The Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams spoke in his Christmas sermon of the need to protect the environment.

The Archbishop gave his sermon in Canterbury Cathedral where he said that "human greed" is threatening to distort the fragile balance of the earth, reports the Press Association.

The Archbishop said that the message of Christmas is about God's love for creation.

"The whole point of creation is that there should be persons ... capable of intimacy with God - not so that God can gain something, but so that these created beings may live in joy.

"And God's way of making sure that this joy is fully available is to join humanity on Earth so that human beings may recognise what they are and what they are for."

Speaking on the environment the Dr Williams said, "More and more [is] clearly required of us as we grow in awareness of how fragile is the balance of species and environments in the world and just how our greed distorts it.

"When we threaten the balance of things, we don't just put our material survival at risk, more profoundly we put our spiritual sensitivity at risk - the possibility of being opened up to endless wonder by the world around us," reports the Press Association.

In his sermon, the Archbishop encouraged people to show reverence to God's creation and to each other.

"The delight and reverence we should have towards the things of creation is intensified many times where human relationships are concerned.

"And if peace is to be more than a pause in open conflict, it must be grounded in this passionate amazed reverence for others."