ROME — Pope Francis met with former US President Bill Clinton via Zoom on Monday, emphasizing the urgency of tackling the “catastrophe” of climate change, the migration “crisis” and war.
“It is time to work together to stop the ecological catastrophe before it is too late,” the pontiff told Mr. Clinton at a meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI). “Let’s stop while we still can, please.”
The pope reiterated his intention to publish a second document on the environment later this month, eight years after the publication of his encyclical “Laudato Sì” on the same theme.
In late August, Francis said it was time for world leaders to “listen to the science and deliver a rapid and equitable transition to end the era of fossil fuels.”
Former President Bill Clinton and Pope Francis have a conversation during the Clinton Global Initiative meeting at the Hilton Midtown on September 18, 2023 in New York. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty)
It is “absurd to allow continued exploration and expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure,” he said in his message for the September 1 Feast of Creation. “Let us raise our voices to end this injustice towards the poor and towards our children, who will suffer the worst effects of climate change. »
“The rampant burning of fossil fuels and the destruction of forests are raising temperatures and leading to massive droughts,” the pope said, a product of “consumerist greed, fueled by selfish hearts.”
Additionally, he argued, “predatory industries are depleting and polluting our freshwater sources through extreme practices such as hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas extraction, uncontrolled mining megaprojects, and Intensive livestock “.
Moreover, “the richest nations have contracted an ‘ecological debt’ that must be paid” to the poorest nations, he added.
“Let us answer our call to stand with the victims of environmental and climate injustice and end the senseless war on creation,” he said.
During the pope’s video meeting with Mr. Clinton, he also spoke about the migration “crisis,” urging his listeners to remember that migrants are not numbers, but people.
Pope Francis meets with Bill Clinton, Marc Mezvinsky and Alex Soros at the Apostolic Palace on July 5, 2023 in Vatican City, Vatican. (Twitter)
“When we think of migration, let us think of the eyes of the children we find in refugee camps,” he said.
Earlier this summer, Pope Francis received Mr. Clinton in a private audience at the Vatican’s Santa Marta residence. Clinton was accompanied by Alex Soros, son of billionaire George Soros.
Alex Soros is the President of the Open Societies Foundations (OSF), a young global leader of the WEF, a champion of LGBT and abortion lobbies, and heir to the legacy of global disruptor George Soros.
Soros, 37, who recently took control of OSF, a multibillion-dollar corporation, spent July 4 in Albania with Clinton.
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