Pope Benedict XVI's Sunday Message: Save The Planet

Pope Benedict XVI Sunday urged his flock -- and the world's leaders -- to take courageous action to "safeguard creation" and reverse "degradation" of the environment.

It's not the first green statement by the Pope -- having already initiated the greening of the Vatican -- but it the terms he used were an unmistakable call was a worldwide effort to preserve the earth's resources in the face of global warming and other effects.

"A decisive 'yes' is needed in decisions to safeguard creation as well as a strong commitment to reverse tendencies that risk leading to irreversible situations of degradation. ... New generations will be entrusted with the future of the planet, which bears clear signs of a type of development that has not always protected nature's delicate equilibriums. ... Courageous choices that can re-create a strong alliance between man and earth must be made before it is too late."

He even dressed in green vestments, as he spoke to a crowd of mostly young people, on "Save Creation Day," which is marked by the Catholic Church in Italy, according to this Reuters story. There's a growing green movement among the faithful.

Congregations of all faiths, from all over America, are taking steps to make their churches, synagogues, temples and mosques more environmentally friendly. They are taking teachings from their holy books to be better stewards of the environment, rallying around a theme of "caring for creation" as a form of worship.

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