At the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Cardinal Peter Turkson delivered a speech for Pope Francis, in which the pontiff offered a moral guidance for advancing the conference’s theme: “creating a shared future in a fractured world.” Although inspired by concern for the poor and the marginalized, the Vatican’s message is seriously flawed.

On a conceptual level, Pope Francis posits a false dichotomy between economic freedom and human rights. In his prepared remarks, the pope said, “It is vital to safeguard the dignity of the human person, in particular by offering to all people real opportunities for integral human development” — all well and good. But he then quoted from a 2016 address: “Economic freedom must not prevail over the practical freedom of man and over his rights, and the market must not be absolute, but honour the exigencies of justice.”