Pope Condemes Godly Christmas Retailing

[WilliamJenningsBryan]

Re: Pope Condemes Godly Christmas Retailing

Pope Francis is right up there with the Gnomes of Zürich when in comes to the money changers (Matthew 21:12). Socialism for the "faithful", Capitalism for the Pope - how quaint.

Profit at Vatican bank soars 20 times as it moves away from scandals of the past
The bank, officially called the Institute for Religious Works, earned €69.3m last year
By Nick Squires, Rome
4:24PM BST 25 May 2015

Once tainted by scandal and intrigue, the Vatican bank has managed to increase its profits by more than 20 times since embarking on a comprehensive drive for transparency and accountability ordered by Pope Francis.

The bank announced on Monday that it earned €69.3 million (£49 million) in 2014 – up from €2.9 million the previous year.

Profits plummeted in 2013 as a result of a dramatic dip in the value of the bank’s gold reserves, two substantial write-offs and the cost of employing a team of forensic accountants to review the murkiest corners of its finances.

The outside consultants were brought in to bring the bank, officially known as the Institute for Religious Works, into compliance with tough anti-money laundering regulations.
….

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/11628427/Profit-at-Vatican-bank-soars-20-times-as-it-moves-away-from-scandals-of-the-past.html

[WWJDnow]

Re: Pope Condemes Godly Christmas Retailing

As if the Pope isn't taking a cut out of the sales of these devotional candles:

[Johny Joe Hold]

It makes me so angry that the liberal Pope Francis cannot stop criticizing the economic system that Jesus himself endorsed. That is capitalism. Not a week goes by that he doesn't put out a little dig at free enterprise. At his Christmas Eve Mass he dissed "consumerism."

What the Pope does not understand is that it takes money to worship Jesus. We at Landover Baptist Church have a splendid building and highly paid pastors. Prosperous businesses pay for all of that. The same goes for the Pope's Boeing 747 and his Bell helicopter.

Pope Francis Rebukes Consumerism In Christmas Eve Mass
12/24/2015 11:36 pm ET | Updated 7 hours ago

Frances D'Emilio

VATICAN CITY (AP) — In his Christmas Eve homily Thursday, Pope Francis noted the simplicity of Jesus' birth as he rebuked what he called societies' intoxication with consumerism, pleasure, abundance and wealth.
Christians around the world joyfully prepared to recall the birth of Jesus. But in his only public Christmas Mass, in the splendor of St. Peter's Basilica, the pope counter-weighted his joy with a lament for people's excesses and what he described as a "culture of indifference, which not infrequently turns ruthless."
Francis said Jesus "calls us to act soberly, in other words, in a way that is simple, balanced, consistent, capable of seeing and doing what is essential."
Referring to Jesus' birth in a Bethlehem stable, the pope said the child was "born into the poverty of this world; there was no room in the inn for him and his family."
Francis also sounded a cry to right injustices. "In a world which all too often is merciless to the sinner and lenient to the sin, we need to cultivate a strong sense of justice," he said.
Since being elected pope in 2013, Francis has tried to shape the church into one marked more by loving mercy than rigid judgment. He insists that the needs of the poor and others, including refugees and migrants, be paramount.
Youngsters from countries that Francis has visited as pontiff, including Sri Lanka, the Philippines, the United States and most recently, three African nations, left floral bouquets around a baby Jesus statue near the central altar after Francis unveiled and gently kissed the statue.
A child from Mexico, which the pope visits in February, was also among the bouquet bearers.
On Friday, tens of thousands of people are expected to crowd into St. Peter's Square to hear the traditional Christmas day speech, which in the past has been used to denounce wars, other violence and