Rush Limbaugh vs. Pope Francis

Talk about a bizarre world…I never even thought that the Pope would have listened to Rush Limbaugh, much less respond to him.  What is interesting about this whole recent debate is that this could create a dilemma for many conservative Christians who want to support the Pope and Rush.  This debate actually highlights an internal conflict within the Christian church…specifically the American church…and no wonder it has struck a nerve with so many people.

The Church…and money…so many conflicts…and there has been an interesting history of the relationship between the two.

Things erupted a couple of weeks ago when Pope Francis I issued the statement, The Gospel of Joy in which he criticized what he called ‘unfettered capitalism.’  The Pope had in mind an unregulated state much like what we saw at the beginning of the 20^th century and is advocated by some conservatives today, including Rush.  According to Rush, capitalism is the cure for life’s problems and should be allowed to continue unhindered. 

There are many conservative Christians in the US.  That is, there are many Christians who support the Church, but also support and embrace a conservative capitalist worldview.  They read both the Bible and Ayn Rand and do not see a struggle between the two.  But the Pope has correctly identified that there is indeed a conflict between them.

Jesus famously said that “You cannot serve both God and money (Matt 6:24).” It is indeed on this point that many Christians really falter.  The Pope, in his statement, is echoing this statement and he is saying that there is something wrong with somebody who has money as their ultimate goal. 

It is at this point that Rush shows his theological ineptitude.  Rush has identified himself as a Christian in the past, but he has had questionable theological positions, such as wanting to remove the book of Revelation from the Bible.  So I think we can all understand that Rush is not a Bible scholar.  What is dangerous is when he criticizes a Christian leader for taking an issue with something that Jesus takes issue with. 

The Pope’s concern is Jesus’ concern…what an uncontrolled love of money does to us and does to society.  When money becomes the primary goal, it dehumanizes us and robs us of the opportunity to provide compassion and love to other people.

The Bible is filled with concepts that (if ever practiced) would drive any capitalist completely crazy.  For instance, the book of Ruth encourages people to leave food in the field, free for the taking (2:3).  Nobody charged the poor for this food and to do so was actually illegal!  We could discuss the practice of completely canceling debts every seven years….not to mention the prohibition on charging interest on loans. 

The point is that the Bible at many different places comes into conflict with the practices of Capitalism.  The American Church, however, at times has identified American Conservative Republican values with Christian values.  The Pope’s comments have brought this conflict out into the open once again, thus creating a dilemma for many Christians.

Perhaps it is time for the Church to re-examine its views on the economy and answer the question, “Who do we owe allegiance too?”  After all, you can’t serve both the Pope and Rush at the same time.