In an earlier post, I commented on Pope Francis’ plan to address European political and church leaders at a forum on Europe organized by the Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Community.
Without question, the European Union finds itself in a state of crisis at the present moment.
Well, the Pope’s remarks did come a day after the regional parliament in Catalonia made a unilateral declaration of independence from Spain, and as Britain negotiates its exit from the European Union after four decades.
The Holy Father said politics, rather than promoting dialogue as it should, "is becoming instead a forum for clashes between opposing forces. The voice of dialogue is replaced by shouted claims and demands."
"Extremist and populist groups are finding fertile ground in many countries; they make protest the heart of their political message, without offering the alternative of a constructive political project," the Pope said.
Respectfully, while the Holy Father’s words enjoy a clear and certain authenticity when it comes to matters of Faith and Morals, his political opinions are just that: opinions which should enjoy reverential attention but enjoy no authority over other contrary opinions.
As expected, the Pope admonished political leaders to welcome and help integrate migrants, strive for solidarity especially with younger people and help create economic opportunities.
He stated, “Political leaders must promote Europe as an inclusive community, where differences are valued and viewed as a shared source of enrichment. Seen in this way, migrants are more a resource than a burden."
It is rather astounding how misguided the Pope’s political inclinations are.
It is remarkable that the Holy Father does not understand the intimate connection between the rise of the populist movements in Europe which he constantly refers to as “extremist” and the disaster which the mass immigration of Muslims has brought to the Continent.
The Pope consistently criticizes European citizens for their reluctance to integrate the Muslim migrant populations. He avoids the inconvenient truth, however, that these same migrants do not wish to assimilate into the culture of the nations who have allowed them entry to their sovereign borders.
Naively, Pope Francis returns to his plaintive reprise that religion (understand that to be Catholicism) ought to play a positive role by promoting dialogue. In that vein, the Holy father called upon political leaders to listen to the voice of the Church and "to restore dignity to politics and to view politics as a lofty service to the common good, not a platform for power."
Just two points need to be made in response.
First, dialogue truly can occur only when both sides of a conflict are willing to honestly engage and resolve issues of contention. That has been and apparently will never be the intention of Muslim immigrants.
Second, in free societies, citizens determine “the common good” for themselves, not a vision of what purports to be the common good that is imposed by those who are unaccountable to their constituents.
Pope Francis, having lived under repressive regimes most of his adult life, doesn’t get it.
When the citizens of Europe express their political will and aspirations by demanding that their nations be protected and preserved, that is not “extremism”, it is freedom expressing itself and demanding that elected officials acknowledge and respond accordingly.
Certainly, the Holy Father’s desire for harmony and solidarity among and within European nations is to be commended. The insights of the Gospel which he brings to the political conversation are welcome.
But whatever authority he enjoys as a moral leader stops at the door when he enters and begins to suggest political solutions and agendas.
In the decades following World War II, the Catholic Church sought to influence political life in Europe through the thinly-disguised Christian Democratic Parties it propped up throughout the Continent.
European citizens rejected Church leaders meddling in national affairs. Their discontent with the Church contributed greatly to Europe’s secularization and distancing itself from its Christian (understand that to mean Catholic) heritage and tradition.
For whatever curious and strange reason, Pope Francis is oblivious to these realities. He does the Church and Continent itself no favor by intervening in the politics of the European Union, an experiment which clearly seems destined to failure because of its arrogance and unaccountability towards its citizens.
What a shame that Pope Francis just doesn’t get it!
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