In his homily at Mass at Casa Santa Marta, June 18, the Pontiff spoke about the devastating power of slanderous communication used by dictators against others. His Holiness Pope Francis warned that “If you want to destroy institutions or people, you start by speaking ill of them. This is the slanderous communication.” His Holiness Pope Francis was reflecting on the episode in the First Book of Kings, where Jezebel, the cruel wife of King Ahab of Samaria, used slander and falsehood to have Naboth killed in order to take possession of his vineyard which her husband greatly coveted.
The Pontiff said the story of Naboth is repeated in the story of Jesus, Saint Stephen and all the martyrs who were falsely condemned with slander. The episode also reflects the ways of “many heads of state or government”. One begins with a lie and, “after having destroyed both a person and a situation with slander”, one judges and condemns them. As reported by Vatican news, Holy Father Pope Francis remarked that “ Even today this method of slanderous communication is used in many countries. Media and communication law is brushed aside with the entire communication system handed to a company or a group that weakens democratic life with slander and falsehood. The judges then condemn these weakened institutions and destroyed people. That’s how dictatorship works. All dictatorships began by adulterating communication by putting it in the hands of an unscrupulous person or government.” Further, His Holiness Pope Francis added, “This also happens in daily life, one begins to destroy a person by starting with communication – speaking ill of others, slandering and spreading scandals, which he said have great seductive power. Good news doesn’t seduce, it passes by, but a scandal draws attention. This is how a person, institution and country ends up in ruins.”
His Holiness Pope Francis concluded his homily by exhorting Christians to re-read the episode of Naboth and think of the many people and countries destroyed by dictatorships of ‘white gloves’.
