07-10-2015, 01:09 PM
Reading his exact quotes, my interpretation is that Pope Francis is equating modern capitalism to greed and selfishness.
He seems to think that the vulnerable, poor, and disenfranchised are ignored or scorned by capitalist leaders and a large portion of the population.
I'm a capitalist, but I can't argue with him that many times when the topics of protecting children, aiding those in financial need, extending equal rights, etc... come up, some of the very first responses (often from Christians) are: "how much will it cost me?, "why should the many have to help or pay for the few?", "there are no environmental problems, it's a liberal scheme to make money off the taxpayers"... Stuff like that.
I'm not a Christian and I'm not making a judgment call on whether those responses bear merit or not, just noting that they're common and possibly what the Pope observes and attributes to capitalistic society.
Anyway, he's an interesting leader and I don't personally doubt his sincere good will and humanitarianism, but he sure can shake things up like no Pope I can remember.
He seems to think that the vulnerable, poor, and disenfranchised are ignored or scorned by capitalist leaders and a large portion of the population.
I'm a capitalist, but I can't argue with him that many times when the topics of protecting children, aiding those in financial need, extending equal rights, etc... come up, some of the very first responses (often from Christians) are: "how much will it cost me?, "why should the many have to help or pay for the few?", "there are no environmental problems, it's a liberal scheme to make money off the taxpayers"... Stuff like that.
I'm not a Christian and I'm not making a judgment call on whether those responses bear merit or not, just noting that they're common and possibly what the Pope observes and attributes to capitalistic society.
Anyway, he's an interesting leader and I don't personally doubt his sincere good will and humanitarianism, but he sure can shake things up like no Pope I can remember.