Pope Francis — "The human family has not received a gift of power, but rather a stewardship, a t…"
The human family has not received a gift of power, but rather a stewardship, a trust that must be used with responsibility.
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More from Pope Francis
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About Pope Francis (born 1936)
First Latin American and Jesuit pope (2013-), who has steered the Catholic Church toward pastoral inclusion on LGBTQ pastoral care, divorced Catholics, and climate. Closely associated with Pope John XXIII (the Vatican II reformer pope) and Cardinal Walter Kasper (his theological ally on pastoral reform). For an intellectual contrast, see Cardinal Raymond Burke, American traditionalist cardinal, former head of the Vatican Apostolic Signatura — Burke is the public face of Catholic traditionalism that views Francis's pastoral approach as doctrinally dangerous — he has formally challenged Amoris Laetitia and other Francis reforms.
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Understanding this quote
What it means
Humanity holds authority over Earth and its systems not as absolute owners but as trustees. Power — whether over nature, institutions, or other people — carries inherent moral obligation. We are caretakers accountable to future generations, not free agents who can exploit without consequence. The quote reframes dominion as accountability: those entrusted with power must answer for how they wield it, because the trust belongs to all, not just the powerful.
Relevance to Pope Francis
Pope Francis chose his name honoring Saint Francis of Assisi, patron of ecology and the poor — signaling stewardship as his papacy's foundation. His 2015 encyclical Laudato Si' explicitly frames humanity's relationship with creation as trusteeship, not ownership. As a Jesuit from Argentina who witnessed poverty and inequality firsthand, he consistently challenged political and economic elites to exercise power as service, not exploitation.
The era
Francis became pope in 2013 as climate change, wealth inequality, and corporate power dominated global discourse. The Paris Climate Agreement (2015), mass refugee crises, and rising authoritarian nationalism raised urgent questions about who held power and how responsibly it was used. His papacy coincided with growing public distrust of institutions — governments, banks, tech giants — that wielded vast influence with limited accountability to those most affected.
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