Greed Quote by Richard Rohr
““It is sadly true that most institutions and nations admire and reward sins of the "spirit," and various forms of arrogance and greed often lead to promotions and praise. But pride, ambition, and vanity are still pride, ambition, and vanity; they do not stop being capital sins because someone is pope or president. "Greed is good" in America, extravagant bonuses are envied and imitated, and careerism is rampant among the clergy . . . Sins of the flesh, however, carry shame and guilt and can always be used to bring anybody down in church, culture, or the state.””
About This Quote
Source Book: “The Universal Christ” by Richard Rohr, 2019
The quote critiques how societies glorify moral vices like greed and ambition while condemning bodily sins, revealing a double standard that protects powerful figures.
In simple terms: Societies praise greed but shame bodily sins, protecting the powerful.
Key Takeaway
Question double standards and hold all sins accountable.
Themes
hypocrisy
power
morality
religion
culture
Mood
critical
reflective
skeptical
Type
analytical
philosophical
When to use this quote
- Workplace politics
- religious institutions
- political leadership
- media narratives
Key Concepts
Ethics
social critique
religious doctrine
Questions to Reflect On
- How do we reconcile moral judgments across different contexts?
- What mechanisms can expose hidden privileges?
A Different Perspective
The view may overlook cultural variations in how sins are defined and punished.
![“Where there are kashays (anger-pride-deceit-greed), there is worldly life. As long as anger-pride-deceit-greed exist; one is a sansaari [living a worldly life] regardless of whether one is an ascetic or a family man. And where anger-pride-deceit-greed are absent, one is regarded as being asansaari…” quote by Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/7ec/dada-bhagwan-31_anger_where-there-are-kashays-anger-pride-dece_5756.jpg)
