Everyone seems to be getting sucked in by Reuters implying that the Pope it talking to the United States exclusively. There are plenty of communist and totalitarian regimes in the word that his words apply to more aptly.
“Everyone seems to be getting sucked in by Reuters implying that the Pope it talking to the United States exclusively. There are plenty of communist and totalitarian regimes in the word that his words apply to more aptly.”
You are quite right. In fact, the statement is as much a critique of the Marxist-materialistic view of the world, such as valuing people on their worth to society,as it is a critique of unbridled capitalism.
There is nothing in this statement that contradicts what the previous popes and the Catechism of the Catholic Church have said on this subject.
More importantly, there is nothing here that contradicts the teachings of Jesus Christ. The central message of Christianity is not ‘get as much as you can as long as you don’t steal.’Christianity does not fall neatly into the left-right paradigm because it is about something deeper than an economic system.
It is also troubling that many here interpret any criticism of the market economy is socialist. Laissez-faire capitalism is just as unworkable and destructive as communism. Some people with economic and/or political power will always abuse that power and limit others’ access to the same. As they say, ‘the rich don’t want company.’