The obligation to care for the environment and protect the earth as the "common home" of all humanity is a theme that increasingly is found in the teaching of Pope Benedict XVI, his spokesman said.Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi told Vatican Radio that ecology "is an argument which comes up with more frequency in the words of the pope, mirroring the growing ecological concerns of humanity."
Father Lombardi spoke to the radio Jan. 5, explaining why concern for the environment was one of the major themes in Pope Benedict's message for the Jan. 1 celebration of World Peace Day.
Father Lombardi told the radio, "Until recently, the theme of the environment seemed like a concern of the rich rather than the poor, of developed countries rather than developing nations for whom economic growth is an absolute priority. To regulate and limit this growth seemed like a luxury, a way of keeping the weak subjugated."
Now, however, people are realizing that ecological exploitation and destruction worsens the effects of natural disasters and mortgages the future of the poorest countries, he said.
Pope Benedict's approach, Father Lombardi said, is "a strong moral appeal to solidarity on the basis of a recognition of the universal destination of the goods of creation, which belong also to the poor and to future generations."
"Knowing we are created by God makes us responsible before him and before others, but it is also with the hard work of reason and dialogue that we must find feasible paths for the future of the human family in this, our common home," Father Lombardi said.
In his World Peace Day message, the pope wrote, "We need to care for the environment: It has been entrusted to men and women to be protected and cultivated with responsible freedom, with the good of all as a constant guiding criterion.
"The problems looming on the horizon are complex and time is short," the pope said, suggesting that new international agencies may be needed to help promote and coordinate global efforts to halt the pollution and destruction of the environment.
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