Pope Francis: Those Who Do Not Work���Should Not Eat

By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large

Although Pope Francis has been taking a lot of heat from conservatives and other traditional thinkers lately in response to a variety of ideas that have a clear progressive orientation (to say the least), it is worth noting his echoing of the words of Saint Paul, during his weekly Angelus message this past week, that those who do not work should not eat.

It is unclear how Pope Francis might reconcile his expressed thoughts in this regard with the ideas of wealth redistribution he has declared even recently, but it comes as some relief to those who understand the influence the Pope retains over such a large segment of the world���s population���that he still believes that the work ethic is something to be highly prioritized both by the individual and society.

Pope Francis, in his words, referred to the symbiosis between work and the spirit, stressing that they do not live in opposition to one another, but, rather, that ���they can and should go together in harmony,��� and that ���the lack of work also damages the spirit, just as the lack of prayer damages every practical activity.��� The Pope characterized work as something which is ���sacred,��� and that ���to cause a loss of jobs is to cause serious social harm.���

As to that last point, President Obama was unavailable for comment.