[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 69 (Thursday, May 16, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3561-S3562]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               INEQUALITY

  Mr. SANDERS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have printed 
in the Record the English translation of remarks made this morning by 
Pope Francis, who addressed the new nonresident ambassadors to the Holy 
See.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:


 english language translation of pope francis' address for the new non-
resident ambassadors to the holy see: kyrgyzstan, antigua and barbuda, 
                 luxembourg and botswana (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: Kytgyzstan, 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 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 begun 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. These financiers, economists and politicians 
     consider God to be unmanageable, 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

[[Page S3562]]

     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 you 
     duties. To this end, upon you and your families, and also 
     upon your Embassy staff, I willingly invoke abundant divine 
     blessings.

  Mr. SANDERS. I don't usually comment much on religious matters, but I 
was very impressed by what the Pope had to say today. In his remarks 
Pope Francis called for a revamping of the global financial system, a 
system which he pointed out benefits the few, values money over human 
dignity, and continues to widen the gap between the rich and everybody 
else.
  While acknowledging the advances modern society has made in health 
care, education, technology, and other areas, the Pope expressed his 
concern for the least amongst us. The Pope said:

       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 . . . 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.

  The Pope went on to say this in his rather brief remarks:

       One cause of this situation . . . is in our relationship 
     with money, and our acceptance of its power over ourselves 
     and our society . . . The worship of the golden calf of old 
     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 Pope continued:

       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 begun a throw away 
     culture.

  He also said:

       Solidarity, which is the treasure of the poor, is often 
     considered counterproductive, opposed to the logic of finance 
     and the economy.

  Further quoting the Pope, and I hope everybody listens to this:

       While the income of a minority is increasing exponentially, 
     that of the majority is crumbling.

  Let me repeat that. This is what the Pope said today:

       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.

  This is from a speech Pope Francis made today. I think it is 
important that we listen to the Pope on this issue. Frankly, I have 
strong disagreements with the Catholic Church on issues of women's 
rights, issues of gay rights, and a number of other issues. On this 
issue of what is happening economically around the world--the power of 
financial markets; the growing gap between the very rich and everyone 
else; the need for government and for states around the world to step 
in and protect the dispossessed; the need to understand that money unto 
itself means nothing unless it is being used in a way that improves the 
lives of all people--that is a message coming from the Pope. It is a 
message worth thinking about and discussing.

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