The Economic Thinking of Pope Francis

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His critique of capitalism has incensed some church conservatives.

By Cameron Abadi, a deputy editor at Foreign Policy, and Adam Tooze, a columnist at Foreign Policy and director of the European Institute at Columbia University. Sign up for Adam’s Chartbook newsletter here.

Pope Francis presides over the Easter Mass as part of the Catholic Church’s Holy Week celebrations. Pope Francis is a man in his 80s wearing ceremonial white robes and a tall white hat embellished with black and gold trim. In his left hand, he carries a gold staff topped with an ornate cross.

Pope Francis presides over Easter Mass as part of the Catholic Church’s Holy Week celebrations, seen at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City on March 31. Tiziana FABI / AFP

Pope Francis has had more to say about the big political and social issues of the day than many of his predecessors, and his focus includes not just climate change—which he famously addressed in 2015—but also the economy. Since becoming pope, he has organized economic conferences and issued theological documents on economic issues.

Cameron Abadi is a deputy editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @CameronAbadi

Adam Tooze is a columnist at Foreign Policy and a history professor and the director of the European Institute at Columbia University. He is the author of Chartbook, a newsletter on economics, geopolitics, and history. Twitter: @adam_tooze