Using the metaphor of the supermarket to describe modern life, the Pope compared today's culture with the neighborhood stores of the past, which were centered on human relationships.
"The products may not have been cleverly displayed, or offered much choice, but there was a personal bond between the shopkeeper and his customers."
"Then a different kind of store grew up: the supermarket. Huge spaces with a great selection of merchandise. The world seems to have become one of these great supermarkets; our culture has become more and more competitive."
Rather than conducting business on the basis of personal relationships and trust, today's culture is determined by consumption, said the Pope, who made his comments during an address to the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia on Sunday, the final day of his visit to the US.
I ask you to join me in praying for my trip to Cuba and the United States. I need your prayers.
— Pope Francis (@Pontifex) September 18, 2015
Pope Francis arrived in Washington on Tuesday for a six-day visit, prior to which he spent four days in Cuba, where he met with President Fidel Castro in Havana.
"We have turned our society into a huge multicultural showcase tied only to the tastes of certain 'consumers,' while so many others only 'eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table,'" said the Pope, quoting the New Testament's Gospel of Mark.
"Consuming relationships, consuming friendships, consuming religions, consuming, consuming… Whatever the cost or consequences."
"Running after the latest fad, accumulating 'friends' on one of the social networks, we get caught up in what contemporary society has to offer," which he summed up as "loneliness with fear of commitment in a limitless effort to feel recognized."
"Knowledge of life’s true pleasures only comes as the fruit of a long-term, generous investment of our intelligence, enthusiasm and passion," advised the Pope.
