Inside the campaign to divest the Catholic Church from fossil fuels

ROME — In the days of the Renaissance, the Catholic Church was near the peak of its power. The combination of political influence and vast wealth positioned the Vatican in the 15th and 16th centuries as one of the prominent patrons of the arts during one of the most culturally rich periods in human history. As financier, the church paved the way for many of the masterpieces still found all around Rome, from the works of Raphael, to Bernini's Fountain of Four Rivers, to Michelangelo's giant frescoes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

Today in the Eternal City, a group of Catholics is seeking to wield church finances to impact the world again, this time to fuel an energy renaissance to move human civilization beyond the age of fossil fuels and help usher in a clean energy era at a time that scientists say is critical for curbing global warming.

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