Posted on 02/23/2016 9:30:02 AM PST by John Semmens
In his visit to the U.S.-Mexican border, Pope Francis took the occasion to criticize American capitalism for the suffering of the poor.
"In pursuit of profit the capitalists enslave working men and women, compelling them to exchange their precious time for money," the Pope complained. "Though not literally in chains, those forced to labor for their survival are rousted from repose to travel on often difficult and dangerous roads to arrive at an employer's place of exploitation. There they are given tiresome chores by cruel taskmasters. If they fail to perform satisfactorily they may be cast out into the streets."
Francis contrasted this grim picture of life under capitalism with "the life of prayer and charity that God wants us all to have and which the Church has modeled for nearly 2,000 years. The Church has not only survived, but has grown and thrived on the gifts given by the faithful. It has demonstrated that profit is not required for a life of goodness and joy. America must put aside personal greed and open its doors to take in the poor of the world."
The Pope chided efforts by politicians, like presidential candidate Donald Trump, to block migrants from entering the United States "in order to obtain their fair share of the abundance God has bestowed upon that land" calling such efforts "selfish and unchristian. It is God's wish that those who have the ability to produce more than they need share the surplus with those who have less than they need. The fear that this would lead to universal impoverishment is overwrought. Jesus owned nothing. He survived on the generosity of friends and supporters. If such a lifestyle is good enough for the Son of God why is it not good enough for everyone on Earth?"
if you missed any of this week's other semi-news/semi-satire posts you can find them at...
http://www.gopbriefingroom.com/index.php?topic=195682.0
“...in order to obtain their fair share of the abundance God has bestowed upon that land” calling such efforts “selfish and unchristian. It is God’s wish that those who have the ability to produce more than they need share the surplus with those who have less than they need. “
Being an ex-Catholic I can speak freely here, ‘ This Pope? , ......is on Cloud Nine or something, - making statements like this. This guy makes it sound like Color TV’s , and Cadillac’s were just falling into the backyard’s of American Citizens. No offense to my Catholic friends but your Pope’s elevator isn’t going all the way up!
Amen.
As a Catholic, I'm not offended in the least; it only shows that you're sane, and that you have some familiarity with actual reality. :)
...really, REALLY waiting for this guy to retire to a nice, SILENT monastery, somewhere...
Pope Francis also makes it incredibly hard to separate satire (such as the OP) from reality. Clarity and orthodoxy in teaching is apparently becoming a lost art form in the Vatican, these days...
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