The three main Christian leaders have joined forces to warn that the world is facing a critical moment as the climate crisis is threatening the future of the planet, reports the Guardian.

In an unprecedented joint declaration, Pope Francis – leader of the Roman Catholic Church, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew – the spiritual leader of the Orthodox Church and the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who is the leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion, call on the world population – “whatever their belief or world view” – to “listen to the cry of the Earth and of people who are poor”.

In their statement it says: Today, we are paying the price (of the climate emergency) …Tomorrow could be worse”. It concludes that “This is a critical moment. Our children’s future and the future of our common home depend on it”.

The religious leaders have called on people to pray for world leaders before Cop26, the global climate change summit that will be held in Glasgow this autumn, and for everyone to make “meaningful sacrifices for the sake of the planet, working together and taking responsibility for how we use our resources”.

People with “far-reaching responsibilities” should lead the transition to just and sustainable economies.

“We stand before a harsh justice: biodiversity loss, environmental degradation and climate change are the inevitable consequences of our actions, since we have greedily consumed more of the Earth’s resources than the planet can endure. But we also face a profound injustice: the people bearing the most catastrophic consequences of these abuses are the poorest on the planet and have been the least responsible for causing them”, point out the religious leaders.

The world is “already witnessing the consequences of our refusal to protect and preserve [the planet]. Now, in this moment, we have an opportunity to repent, to turn around in resolve, to head in the opposite direction. We must pursue generosity and fairness in the ways that we live, work and use money, instead of selfish gain”

For the sake of today’s children, “we must choose to eat, travel, spend, invest and live differently, thinking not only of immediate interest and gains but also of future benefits. We repent of our generation’s sin”, outline the three leaders.

They said this is the first time the three religious leaders “feel compelled to address together the urgency of environmental sustainability”.