Bribery subverts human dignity, Pope says in homily

November 08, 2013

In his homily at a morning Mass on November 8, Pope Francis cautioned against taking “the shortcut, the most comfortable way to earn a living.”

Commenting on the parable of the unjust steward, the Pope said that bribery—such as the steward’s bribery—“is a mundane and extremely sinful habit.” He said that people who earn money by accepting bribes are “starving their children of dignity, because dishonest work robs us of our dignity.”

In the parable, the Pope said, Jesus was not praising the “mundane cunning” of the dishonest steward, but encouraging his followers to practice the “Christian cunning, of doing things not in the spirit of worldliness.” The ability to follow Christ’s instruction, and to be as cunning as serpents and simple as doves, is a “grace from the Holy Spirit,” for which Christians should pray, the Pope said.

 

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Further information:

• Pope Francis: children fed "unclean bread" of corruption are starved of dignity (Vatican Radio)