Pope Leo calls for global action to tackle climate change a day after wading into US political debate

By Christopher Lamb, CNN

(CNN) — Pope Leo XIV has called for pressure to be placed on governments to protect the environment as he stressed that damaging the natural world is incompatible with the Christian faith in a speech at a climate conference Wednesday.

“We cannot love God, whom we cannot see, while despising his creatures” Leo told the conference which was held to mark 10 years since Pope Francis’ landmark document on the environment. “Everyone in society, through non-governmental organizations and advocacy groups, must put pressure on governments to develop and implement more rigorous regulations, procedures and controls.”

The American pontiff’s remarks came in his first major speech on the environment since his election in May. Leo has indicated he wants to continue with his predecessor’s efforts to tackle the climate crisis, opening a new ecological center in the papal summer residence of Castel Gandolfo, about 15 miles outside of Rome, and calling for the conversion of people “inside and outside the church” who don’t recognize “the urgent need to care for our common home.”

Leo’s speech also came a day after he waded into the US political fray by saying that opposing the right to abortion while supporting the death penalty is “not really pro-life.”

In his speech on climate Wednesday, Leo paid tribute to his predecessor’s encyclical Laudato si’ (“Praised be to you”) which said responsible stewardship of the environment was a moral imperative for Catholics while linking environmental degradation with poverty.

The release of the encyclical was timed to influence the Paris COP21 climate summit and is considered have an impact on galvanizing religious groups and even those outside the Catholic Church to protect the environment while inspiring the group, the “Laudato si’ Movement”.

They were the organizers of the event at Castel Gandolfo at which Leo spoke Wednesday. Among those attending the event was Arnold Schwarzenegger, the actor and former Governor of California, who is supporting papal efforts on climate.

In his remarks, Leo referenced next month’s COP30 climate change conference in Brazil, saying he hopes it and other forthcoming summits “will listen to the cry of the Earth and the cry of the poor, families, indigenous peoples, involuntary migrants and believers throughout the world.”

Leo’s remarks came just over a week after US President Donald Trump called climate change “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world” during a speech at the United Nations General Assembly.

The pope quoted Francis’ second environmental document, Laudate Deum, which pointed out that “some have chosen to deride” the scientific data behind climate change and even “ridicule those who speak of global warming.” Leo insisted, however, that people’s hearts needed to be changed, and called for a “true ecological conversion” which changes individuals and communities.

“We must shift from collecting data to caring,” he said before making a final appeal. “God will ask us if we have cultivated and cared for the world that he created for the benefit of all and for future generations, and if we have taken care of our brothers and sisters. What will be our answer?”

Pope Leo addresses US politics

A day earlier, Leo questioned whether anyone can be pro-life and support the “inhuman” immigration policies of the Trump administration when questioned about a debate in US politics.

The first American pope was responding to a controversial decision by the cardinal in Leo’s home city of Chicago to offer an award to Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois.

Cardinal Blase Cupich sought to recognize the Illinois senator’s advocacy for immigrants but faced criticism from some bishops due to Durbin’s support for legal abortion. Durbin decided to refuse the honor because of the backlash it had generated.

Leo, however, declined to criticize the award, saying, “it’s important to look at the overall work that a senator has done” over “40 years of service in the United States Senate.”

The pope added that if someone says, “I’m against abortion but I’m in agreement with the inhuman treatment of immigrants in the United States, I don’t know if that’s pro-life.” Durbin has described himself as “overwhelmed” by the support he received from Leo.

But the pope has also stressed he wants to try and heal divisions and not fuel polarization. The Durbin award controversy, he said, raises “very complex issues” and he added, “I don’t know if anyone has all the truth on them.”

During his pontificate, Pope Francis updated catholic teaching to say that the death penalty is now “inadmissible,” a move which has been resisted by some conservative Catholics. His position is shared by Leo. In 2011, when the future pope was leader of the Augustinian order, he wrote to then Gov. Pat Quinn thanking him for abolishing the death penalty in Illinois.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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