VATICAN CITY:
Thousands of Catholics, Protestants, Buddhists, Hindus, Jews and Muslims marched together through Rome to the Vatican to demand action on climate change and thank Pope Francis for his encyclical on the environment on Sunday, according to foreign sources.
They marched behind banners reading “Many Faiths – One Planet” and “The Earth – Our Common Home – Climate Action Now!”
to lobby leaders to take decisive action at a United Nations summit in Paris this year to stem the effects of global warming.
Speaking to crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square for his Sunday blessing and message, the pope acknowledged the groups and encouraged inter-religious collaboration for an “integral ecology” to protect “our common home”.
The participants held up placards promoting renewable energy and sustainable development and flew kites shaped like white doves. One banner read: “Thank you Pope Francis for Laudato Si” (the name of his encyclical).
