By Philip Pullella
SYDNEY (Reuters) - Pope Benedict on Thursday told a hugegathering of young people that they were inheriting a planetwhose resources had been scarred and squandered to fuelinsatiable consumption.
His latest appeal to save the planet for future generationscame in a address to some 150,000 youths in Sydney after herode through the city's harbour standing on the outdoor deck ofa white ferry as dozens of boats blew their horns.
"Reluctantly we come to acknowledge that there are alsoscars which mark the surface of our earth, erosion,deforestation, the squandering of the world's mineral and oceanresources in order to fuel an insatiable consumption," he toldthe cheering crowd.
The 81-year-old pope appeared in good form as he startedthe official part of his trip after three days of rest. Hechatted with young people on the ferry and stepped offsprightly to receive a bear hug welcome by an Aboriginal on thedock.
He told the young people, some of whom had come from islandnations threatened by rising sea levels or drought-hit nationssuch as Australia, that protecting the environment was "ofvital importance to humanity".
The pope recalled how his long flight from Rome lastweekend, he marvelled at the sparkle of the Mediterranean, thegrandeur of the north Africa desert, the lushness of Asia'sforests and the vastness of the Pacific Ocean.
"It is as though one catches glimpses of the Genesiscreation story -- light and darkness, the sun and the moon, thewaters, the earth and living creatures," he said.
In a welcoming speech to Prime Minister Kevin Rudd onThursday morning, the pope said: "It is appropriate to reflectupon the kind of world we are handing on to futuregenerations".
Australia, one of the world's highest per capita greenhouseemitters due to coal-fired power stations, is in the grip ofthe worst drought in 100 years and is struggling to save itsmajor river system that feeds the nation's food belt.
APOLOGY TO ABORIGINES PRAISED
The pope also praised Australia for apologising for pastinjustices to Aborigines, saying it was a courageous move torepair race relations and offered hope to the rest of theworld.
Rudd officially apologised to Aborigines in February.
Australia's 460,000 Aborigines make up about 2 percent ofthe country's 21 million population and have consistentlyhigher rates of unemployment, substance abuse and domesticviolence, as well as a life expectancy 17 years less than otherAustralians.
The pope thanked Aborigines for a traditional welcomingceremony and acknowledged Aborigines are the first people ofAustralia.
"I am deeply moved to stand on your land, knowing thesuffering and injustices it has borne, but aware too of thehealing and hope that are now at work...," he said.
The Catholic Church hopes World Youth Day, the brainchildof the late Pope John Paul II, will revitalise the world'syoung Catholics at a time when the cult of the individual andconsumerism has become big distractions in their lives.
The pope said the "social world" also had scars,highlighting alcohol and drug abuse, violence and sexualdegradation. He questioned how the media's portrayal ofviolence and sexual exploitation can be considered"entertainment".
He warned young pilgrims "do not be fooled by those who seeyou as just another consumer".
(Additional reporting by Michael Perry; Editing by AlexRichardson)
