There is a common concept of God as a power who has laid down a whole series of laws or rules and who will punish us if we do not obey them. As a Christian today I have to say that this is a false understanding of God. In fact such a concept is a pretty good description of what most economists and politicians call ‘the market’. ‘The market’ is presented as some kind of power which lays down rules that have to be obeyed – and there are terrible consequences for us all if they are not obeyed. No wonder then that Pope Francis maintains that modern society has made ‘the market’ into a god (cf. Psalm 115: ‘their idols are silver and gold’).