out to lead people out of the desert, towards the place of life, towards friendship with the Son of God, towards the One who gives us life, and life in abundance.

For more information on Pope Benedict and his environmental stands, check out 10 Commandments for the Environment at http://tinyurl.com/dhme8t