Kenyan Cardinal urges Catholics to plant trees

New Cardinal John Njue has been urged all Catholics to plant trees as part of the Church's wider concern for the environment. The Cardinal was speaking outside Kenyatta International Conference Centre in Nairobi yesterday, after planting a commemorative tree on his arrival from Rome. Mr.Philip Kisia from the Green Africa Foundation, which donated the tree, said the foundation is now going to give out 10,000 trees to Catholics. . We would like this commemorative tree, planted by our newly created cardinal Njue today, to be accompanied by others ; hence we are donating a bunch of 10,000 trees to the Catholic Church, he further told the huge congregation of Catholics , who had turned up to witness the occasion. Earlier the Cardinal had planted another commemorative tree within the premises of the Holy Family Minor Basilica, after he had presided over his first Mass as Cardinal. Addressing the congregation after the tree-planting ceremony, Cardinal Njue called for massive planting of trees and respect for environment. He observed that the Kenya and some other parts of Africa was currently witnessing environmental degradation due to the wanton felling of trees. "We must make every effort to save our Mother Africa from turning into a desert by planting trees and generally upholding the tenets of environment", he stressed.