The wisdom of Pope Francis – Try to lead a simple life free from illusions

TORONTO – Pope Francis made a surprise appearance at a TED talk conference on Tuesday, urging powerful leaders “to act humbly” and said he hoped technological innovation would not leave people behind.

The 18-minute video was filmed in Vatican City and broadcast to the audience at the annual TED 2017 conference in Vancouver.

“The more powerful you are, the more your actions will have an impact on people, the more responsible you are to act humbly,” said the pontiff, while seated at a desk.

“If you don’t, your power will ruin you, and you will ruin the other.”

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‘Theoretically the superior man who is fortunate to come to wealth and influence would also attain enlightment by merely being there (long enough) – how the mere act of living his life and going about his daily business can so often inflict pain and misery on those who may not be quite as fortunate a him.

This attitude is especially sharpened against the backdrop of the digital age in which we live in where never before in the history of mankind has the have not’s being able to peer with remarkable ease into the lives of those who may appear to be better off than them….they marvel no end at how the rich live…they dream to live like them….but there is cruel twist to all this.

There will always be a glass ceiling between yearning and fulfilment….only this time round the divide between have’s and have not’s is amplified maybe a thousand fold.

I believe it is this growing divide between the have’s and have not’s that is responsible for much of the anxieties and disruption of our age.

We can of course attribute Brexit, Trumpism or the general sentiment towards parochialism, insularity and nativism to other causal factors real or imagined ranging from the advent of the post truth age or any other phenomenon….but at the nucleus of this divide is a conflict between have’s and have not’s and most importantly the failure of the former to craft an all inclusive philosophy that the masses can believe in to nurture hope.

In summary this divide or class war is not merely predicated on just the valence of money alone rather it is in essence a philosophical divide.

At some point of intellectuality and deep reflection the superior man would realise the overwhelming need to craft a moral code of conduct where ideally he should be able to see himself as part of an intricate social network within society – that is to say he must remain mindful even his merest thoughts and actions would often have a preponderant influence on both the directional and instructional course of where mankind will finally end up.

It is only when the superior man weans himself completely from the narcotic of avarice, greed and perpetual consumption is he able to purify his purpose to lead a meaningful life that can nourish the common good.

Without this basic understanding of what I refer to as social economic ecology ….man is just an animal eternally slaved to the stimuli of all the negative influences of money.

The outcome would seem benign if only it did not come at such a terrible cost to people and planet.’