Pope Francis on Thursday called for
solidarity with the victims of environmental and climate
injustice and for an end to the "senseless war against
creation"
"The effects of this war can be seen in the many rivers that are
drying up," said Francis in his message for the World Day of
Prayer for the Care of Creation on September 1.
"(Pope) Benedict XVI once observed that: 'the external deserts
in the world are growing, because the internal deserts have
become so vast'," he continued.
"Consumerist greed, fuelled by selfish hearts, is disrupting the
planet's water cycle. The unrestrained burning of fossil fuels
and the destruction of forests are pushing temperatures higher
and leading to massive droughts. Alarming water shortages
increasingly affect both small rural communities and large
metropolises," said the Pope, who has made protecting the
environment a central theme of his pontificate.
"Moreover, predatory industries are depleting and polluting our
freshwater sources through extreme practices such as fracking
for oil and gas extraction, unchecked mega-mining projects, and
intensive animal farming. 'Sister Water', in the words of Saint
Francis of Assisi, is pillaged and turned into 'a commodity
subject to the laws of the market'," continued Francis, quoting
from his own 2015 encyclical letter Laudato si' on care for our
common home.
"The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
has stated that acting now with greater urgency means that we
will not miss our chance to create a more sustainable and just
world. We can and we must prevent the worst from happening,"
said the pope, adding that "Truly, much can be done, provided we
come together like so many streams, brooks and rivulets, merging
finally in a mighty river to irrigate the life of our marvellous
planet and our human family for generations to come"
"So let us join hands and take bold steps to 'Let Justice and
Peace Flow' throughout our world," he concluded.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
