Pope: Avarice does not only regard the rich, may our goods be a blessing for others

At the general audience Francis dwelt on the vice that prevents man from generosity. The warning on the eve of the Day of Remembrance for the victims of the Shoah: "The logic of hatred and violence can never be justified, because they deny our very humanity. Let us remember this also in today's wars'.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Greed "is a disease of the heart, not of the wallet". Pope Francis said this today at the general audience held in the Paul VI Hall who - as part of the cycle of catechesis on the deadly sins - focused on this "form of attachment to money which prevents man from generosity".

“It is not a sin that only concerns people who own large assets, but a transversal vice, which often has nothing to do with the current account balance,” he underlined. He also recalled how the desert fathers themselves remembered that avarice could take hold "even of monks who, after having renounced enormous inheritances, in the solitude of their cell had become attached to objects of little value: they did not lend them, they did not they shared, much less were they willing to give them away."

To heal from this disease the monks proposed a drastic, yet very effective method: the meditation of death. "No matter how much a person accumulates goods in this world - commented Francis - we are absolutely certain of one thing: that they will not fit into the coffin".

But this gaze also reveals the deepest root of avarice: "the attempt to exorcise the fear of death: seeking securities that actually crumble the moment we grasp them".

“We can be lords of the goods we possess - commented the pontiff - but often the opposite happens: in the end they are the ones who own us. Some rich men are no longer free, they no longer even have time to rest, they have to look over their shoulders because the accumulation of goods also requires their care."

Instead, "God is not poor: he is the Lord of everything, however - as Saint Paul writes - 'though he was rich, he became poor for you, so that through his poverty you might become rich' (2 Cor 8:9) ”.

It is precisely what "the miser does not understand - concluded Francis -. He could have been a source of blessing for many, but instead he entered the dead end of unhappiness. And the life of the miser is bad. Let us be careful and generous with everyone and generous with those who need us most."

In his greetings to the faithful, the pontiff then took the opportunity of the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Shoah, which is celebrated on Saturday, to once again raise his voice against the horrors of war.

“The memory and condemnation of the horrible extermination of millions of Jewish people and those of other faiths which occurred in the first half of the last century - he said - helps everyone not to forget that the logic of hatred and violence can never be justified, because they deny our very humanity. War itself is a denial of humanity. Let us not tire of praying for peace, so that conflicts may end, weapons may be stopped and exhausted populations may be helped."

“I think of the Middle East, Palestine and Israel – he continued – I think of the disturbing news coming from the tormented Ukraine, especially the bombings that hit places inhabited by civilians, sowing death, destruction and suffering. I pray for the victims and their loved ones: I implore everyone, especially those with political responsibility, to protect human life by putting an end to wars. Let's not forget that a war is always a defeat, only the manufacturers of the weapons win."

• Vatican
• Pope Francis
• general audience
• avarice
• Remembrance Day
• Shoah
• war