Pope: Rejection of ethics caused financial crisis

Due to rejection of ethics and the mentality that men are mere commodities, Pope Francis said caused the financial crisis happening around the world.

In his address to new ambassadors to the Holy See, May 16, the pontiff urged them not to forget the predominance of ethics in the economy and in social life, emphasizing the value of solidarity and the centrality of the human being.

He said, “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,” the pope said, as reported by Vatican Information Service.