Huber, the top Protestant Bishop in Germany, warned in his Christmas message that the financial markets have not been balanced by real values. According to a German news report, the bishop said the whole economic crisis is because of "a dance round the golden calf." In fact, most Christian religious leaders talked yesterday about the hope of Christmas, which can be an inspiration for those facing economic "gloom." Over the past few weeks, the news stories have really turned the financial crisis into questions of bank managers and executives, who worship money and cannot control their greed. Whether the whole financial crisis facing the world today can really be blamed on greed is irrelevant, the point is that the average person now hears from every corner that the blame goes to "profit-hungry managers." This subsequently leads to a complete lack of trust and an even greater senses of hopelessness. For example, according to the Telegraph, the leader of the Catholic church in England "used his Christmas message to speak about the "breakdown' in trust prompted by the credit crunch." The Pope, besides the interminable plea for peace in the Middle East, also spoke about selfishness and tried to instill hope through his message that the political and economic mess in the world could be improved.
