pope

Lauren Keith muses on the confluence of religion and environmentalism, alongside a tongue-in-cheek summary of the Green Commandments.

Known as the “Green Patriarch,” Bartholomew I, the leader of 300 million Orthodox Christians, celebrates his 17th birthday this Leap Day. At age 68, his health has been slowly declining for decades. This has led supporters of his environmental achievements to begin speculating about whether his successor will continue his green legacy.

The Pope is expected to use his first address to the United Nations to deliver a powerful warning over climate change in a move to adopt protection of the environment as a "moral" cause for the Catholic Church and its billion-strong following.

That's right. Pope Benedict XVI is fast becoming a world leader in environmental activism. Can his progressive stance on environmental responsibility position an estimated one billion or more Catholics to take environmental action? Pope: concerned over "the growing recognition of the need to preserve the environment."