Home Depot founder worries Pope Francis neither loves nor understands rich Americans

[RandySF]

In an interview on CNBC on Monday, Home Depot founder and devout Catholic Ken Langone said that the Pope’s statements about capitalism have left many potential “capitalist benefactors” wary of donating to the Church or its fundraising projects.

According to Langone, an anonymous, “potential seven-figure donor” for the Church’s restoration of St. Patrick’s Cathedral is concerned that the Pope’s criticism of capitalism are “exclusionary,” especially his statements about the “culture of prosperity” leading to the wealthy being “incapable of feeling compassion for the poor.”

Langone said he’s raised this issue with Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who yesterday praised Pope Francis for “shattering the caricature of the Church.”

“I’ve told the Cardinal,” Langone said, “‘Your Eminence, this is one more hurdle I hope we don’t have to deal with. You want to be careful about generalities. Rich people in one country don’t act the same as rich people in another country.’”



http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/12/30/home-depot-founder-worries-pope-francis-neither-loves-or-understands-rich-americans/

[thelordofhell]

1. Good luck on passing through that Eye Of The Needle........asswipe

I got a room reserved for you dickhead..........

[Nay]

35. Indeed. Yet another asswipe 'Christian' who has never read his Bible. In

order to follow Christ, you must give up riches, attachments to family, etc. It's right there in their so-called Holy Book, but they never go read those passages.

[Politicalboi]

2. Oh poor baby, why doesn't he just give his money away

“‘Your Eminence, this is one more hurdle I hope we don’t have to deal with."

[In-n-Out]

3. Matthew 19:24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for

"Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."


So, even when the head of their faith criticizes their un-jesus practices, instead of reflecting, and repenting, they take offense.

Looks like Matthew knew exactly what he was talking about.

[Live and Learn]

4. Exactly! nt

[King_Klonopin]

6. And what does it benefit a man if he gains the whole world

while losing his soul ? If you seek the kingdom of God, then
go sell everything you own, take up your cross and follow me.

Most devout Catholics would be familiar with and, at least,
pretend to respect Jesus' advice.

I think that the rich people of America are low on the Pope's
priority list, and that he won't lose any sleep worrying about
their plight of being misunderstood.

[jwirr]

34. I'm sure that Argentina had their share of "rich" that taught his lessons regarding the role of the

rich in the impoverishment of the poor. This Pope has been through disaster economics in his nation and now he is facing it in the world. I admire his stand on economics.

[FreakinDJ]

14. Welcome to DU

[Wounded Bear]

5. Actually, I think he may be right...

[Ichingcarpenter]

7. Notice his American Exceptionalism?

''You want to be careful about generalities. Rich people in one country don’t act the same as rich people in another country.’”


I've got data that proves that statement false.

[Matariki]

8. He seems to be confusing money for charitable works with buying politicians

He's angry he can't *buy* the pope?

"devout catholic"

[Nay]

36. That's what I got out of his comment, too. "Nice church you got here. It would

be too bad if something happened to it."

He's telling the Pope that contributions from rich people will dry up if the Pope doesn't kiss their asses as usual.

[Chrom]

39. This asshole is so entitled, he thinks he can blackmail the Pope

I REALLY hope the Pope responds to this...

[Pretzel_Warrior]

9. ah, the old business tycoon threat. well. how about if he excommunicates your ass?

I guess he's got something to trump your filthy lucre. He can sell the Catholic/Vatican treasures for 100 years and still not run out of money or need to come grubbing for your stinking riches earned by treating workers like shit.

Go fuck yourself, asshole.

[Egnever]

10. Wee! Is there anyone this clown wont threaten?

Aside from republicans of course,

[Are_grits_groceries]

11. 'Motes and Beams'

I do believe I know where they get their wooden beams from. They can pick them out of their own eyes.

[quaker bill]

12. If you have gained wealth through exploitation

there is nothing you can do with it that truly washes your hands clean. Giving it away is better than keeping it, but not ever as good as not taking it in the first place.

This is the underlying corruption of the charity model that exists in a great many Churches. I grew up in a Church where the congregation included many nuclear weapons design engineers. They gave generously and then seemed to feel better about going back to the office on Monday. I quit and became an atheist for a decade or so. I could not morally contribute to or participate in anything that made weapons designers feel better about their craft.

It is not different here. If these people obtained their wealth through means that they feel are morally just, then nothing the Pope might say should offend them. It is not the Pope who causes them to feel "excluded". It is that he has shown a light on the morally suspect ways they are gaining wealth. It is not that the things they are doing become less moral because the Pope speaks about them, it is that the lack of moral content of their actions becomes a bit more visible. They aren't doing anything different, people are just looking.

If you are not comfortable doing what you do in public and to the public if people are watching, select something else.

[JHB]

13. I'll take "too accustomed to yes-men" for 500, Alex.

Awww, Did the mean ol' pope make Kenny sad?

[Notafraidtoo]

15. I find it odd any Christan would be offended by what the pope said on the matter.

I can see them being foolish and getting their information from another source that twist what the pope said, but if you read it from the original source it is consistent with the words of Christ.

So many people with faith are strange to me, you believe this all powerful being knows everything you do and is going to judge you and even gives you a list of things you should and shouldn't do and yet they don't really know,care or follow what his son said, they do the exact opposite and bare false witness against him. Judging, disliking and stereotyping people for their skin color, throwing stones, killing, stealing, attacking the poor, taking from the elderly to give tax cuts to the rich, hording wealth. Do they really think Christ is like this? did they not read the new testament?

It makes me wonder how many Christians actually even have faith, surely if they did they would at least read and try to understand the very simple things Christ said. Here is a clue to any freeper reading this, it wasn't shitting on the poor or charging them money they will never have for health care.

One of my favorite stories was when Jesus said the poor woman who gave a couple of pennies gave the most, the rich that donated a lot of money got angry at this and called bullshit but Jesus told them she gave the most because it was all she had, i don't know any conservative that understands this story and definitely not this home depot guy.

[muriel_volestrangler]

17. I imagine a great many Christians feel guilty when they hear a sermon

The difference here is that Ken Langone is so incredibly rich that his guilty feelings and wish to be told "oh no, he didn't mean you" get broadcast on TV and made into a 'news' story, rather than being a conversation in the car on the way home from church.

[kydo]

21. Sad? Yes. Odd? No and here is why.

Unfortunately, Christianity in the US became delusional around 1620 when this group of English Calvinists, set up camp. Ever since then this Christian idea morphed into what conservatives in the US label as Christian no matter your domination. Its this mixture of Calvinism and Capitalism that has created this US version of Christianity. Its a messed up combo that frankly is more about justifying hate and exclusion rather then love and inclusion.

[LisaLynne]

24. That is so true.

Excellent post and points. I don't think a lot of Christians even understand how far off US Christianity is. It's why we liberals will look in astonishment at Republican Christians cutting food stamps and unemployment benefits and wonder how they can call themselves Christian. But they aren't following THAT Christianity. They are following a different thing altogether, where even actively harming the poor is fine.

[kydo]

38. Thank You

[Populist_Prole]

41. So do I and I think I know why some christians rationalize being rotten to others

I've noticed this strange duality all the more since I moved to the bible belt area of the country. After knowing people long enough I finally got to find out how this can be: That is, claiming to be good christians ( and by extension, good people ) yet act selfishly, rudely, or downright hateful to others. The most common thread I've gleaned from talking with people is that how you act on earth doesn't really count for much to them. They say that if they do bad things, it's that they just have faults, as most humans do, and that the only thing, to them, that makes a person a "good christian" is the absolute belief in, or faith in, their god.

To them, it's not "Faith and works", it's just faith alone.

[muriel_volestrangler]

16. If that seven figure donation went to alleviating poverty, rather than restoring a cathedral

then you'd know Francis' message had really got through. The article talks about the "legendary generosity of the Catholic Church in the United States", but if that, and the 'more Americans give' figures include $180 million for one example of Catholic architecture, then it's not about charity, it's about bling.

[think]

26. exactly.... /nt

[LiberalElite]

33. and also publicity - getting your name on buildings like

now in NYC a great medical institution was renamed NYU Langone Medical Center:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NYU_Langone_Medical_Center


And then there's the Koch Brothers/Lincoln Center:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_H._Koch

[H2O Man]

18. Recommended.

This is the type of Christian that gives the church a bad name. He views the Catholic church as a big business -- which isn't entirely inaccurate -- that sells front row seats in heaven to the largest contributors.

Recently, I took my youngest daughter and her boyfriend out to eat. When we left, a "stubble-bum" approached me, and asked for a quarter. I gave him the last $10 in my pocket. The kids asked me why I did that? I asked if they had gone to church earlier that day? They had. I said that Jesus said what you do to the least, you do to him. And that is literal: that man was Jesus in disguise.

Her boyfriend comes from a conservative home. I'm not fond of his parents. But he's a good kid, and he seems to be opening his mind, as he hangs out with me. He understood what I was saying, in a way that I suspect he doesn't have the opportunity to in his church.

[SummerSnow]

19. aww...poor little rich boy...he don't feel luved.

stfu

[CanonRay]

20. Langone is the reason I do not shop at Home Depot.

and now he subtly threatens "his" own church. Entitled prick.

[City Lights]

22. I think rich Americans don't understand Jesus. nt

[Chrom]

40. that's more like it

and they don't want to either

[Ichingcarpenter]

23. I don't understand why the new double posts on this

She's a great poster but this has driven my crazy over the many years she's done this.

Good DUers check for dupes.

[PA Democrat]

25. Oh yeah, Langone is a "good" greedy capitalist.

Just ignore the millions he has donated to politicians who would do everything in their power to further dismantle the social safety net.

[etherealtruth]

27. My heart bleeds for the 1%

Imagine being criticized for amassing great wealth (obscene wealth) ... while the lazy slackers (read low wage workers) go homeless and hungry.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

28. "Eh you oughta be careful there your eminence. You wouldn't want my donation to have an accident. Ne

Next thing you know it's walking minding its own business and BOOM! Falls down an elevator shaft landing on a pit of vipers laced with cyanide and the ebola virus. Know what I mean?....... It happens. Donations get clumsy''

[rurallib]

29. I have little doubt Dolan agreed with him

Langone pressed that particular button for a reason.

[mr blur]

30. Well, of course it's a pope's priority to cater to rich Americans -

Wasn't their Jesus a rich white American?

[Baitball Blogger]

31. Did American Catholic 1%ers finally figure out that their donations might go to the poor?

"Home Depot founder and devout Catholic Ken Langone said that the Pope’s statements about capitalism have left many potential “capitalist benefactors” wary of donating to the Church"

[Laelth]

32. Mr. Langone needs neither the Pope's understanding nor his sympathy.

Cry me a river you whiny, spoiled brat!



-Laelth

[warrprayer]

37. Richie Rich

... he shits gold bricks!