New York City, N.Y., Sep 24, 2009 / 08:35 am
Adding his voice to the U.N. Summit on climate change, Pope Benedict XVI sent a video message to the meeting in New York on Tuesday. The Holy Father reminded the participants that "the natural environment is given by God to everyone, and so our use of it entails a personal responsibility towards humanity as a whole."
In his video message, which was made public today, Pope Benedict began by saying that his reflection was based on the "relationship between the Creator and ourselves as guardians of His creation."
"The Earth is indeed a precious gift of the Creator Who, in designing its intrinsic order, has given us guidelines that assist us as stewards of His creation," the Pontiff continued.
This is framework within which the Church sees "that matters concerning the environment and its protection are intimately linked with integral human development," he explained, pointing to his statement in his recent encyclical, "Caritas in Veritate," where he said that these issues demonstrate the "'pressing moral need for renewed solidarity' not only between countries but also between individuals."