Pope Francis is once again insisting that he is not a communist, that his abiding concern for \u201cthe poor\u201d is grounded in the Gospel of Christ, not the ideology of Marx, Engels, or any other communist.<\/p>\n
Back in 2010, while still a Cardinal, he felt the need to do the same.<\/p>\n
Why?<\/p>\n
It may very well be inaccurate to describe the Pope as a communist.\u00a0 But\u2014and it pains this Catholic writer to admit this\u2014one can be forgiven for suspecting that he is friendlier to this noxious ideology than many of us would care to think.<\/p>\n
First, neither Francis\u2019 recent remarks nor those from 2010 include an express repudiation of communism.\u00a0 That his concern for the poor reflects Francis\u2019 commitment to Christianity in no way speaks to his thoughts on communism. Logically, subscription to one theory is perfectly compatible with respect for and appreciation of any number of others\u2014and it certainly doesn\u2019t entail an unqualified rejection of all others.<\/p>\n
That is, one can believe that Christianity contains \u201cthe fullness of truth\u201d while simultaneously affirming what truth is found in other systems of thought.\u00a0 St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas are two notable examples of Christian thinkers who did precisely this vis-\u00e0-vis the philosophies of Plato and Aristotle, respectively.<\/p>\n
Similarly, while Francis derives his motivation from Christianity, this doesn\u2019t necessarily mean that he cannot and\/or does not sympathize with communism.<\/p>\n
Secondly, \u201ccommunism\u201d can mean different things to different people.\u00a0 For instance, Martin Luther King, Jr. denied that he was a communist on the grounds that he rejected \u201cmaterialism,<\/i>\u201d the philosophical doctrine that matter<\/i> is all that there is, the doctrine underwriting Marxism.<\/p>\n
However, to reject Marx\u2019s theory of communism<\/i>, much less his theory of materialism, does not translate into a rejection of communism as such.\u00a0 To suggest otherwise is like saying that if I reject Calvin\u2019s theology of Christianity, I must reject Christianity as such.<\/p>\n
The closest Francis has come to criticizing communism is when he articulated a heavily qualified criticism of \u201cliberation theology,\u201d a hard leftist approach to Christianity.\u00a0 And even then, the Pope simply noted that its \u201cMarxist interpretation of reality\u201d\u2014again, whatever exactly this means\u2014was a \u201climitation\u201d while commending <\/i>liberation theology for \u201cits positive aspects.\u201d<\/p>\n
When communism is understood as most of us understand it, as an ideology demanding a radical redistribution of goods for the purposes of \u201cEquality\u201d or \u201cFairness\u201d or whatever, then it should be obvious that it can afford to dispense with philosophical materialism and even its \u201cMarxist interpretation of reality.\u201d<\/p>\n
In other words, \u201cChristian communism\u201d is not a meaningless<\/i>moniker.<\/p>\n
That the Pope has refused to unabashedly, unequivocally repudiate communism (and\/or socialism) is doubtless one big reason that some have viewed him as a communist sympathizer.\u00a0 Yet there is another: His Holiness has <\/i>adamantly repudiated that system commonly called \u201ccapitalism.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now, Francis\u2019 supporters have leapt to his defense on this score.\u00a0 For example, the Catholic writer Selwyn Duke has observed that Francis has never critiqued \u201ccapitalism\u201d by name, but instead has simply called for \u201ca God-centered ethics.\u201d Daniel Doherty writes that while the Pope is critical of \u201cunfettered capitalism and capitalism generally,\u201d his remarks on these matters \u201chardly\u201d constitute \u201ca clarion call for Marxist revolution [.]\u201d<\/p>\n
What Duke and Doherty say of the Pope can be said just as easily of any Democratic politician in the United States.\u00a0 Democrats, especially among election time when they are busy courting the Christian vote, spare no occasion to put a Gospel dress on their socialism\u2014all the while refraining from criticizing \u201ccapitalism\u201d by name.\u00a0 They are all in favor of \u201ca God-centered ethic\u201d then.<\/p>\n
There is more.\u00a0 This Pope has made comments regarding our economic system that can and have been made quite frequently by socialists of various stripes.<\/p>\n
For one, he has blasted \u201ctrickle-down economics\u201d for its \u201ccrude and na\u00efve trust in the goodness of those wielding economic power and in the sacralized workings of the prevailing economic system.\u201d Of course, in the real world, \u201ctrickle-down economics\u201d hasn\u2019t a single defender. The only people who speak as if the term had a referent are the socialist-minded.<\/p>\n
Francis has also referred to ours as \u201can economy of exclusion and inequality.\u201d\u00a0 \u201cToday,\u201d he explains, \u201ceverything comes under the laws of competition and the survival of the fittest, where the powerful feed upon the powerless.\u00a0 As a consequence,\u201d Francis concludes, \u201cmasses of people find themselves excluded and marginalized: without work, without possibilities, without any means of escape.\u201d<\/p>\n
Where have we heard this lingo before?<\/p>\n
In fact, Francis has spoken out more forcefully than Obama or any other Democrat against our economy when he charged it with violating the commandment againstkilling.<\/i>\u00a0 \u201cSuch an economy,\u201d Francis insists, \u201ckills<\/i>\u201d (emphasis added).<\/p>\n
Though painful for people to admit it, the truth is that Pope Francis is no friend to the liberty that some of us Americans still treasure.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Pope Francis is once again insisting that he is not a communist, that his abiding concern for \u201cthe poor\u201d is grounded in the Gospel of Christ, not the ideology of Marx, Engels, or any other communist. Back in 2010, while still a Cardinal, he felt the need to do the same. Why? It may very…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":399,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1061","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n