The Pope and Politics....

You know, I heard a long time ago that one shouldn’t mix religion in politics. I don’t want, nor do I normally speak on American politics. Neither party is truly representative of Catholic teachings, and none follow it very closely. That is to be expected.

Now, I do admit, personally, to be right of center, especially on social issues, especially life issues. To me, that is a no brainer, and I see less gray area in that as time goes on. So, that’s that.

But, as I write this there is a big ‘dust up’ between the Pope and Donald Trump, at least that is how the pundits are playing it. To Trump’s credit, he has interjected some things into the American Political discussion that absolutely needed to be thrown on the table, and that other politicians absolutely refuse to deal with. That, in itself, in my view is a service to the American people. I won’t say I would vote for him one way or the other, but I like and understand him. He’s a New Yorker, loud and bombastic. I’ve spent some time up there, and know that is just how it’s done. In that environment one better learn how to use their elbows or get run over, especially in business. I get that. I’ve also spent some time in NYC and know that Trump does a lot of charitable work behind the scenes that no one knows about, and that his personna may not match the way he appears. I get that, too. So, that’s that.

You know, the further I get into my faith the more my eyes are opened to all kinds of things. I'm certainly right of center, especially on social issues, but have learned to listen to arguments from the other side. One thing I've noticed, that if you are a practicing Catholic who takes their faith seriously, in the United States, you are pretty much hated and vilified by about everyone, right or left. The left gets their noses all in a wad over when things like abortion, euthanasia, dependence on government, and that kind of thing are talked about in a theological context. Likewise, the right gets all worked up when it is told that it is putting too much emphasis on capitalism, and the acquisition of material things, not that there is anything wrong with those things, but when it is pointed out that you can't focus on that stuff and be indifferent to your neighbor, and you make it your Golden Calf folks get excited. When the Pope or any pastor brings that out and emphasizes it, it gets the right all worked up.

One thing to remember is that the population at the time of Christ’s life on earth had expected Christ to be a political leader, and a military one. They expected one who would give the Romans and others their come-uppins’. That is not what they got, and the result is that they had Him nailed to a tree. We still don't hear what we want to hear, so we rail against it, even today. When the Pope states that the wall is not in the Gospel, he's right, it's not. But, when he states 'bridges' he is still talking about a controlled, orderly border. The Gospels say that we are to believe, and to trust Christ that He will take care of things. That is hard. I learned on my death bed that trust in Him was, eventually, all one had. I learned that the hard way....and by the grace of God I am able to still talk about it and attempt to live it, although I fall short in so many ways it's not funny. The press is slanted, and blows a lot of this political stuff out of proportion, and I'm not surprised that they will not make the same deal out of Hillary and the Dems conflict with faith and the Pope on a much larger issue, life issues. That is ignored, especially when the proponents of those issues bill themselves as devout Catholics. Abortion has been deemed an 'intrinsic evil', where there is no distinct teaching on immigration. But, the media feeds this political only narrative (as I write this I am listening to a TV commentator, one who bills himself as a Catholic, rail against the Pope). They either don’t want to, can’t, or refuse to ‘get it’ in context.

The Pope speaks as a pastor, he thinks as a Pastor. I'm beginning to think there is less difference between the right and the left than folks think, although I can be considered 'right'. But, when you try to paint the Gospels and the teachings of Christ into any particular political box, that is not good. The Gospels are the Gospels, they are not right nor left. But, this inability to see them anything except in a political context makes us not unlike the general population that rejected Christ. Perhaps that is just the way it is. Maybe that's the whole point. Think about it.