By Raynard
Jackson
Columnist
Pope John Francis’ upcoming visit to the U.S. is generating
quite a bit of excitement here, especially among his Catholic faithful. But for me and many others, his visit is
generating consternation, not excitement.
Usually, most people tend to have great respect and affection
for the Pope. He is usually viewed by
the public as a beacon of moral guidance, even for those who are
non-Catholics. This is definitely a view
I once had of previous Popes.
But I must admit that my respect for this current Pope, John
Francis is somewhat diminished.
I am totally confused by his constant advocating for policies
that goes against the Catholic Church’s own teachings. On the issue of homosexuality his position
is, “Who are we to judge?” Though church
doctrine is very clear on this issue.
He is a fanatical supporter of open borders; in his view
people have an inherent right to enter illegally into any country they choose as
long as the ends justify the means.
He rabidly promotes theories in support of global warming,
despite the fact that he is one of the biggest contributors to it. When the Pope travels, he normally charters
an Alitalia A320 jet. It is estimated
that the pope travels about 100,000 miles per year. So this means based on the type of plane the
Pope flies, he emits 20 pounds of CO2 for every mile of flight which is
2,000,000 pounds a year.
Every denomination has their own precepts that their members
must abide by. Likewise, nations have
laws that their citizens or visitors must abide by.
Poverty or wanting a better life is not sufficient reason for
people to break our laws to enter into our country. The Pope expects Catholics to abide by the
rules of Catholicism; so why should America expect anything less from those who
seek entry into our country?
So, by the Pope’s standard I, as a Baptist, should still be
able to participate in all things Catholic; even though I don’t adhere to
Catholicism.
The Pope, in many ways, is operating just like Obama is in
the U.S. They both are picking and
choosing which rules and laws they want to abide by.
Forgive me for not being able to get beyond the fact that the
Pope has spent very little time dealing with the child abuse that has taken
place in his church; but yet he seems to have plenty of time to meet with
illegals, homosexuals and promote global warming
Am I the only one who finds it offensive that the Pope will
be meeting with some of those in the U.S. illegally, but will not be meeting
with families that have had family members killed, raped, or maimed by
illegals?
Am I the only one who finds it offensive that the Pope will
not be meeting with any of the victims of sexual abuse from within the Catholic
Church?
Am I the only one who finds it offensive that the Pope
constantly talks about income inequality and the need for employers to pay their
employees more money; but he has never discussed what is the obligation of
employees to their employers (more productivity and more efficiency,
etc.)?
The Pope should not be aligned to a political agenda, but
rather what is right or wrong.
America has no moral obligation to allow those who enter our
country illegally to stay in our country no more so than the Pope allowing
someone who refuses to abide by the rules of Catholicism should be allowed to
say they are a member of the Catholic Church.
Furthermore, the Bible is very clear, a man’s first
responsibility is for the wellbeing of his family, not his neighbor’s
family.
The Pope seems to be on a global tour to promote an
entitlement agenda as opposed to being a beacon for right and wrong. Even if you are poor and downtrodden, you
still are responsible for being responsible.
Many of the illegals coming to the U.S. are having children
that they can’t afford to provide for.
How many speeches has the Pope given on individual
responsibility?
How many speeches has the Pope given on the need to fire and
prosecute every priest that has molested or covered up sexual abuse of kids in
the Catholic Church?
How many speeches has the Pope given about what are an
employee’s obligations to his employer?
I really believe the Pope’s heart is in the right place, but
the issues he is focusing on should be subservient to the more critical issues
listed above.
I definitely think the church can and should play a
constructive role in our society, especially to those who are in need. In many respects, I think the faith community
is better equipped to deal with a lot of the social ills of our society than our
government is.
But the Pope cannot shine the light on my darkness until he
is first willing to shine the light on his on darkness. Until then, the Pope’s moral compass is
pointing in the wrong direction.
Raynard
Jackson & Associates, LLC is an internationally recognized political
consulting, government affairs, and PR firm based in Washington, DC. Jackson is an internationally recognized
radio talk show host and TV commentator.
He has coined the phrase “straticist.”
As a straticist, he has merged strategic planning with public
relations. Visit is website at:
www.raynardjackson.com.
