By Thomas Holmes
Could it be that the extremist Left is finally warming up to the idea that religion in our cultural is a good thing? Of course not! It’s just everyone’s favorite Marxist presidential candidate/mad scientist look-a-like, Bernie Sanders, doing a little media tail-gaiting behind Pope Francis during his visit to the U.S. this week. I guess Senator Sanders wants it to seem like Socialism is truly blessed from above. Happy to draft behind whatever is catching the news, Senator Sanders’ own website is posting a Wednesday September 23 ABC news article featuring seemingly similar quotes from the presidential candidate and Pope Francis.
Senator Sanders helpfully breaks out the quotes into categories like “Political Engagement” and “On Family” just to underscore that he and the Pope are definitely, unwaveringly, talking about the exact same topic. Because topics like “Family” aren’t in any way a broad, multi-faceted, tapestry of issues, identities and definitions dependent on things like “context”.
Given the generality of many of the quotes from Pope Francis it seems obvious that, while the Pope has his fair share of controversy from western conservatives, when he’s talking about “building a better world” and “getting involved” he’s referring to positive spiritual and relational engagement with our fellow man. That is a concept very much in keeping with his status as a religious leader. Of course, don’t tell Senator Sanders that. He’s hoping that by sidling up his own quotes that suggest that, to Bernie, Heaven is everyone going 100% for government service next to Pope Francis’ general encouragement, it will influence His Holiness’s actual meaning as if by osmosis.
But the real purpose of this forced like-mindedness isn’t so an avowed Socialist can ride some holy coattails and fool a few low information Catholics. I actually think Sanders believes in these absurd “similarities” because he only understands the world through the Marxist lens he sees everything by. While the Pope shares an obvious sentiment like a fair wage is a just idea, Uncle Bernie blathers about how we need an enormous federal minimum wage hike in order to simply keep alive. He truly doesn’t see them as different comments. When the Pope points to God, faith and the church as the answer, Senator Sanders agrees because all those things are really just government to him. It explains why, when Pope Francis talks about being “builders of the world”, Senator Bernie just assumed the Pontiff was talking about “political engagement”.
It all sounds simultaneously electrifying and comforting to the uneducated voter that a presidential candidate and Pope can care about people so much about the little guy. But buyer beware, there’s a reason why religion was illegal in the communist Soviet Union. To believe in something that could fulfill you that wasn’t the State was a direct challenge to government’s authority to run your life. It’s ironic that Bernie’s attempt to win points by likening himself to a man of faith actually reminds us that the Senator’s political paradigm requires the eradication of religion.
At least religion as most people know it. To Bernie Sanders religion and government are one in the same.
