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December 2nd, 2013
11:29 AM ET
Rush Limbaugh: Pope is preaching 'pure Marxism'By Daniel Burke, CNN Belief Blog Co-Editor (CNN) - Pope Francis: Successor to St. Peter ... the people's pontiff ... Marxist? That's what conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh suggests, calling the Pope's latest document "pure Marxism." Limbaugh blasted the pontiff on Wednesday, a day after Francis released "Evangelii Gaudium" (The Joy of the Gospel), a 50,000-word statement that calls for church reform and castigates elements of modern capitalism. Limbaugh's segment, now online and entitled "It's Sad How Wrong Pope Francis Is (Unless It's a Deliberate Mistranslation By Leftists)," takes direct aim at the pope's economic views, calling them "dramatically, embarrassingly, puzzlingly wrong." The Vatican issued the English translation of "Evangelii," which is known officially as an apostolic exhortation and unofficially as a pep talk to the worlds 1.5 billion Catholics. Francis - the first pope ever to hail from Latin America, where he worked on behalf of the poor in his native Argentina - warned in "Evangelii" that the "idolatry of money" would lead to a "new tyranny." The Pope also blasted "trickle-down economics," saying the theory "expresses a crude and naïve trust in the goodness of those wielding economic power." READ MORE: Pope Francis: No more business as usual The Pope's critique of capitalism thrilled many liberal Catholics, who have long called on church leaders to spend more time and energy on protecting the poor from economic inequalities. But Limbaugh, whose program is estimated to reach 15 million listeners, called the Pope's comments "sad" and "unbelievable." "It's sad because this pope makes it very clear he doesn't know what he's talking about when it comes to capitalism and socialism and so forth." In fact, Argentina was a battlefield between leftist socialists and right-wing security forces during much of Francis' early career in the country, where he was a Jesuit priest and later archbishop of Buenos Aires. Limbaugh, who is not Catholic, said he admires the faith "profoundly." He admired Pope Francis as well, "up until this," Limbaugh said. The talk show host also said that he has made numerous visits to the Vatican, which he said "wouldn't exist without tons of money." "But regardless, what this is, somebody has either written this for him or gotten to him," Limbaugh added. "This is just pure Marxism coming out of the mouth of the Pope." Limbaugh took particular issue with the Pope's criticism of the "culture of prosperity," which the pontiff called a "mere spectacle" for the many people who can't afford to participate. "This is almost a statement about who should control financial markets," Limbaugh said. "He says that the global economy needs government control." "I'm not Catholic, but I know enough to know that this would have been unthinkable for a pope to believe or say just a few years ago," Limbaugh continued. In fact, Francis' predecessor, Benedict XVI, now pope emeritus, could be just as strong a critic of capitalism. In 2009, Benedict, in an official church document called an encyclical, said there was an urgent need for "a political, juridical and economic order" that would "manage the global economy." As Limbaugh notes, Benedict's predecessor, the late Pope John Paul II, was a noted foe of communism, after living under its oppressions in his native Poland. But even John Paul thought that unregulated capitalism could have negative consequences. In "Evangelii," Francis called for more of a spiritual and ethical revolution than a regulatory one. "I encourage financial experts and political leaders to ponder the words of one of the sages of antiquity: `Not to share one’s wealth with the poor is to steal from them and to take away their livelihood. It is not our own goods which we hold, but theirs,'" said Francis, quoting the fifth-century St. John Chrysostom. Liberal Catholics defended Pope Francis on Monday, calling on Limbaugh to apologize and retract his remarks. "To call the Holy Father a proponent 'pure Marxism' is both mean-spirited and naive," said Christopher Hale of the Washington-based Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good. "Francis's critique of unrestrained capitalism is in line with the Church's social teaching." Limbaugh is not the only conservative commentator to take issue with the Pope's views on capitalism. READ MORE: Sarah Palin 'taken aback' by Pope Francis's 'liberal' statements “I go to church to save my soul," said Fox News' Stuart Varney, who is an Episcopalian. "It’s got nothing to do with my vote. Pope Francis has linked the two. He has offered direct criticism of a specific political system. He has characterized negatively that system. I think he wants to influence my politics.” It doesn't sound like the criticism is slowing Francis down, however. He's started sending a Vatican contingent, including the Papal Swiss Guards, into Rome to deliver food and charity. soundoff (6,695 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 Next » |
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The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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Russ must have learned political theory from a barbershop.
Mr. Limbaugh, the Pope is preaching Christianity, but I guess you won't get that.
More of the CNN sideshow to distract from the continuing problems of their messiah, Obama. The Pope called for government to provide provide “dignified work, education and health care” to all citizens to avoid "an economy of exclusion and inequality. Such an economy kills.”
If that isn't the core of marxisim, socialism, and communism, then what is it.
These are things you should have learned in high school. If you failed to learn them that's your problem but don't expect people who paid attention to waste their time explaining it to you.
Lol. Lol. Lol. Thanks for the laugh.
So you consider EVERYTHING in the Bible to be Marxist, eh? Must be an atheist.
Actually, I was waiting for the first one to post as if marxism and communism are two different concepts. Oh my. Short wait.
My favorite is when they lump communism and socialism together like they are the same thing.
IT is called the WORDS of Jesus as found in the Four Gospels. Really radical stuff; got Jesus nailed to a cross. Surprised Conservative "Christians" are only now catching on that Jesus was the Greatest LIBERAL of 'Em All !!
I also find it beyond funny that the ONLY people who ever call Obama their "messiah" are his detractors. Perhaps you don't know what a messiah is??
How do you feel about the mortgage interest tax deduction?
Since when does the heir to St. Peter defend the moneychangers in the Temple? Stuart Varney seems to think he can skate through life devoid of any moral obligations: I guess the Objectivist viewpoint does not go down well with people whoa ctually practice their faith, and worship something other than the Golden Calf.
" this is a non story were it not for CNNs insatiable desire to carry Obama's torch."
Um, Obama isn't even in the story.
I'd call Rush a big fat idiot, but I wouldn't want to insult fat people or idiots.
Limbaugh added that Jesus was a dirty hippy liberal communist who trampled on rich people's profits by feeding and healing the poor when the poor should have instead died in the gutters for the entertainment of Limbaugh-like religious conservatives of the day. Looks like Jesus and the Pope are two peas in a pod.
well... judging (yes I judge!!! OMG!!) it would seem that no one cares about Rush. Surprise!! Not really. Not at all surprised. Rush is an idiot and there is, or was, such a thing as responsible capitalism. That is where you 'really' take care of your employees and not move overseas to take advantage of slave labor.
Rush is a Groucho Marxist. He's a laughing stock (but not nearly as funny as Groucho).
Brilliant – true too. 🙂
Oh, SHUT UP, you fat sack of hate and hypocrisy.
Ditto that.
Same here.
Does Rush want the Pope to fail/ Will he begin a recall campaign? I hear Rick Santorum is available. Maybe we should have Darrell Issa convene hearings.
The "Quitter", a former half-term governor, could not be elected as a Wasilla dog catcher in her home state again. We know her failures and shortcomings too well as an incompetent, vindictive, twit that can barely string a coherent sentence together. She bailed on her sworn duties to Alaskans when someone dangled a book contract in front of her. Oh, and she lost the last election for McCain.
She's good for some laughs at the Grand Old Party's expense, but it's scary to see the number of right-wing nut-jobs that get spun up by her in rapt ignorance.
Well, the trend continues. Called liberal by Palin, and Marxist by Limbaugh. What's next? be called Che Guevara by Bohener.
The Pope will be called a gay satan worshipper by Sean Hannity and Glenda Beck.
"Pope Francis has linked the two. He has offered direct criticism of a specific political system. He has characterized negatively that system. I think he wants to influence my politics."
Oh, Stuart Varney. You didn't need to tell us that you only go to church to "save" your soul–it's obvious. You certainly don't go to listen to the teachings of Jesus. If you actually listened, you might realize that the pontiff has a DUTY to call into question practices that run counter to His teachings, even if that means placing the Christian value system above your personal economic value system. Did you ever stop to think that maybe the Pope isn't trying to influence your vote so much as trying to influence your perception about what is RIGHT and what is WRONG? The audacity of that guy–I mean who does he think he is, God's representative on Earth?
Anyone that disagrees with millionaire Rush and his Republican lackeys and their culture of "I got mine, F the rest of you" is immediately attacked as a socialist, a marxist, or someone preaching class warfare.
It's obvious that Rush has not spent much time reading the New testament. Matthew 19:24- " it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
But rush sees himself as being ordained by God, to instruct the ignorant and dumb as to how and what to think.
Sorry to all you 'free-market capitalists' who claim to be christians... your messiah, 100% socialist. Always has been, always will be. I know it is hard for you to accept cause you all want to keep your money, and your big tvs, and fancy cars, but your little holy book clearly says that "it is easier for a camel to pass thorugh the eye of a needle than for a rich man to gain entry to heaven"... distribution of wealth & resources, that is what jesus told you to do. The fact that you don't only goes to prove that you don't really believe and are just hedging your bets... but that is another topic:)
I have to assume that Rush has never read The Bible, or else he would be calling Jesus a Marxist also. After all, Rush's alleged Lord and Savior preached that the rich will never enter Heaven, and they should give away their wealth to the needy. Since Rush is hoarding his wealth I'll have to believe that he's an atheist.
As an atheist I'm offended by being lumped in with that flabby waste of human existence.
Better a Marxist than an Onanist.
Ironic that both end with you feeling unfufilled...
Two victims of two versions of the Christian con !!! And both no doubt having large positions in the stock market !!! Or will Francis now sell off the Vatican's stock holdings?
Oh noes!! Reality is here to tell us the "truth!"
Associating a political stance to something like Marxism is the standard Right-Wing response to economic populism declared by anyone, especially someone like the Pope. However, it is best not to be fooled by this tactic, in order to defend the type of rampant Capitalism that harmed the world economy 5 years ago.
As for Limbaugh, he is merely a puppet paid to say these kinds of things.