PopeWatch: La Stampa Interview

Ah, yet another interview in which we can have thought of Pope Francis pure and unrefined:

What are the dangers of sovereignist ideologies?

“Sovereignism reveals an attitude toward isolation. I am concerned because we hear speeches that resemble those of Hitler in 1934. “Us first, We…We…”: these are frightening thoughts. Sovereignism means being closed. A country should be sovereign but not closed. Sovereignty must be defended, but relations with other countries, with the European community must also be protected and promoted. Sovereignism is an exaggeration that always ends badly: it leads to war”.

What about populism?

“Same thing. At first, I struggled to understand it because when I was studying Theology, I researched the concept of popularism, that is, the culture of the people: but one thing is for people to express themselves, and another is to impose a populist attitude on the people. The people are sovereign (they have their way of thinking, feeling, evaluating, and expressing themselves), while populist movements lead to forms of sovereignism: that suffix, ‘ism’, is never good”.

What is the right path to take when it comes to migrants?

“First of all, never neglect the most important right of all: the right to life. Immigrants come here above all to escape from war or hunger, from the Middle East and Africa. On war, we must commit ourselves and fight for peace. Hunger mainly affects Africa. The African continent is the victim of a cruel curse: in the collective imagination, it seems that this continent should be exploited. Instead, part of the solution is to invest there to help solve their problems and thus stop the migration flows”.

But when they get here, how should we behave?

“Criteria should be followed. First: to receive, which is also a Christian, evangelical duty. Doors shall be opened, not closed. Second: to accompany. Third: to promote. Fourth, to integrate. At the same time, governments must think and act prudently, which is a virtue of governments. Those in charge are called to think about how many migrants they can take in”.

What if their number is higher than the possibility to take them in?

“The situation can be resolved through dialogue with other countries. Some States need people, I am thinking of agriculture. I have seen that recently in the face of an emergency something similar has happened: this gives me hope. And then, do you know what else would be useful too?”.

What?

“Creativity. For example, they told me that in a European country there are semi-empty towns due to the demographic decline: some migrant communities could be moved there, which among other things might also revive the economy of the area”.

Go here to read the rest.  A few thoughts:

1. PopeWatch does find it amusing to hear a Peronist accusing leaders of sounding like Hitler.
2. Populism is bad if it disagrees with the Pope.
3. The Pope is open borders on steroids, especially when it comes to the Islamic immigrants from Africa and the Middle East flooding into Europe.
4. The Pope thinks that people are completely fungible:  “Creativity. For example, they told me that in a European country there are semi-empty towns due to the demographic decline: some migrant communities could be moved there, which among other things might also revive the economy of the area”.
5. As usual, all of the Pope’s musings have bupkis to do with Catholicism.