Exactly what good would telling evangelical Christians that the Pope is now 'pro-Environment' do? My experience has shown me that evangelicals in the US are predominantly protestant, and in many cases staunchly anti-Catholic.

As an Evangelist, I refuse the idea that we should sit around and do nothing while the environment is put to waste. I don't think that knowledge of an eventual apocalypse justifies not protecting the environment. Aren't we supposed to be creating a change for good in a world that is becoming evil?

i think you'll find that's the previous pope in the picture.

"i think you'll find that's the previous pope in the picture."

Indeed, but he looks like a lot more fun than the new one.

I am very offended by so many aspects of this post and I'm not even Catholic. As others have mentioned, you have a picture of the wrong pope, would it be okay to have a story about George W. Bush with a picture of George H. W. Bush in it? If this story had been about Al Gore or any other public figures the writers at Treehugger drool over it wouldn't have been nearly so condescending in tone, in fact it would be reverent, but apparently "Christians" are a default suspect class. It's evident by Mr. Sparkes gross ignorance that he doesn't have much sympathy with or knowledge about the christianity. Notice how he casually asserts that "85% of the world's population is religious," becuse, hey, all "religious" people are the same, right? They're all blind, mindless sheep who need to be made aware what the pope says. Then there's the fact that we can identify these people, these "Christians" by their bumper stickers; the assumption here is that we need help identifying them - despite the fact that most of the world is religious, it's not presumed that WE might be. After all, we're Treehugger readers, right? We're too sophisticated to be pulled in by all that fairytale mumbo-jumbo, aren't we? And then there's the blatant disregard, as noted above that the vast majority of evangelical christians don't really care what the pope has to say.

Why not stick to what Treehugger's SUPPOSED to be about: environmentally conscious modern consumerism. Unless that's a recycled soapbox you're standing on, kindly step down.

Wow, some people need to relax and take a chill pill. Some people really try hard to be offended.. It's your choice, y'know. If you disagree with something, fine, but the choice of blowing a fuse is yours. I think the picture is funny, makes him look like an owl, which is fitting.

Uhhh. Yeah. Pretty ignorant post. 85% of the world population is relgious. Actually Christians only make up about 33% of the world population.

Let me clue you into another fact. Our homes and buildings are massively larger polluters and energy consumers than anyones SUV. I do understand that it is easier for you pseudo environmentalists to latch onto such a token item as the vehicles people drive. SUVs aren't our problem. Waste in every aspect of our lives are our problem.

K - Well said! This is a pretty lame post, utterly ignorant of christianity. I doubt this dude knows the difference between a Catholic and a protestant...

First of all, brad:

You wouldn't happen to drive an SUV yourself, now would you? :) I agree with you that the choice of car type hasn't got the biggest impact on global pollution and yes, every aspect of life counts. This includes choosing a non-polluting car. We can always just think about the problem as overwhelmingly big and then hippocratically not pay attention to the little things we can do, like driving that SUV.

And to the religious fanatics above: Phew, you are nuts.

I'm a Catholic, and I have NO idea why everyone is offended? I used to be a protestant, and I wouldn't have been offended by this post in that scenario either. I'm truly confused about what is offensive here. The article never says 85% of the world is influenced by the Pope, just that 85% are religious and having religious leaders (in general) talk out for the environment is a good thing.

I mean this seriously, what has offended all these posters?

And, as a response to Brad, I agree that SUV's aren't the largest polluter out there, but they aren't a trivial polluter and they are an easy thing to get rid of for many people who drive them. Fixing this problem will only occur if we take a lot of small steps in the right direction.

I believe in Dambala, lord of sheetrock.

Or, I believe that we are simply part of a vast universe, one which is utterly disinterested in what we ants do in our little hill. Fill it up with garbage and use up all the food? Universe could give a crap.

So its up to you, there ain't no supreme being caring about what you do. How narcisistic of people to think there actually is.

I apologise for any offence caused by this post, but I assure you that I meant none.
I am not anti-religious; I merely wanted to point out that religious leaders do have some degree of influence over their followers. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it does mean that such a leader could make a large environmental impact by asking his followers to change their lifestyle in some way, for instance by purchasing more economical cars.
Personally I believe that any religious leader who feels the need to comment on such matters is a positive force.

I'm atheist, but I do believe it is not ok to make fun out of dead man, especially spiritual leader...

Well, I'm not one to hold a grudge. I accept your apology Mr. Sparkes, but I do hope you are just a bit more considerate in future treatment of these issues.