Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday denounced the “violence” and “arrogance” in the developed world which, he said, led to dissatisfaction and depression. “We must abandon the path of arrogance, of violence used to bolster ever greater positions of power in order to assure success at all costs,” the German pope said as he addressed a crowd gathered under his balcony in St Peter’s Square during the weekly Angelus prayers.
Benedict also said it was necessary to end “the aggressive way we have dominated” the environment over the past decades. “Countless numbers of people in the poorest nations are suffering from poverty. But in the richest nations there are dissatisfied men and women, even depression illnesses,” he added. The 84-year-old pope will spend the coming week at his Castel Gandolfo retreat in the hills around Rome.
There he plans to indulge in one of his favourite pastimes, writing out his theological thoughts in longhand.
