Pope warns against worldly spirit that sacrifices values, faith

November 18, 201 3 - Pope Francis on Monday prayed that the Lord to save us from the worldly spirit that compromises everything, not just values but also faith. Pope Francis made the point in his homily at the morning Mass in the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta residence in the Vatican. Taking his cue from reading from the Book of Maccabees, the Pope reflected on the ‘perverse roots’ of worldliness. In order not to be isolated from other nations, the leaders of Israel abandon their traditions and enthusiastically negotiate with the king, preferring to be part of the progress towards which everybody heads. This consists in going ahead in every choice except in being faithful to God. Hence the people negotiate with the king, abandoning their loyalty to the ever faithful God, which the Pope termed as apostasy and adultery. They compromised not just some values, but the very essence of their being, viz., loyalty to God. Describing this as the fruit of the devil, the Pope said the prince of the world takes us ahead on this spirit of worldliness, with everyone abandoning their customs and becoming one people. But the Holy Father stressed that it is not the globalization of unity of all nations that is beautiful, but the unity or all with each one his or her customs. “It is hegemonic uniformity of globalization, the single line of thought that is the result of worldliness,” he said. As an example of the bitter outcome of this spirit of worldliness, the Pope spoke about the death penalty, equating it to human sacrifice. And he lamented there are many human sacrifices even today, with laws protecting them. Recalling that the ever-faithful Lord always awaits us always and forgives us when we repent, the Pope urged prayers that we be protected from this spirit of worldliness.