[Rant] On Defending the Pope Against the American Right Wing
For the record, when Pope Francis was a Jesuit Provincial in Argentina, he kicked out of all teaching positions every Jesuit Liberation Theologian. Every. One. Of. Them. It ultimately led to a two year "exile" imposed upon him by the Jesuit Order who were more sympathetic to Liberation Theology and had authority over him. That time in exile crushed him and it wasn't until he was elected pope that he was reconciled with the Jesuit Order about thirty years later.
So to call him a "Marxist" just means that you are stupid, incredibly so. Or you are so driven by American Exceptionalism that you think the whole world can be neatly divided into two American political categories. It cannot. Though apparently your critical thinking skills can, which is terrifying.
Pope Francis is coming to America to confront all who think they are saved by their idols of politics, economics, and agendas. He will prophetically speak what the Church actually teaches regarding the poor and oppressed. I say "prophetically" because his words will, like a two-edged sword, reveal the hearts of many that they merely agreed with Jesus and His Catholic Church without submitting or assenting, that they do not have "the obedience of faith.".
That agreement is always in danger of becoming disagreement, dissent, and desertion, because it never was real faith to begin with. We desperately need to repent of our false politicization of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
To the New Laodiceans in America:
"For you say, ‘I am rich and affluent and have no need of anything,’ and yet do not realize that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I advise you to buy from me gold refined by fire so that you may be rich, and white garments to put on so that your shameful nakedness may not be exposed, and buy ointment to smear on your eyes so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and chastise. Be earnest, therefore, and repent." -Rev. 3:17-19
"2446 St. John Chrysostom vigorously recalls this: "Not to enable the poor to share in our goods is to steal from them and deprive them of life. The goods we possess are not ours, but theirs." "The demands of justice must be satisfied first of all; that which is already due in justice is not to be offered as a gift of charity":
When we attend to the needs of those in want, we give them what is theirs, not ours. More than performing works of mercy, we are paying a debt of justice." -Catechism of the Catholic Church 2446
“I’m sure that I haven’t said anything more than what’s written in the social doctrine of the Church. On another flight, a colleague asked me if I had reached out a hand to the popular movements and asked me, “But is the Church going to follow you?” I told him, “I’m the one following the Church.” And in this it seems that I’m not wrong. I believe that I never said a thing that wasn’t the social doctrine of the Church. Things can be explained, possibly an explanation gave an impression of being a little “to the left”, but it would be an error of explanation. No, my doctrine on this, in Laudato si’, on economic imperialism, all of this, is the social doctrine of the Church. And it if necessary, I’ll recite the creed. I am available to do that, eh.”