ADDRESS OF POPE FRANCIS
TO
THE NEW NON-RESIDENT AMBASSADORS TO THE HOLY SEE:
KYRGYZSTAN, ANTIGUA AND
BARBUDA,
LUXEMBOURG AND BOTSWANA
Clementine Hall
Thursday, 16 May
2013
Your Excellencies,
I am pleased to receive you for the presentation of the Letters
accrediting you as Ambassadors Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Holy See
on the part of your respective countries: Kyrgyzstan, Antigua and Barbuda, the
Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and Botswana. The gracious words which you have
addressed to me, for which I thank you heartily, have testified that the Heads
of State of your countries are concerned to develop relations of respect and
cooperation with the Holy See. I would ask you kindly to convey to them my
sentiments of gratitude and esteem, together with the assurance of my prayers
for them and their fellow citizens.
Ladies and Gentlemen, our human family is presently experiencing
something of a turning point in its own history, if we consider the advances
made in various areas. We can only praise the positive achievements which
contribute to the authentic welfare of mankind, in fields such as those of
health, education and communications. At the same time, we must also acknowledge
that the majority of the men and women of our time continue to live daily in
situations of insecurity, with dire consequences. Certain pathologies are
increasing, with their psychological consequences; fear and desperation grip the
hearts of many people, even in the so-called rich countries; the joy of life is
diminishing; indecency and violence are on the rise; poverty is becoming more
and more evident. People have to struggle to live and, frequently, to live in an
undignified way. One cause of this situation, in my opinion, is in the our
relationship with money, and our acceptance of its power over ourselves and our
society. Consequently the financial crisis which we are experiencing makes us
forget that its ultimate origin is to be found in a profound human crisis. In
the denial of the primacy of human beings! We have created new idols. The
worship of the golden calf of old (cf. Ex 32:15-34) has found a new and
heartless image in the cult of money and the dictatorship of an economy which is
faceless and lacking any truly humane goal.
The worldwide financial and economic crisis seems to highlight their
distortions and above all the gravely deficient human perspective, which reduces
man to one of his needs alone, namely, consumption. Worse yet, human beings
themselves are nowadays considered as consumer goods which can be used and
thrown away. We have started a throw-away culture. This tendency is seen on the
level of individuals and whole societies; and it is being promoted! In
circumstances like these, solidarity, which is the treasure of the poor, is
often considered counterproductive, opposed to the logic of finance and the
economy. While the income of a minority is increasing exponentially, that of the
majority is crumbling. This imbalance results from ideologies which uphold the
absolute autonomy of markets and financial speculation, and thus deny the right
of control to States, which are themselves charged with providing for the common
good. A new, invisible and at times virtual, tyranny is established, one which
unilaterally and irremediably imposes its own laws and rules. Moreover,
indebtedness and credit distance countries from their real economy and citizens
from their real buying power. Added to this, as if it were needed, is widespread
corruption and selfish fiscal evasion which have taken on worldwide dimensions.
The will to power and of possession has become limitless.
Concealed behind this attitude is a rejection of ethics, a rejection
of God. Ethics, like solidarity, is a nuisance! It is regarded as
counterproductive: as something too human, because it relativizes money and
power; as a threat, because it rejects manipulation and subjection of people:
because ethics leads to God, who is situated outside the categories of the
market. God is thought to be unmanageable by these financiers, economists and
politicians, God is unmanageable, even dangerous, because he calls man to his
full realization and to independence from any kind of slavery. Ethics –
naturally, not the ethics of ideology – makes it possible, in my view, to create
a balanced social order that is more humane. In this sense, I encourage the
financial experts and the political leaders of your countries to consider the
words of Saint John Chrysostom: "Not to share one’s goods with the poor is to
rob them and to deprive them of life. It is not our goods that we possess, but
theirs" (Homily on Lazarus, 1:6 – PG 48, 992D).
Dear Ambassadors, there is a need for financial reform along ethical
lines that would produce in its turn an economic reform to benefit everyone.
This would nevertheless require a courageous change of attitude on the part of
political leaders. I urge them to face this challenge with determination and
farsightedness, taking account, naturally, of their particular situations. Money
has to serve, not to rule! The Pope loves everyone, rich and poor alike, but the
Pope has the duty, in Christ’s name, to remind the rich to help the poor, to
respect them, to promote them. The Pope appeals for disinterested solidarity and
for a return to person-centred ethics in the world of finance and economics.
For her part, the Church always works for the integral development of
every person. In this sense, she reiterates that the common good should not be
simply an extra, simply a conceptual scheme of inferior quality tacked onto
political programmes. The Church encourages those in power to be truly at the
service of the common good of their peoples. She urges financial leaders to take
account of ethics and solidarity. And why should they not turn to God to draw
inspiration from his designs? In this way, a new political and economic mindset
would arise that would help to transform the absolute dichotomy between the
economic and social spheres into a healthy symbiosis.
Finally, through you, I greet with affection the Pastors and the
faithful of the Catholic communities present in your countries. I urge them to
continue their courageous and joyful witness of faith and fraternal love in
accordance with Christ’s teaching. Let them not be afraid to offer their
contribution to the development of their countries, through initiatives and
attitudes inspired by the Sacred Scriptures! And as you inaugurate your mission,
I extend to you, dear Ambassadors, my very best wishes, assuring you of the
assistance of the Roman Curia for the fulfilment of your duties. To this end,
upon you and your families, and also upon your Embassy staff, I willingly invoke
abundant divine blessings. Thank you.
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