Pope Francis came to the United States this past week. He stopped in three major cities: Washington D.C, Philadelphia, and New York City. I had the pleasure of watching his speech to Congress on the West Lawn of the Capitol in Washington D.C on Thursday. It was incredible; approximately 50,000 people gathered to watch the Pope’s address. Pope Francis is the first Pope to address Congress. Pope Francis is a “knight in shining armor” to human kind, especially the poor and oppressed.
The beginning of his speech contained this statement; “Your own responsibility as members of Congress is to enable this country, by your legislative activity, to grow as a nation. You are the face of its people, their representatives. You are called to defend and preserve the dignity of your fellow citizens in the tireless and demanding pursuit of the common good, for this is the chief aim of all politics.”
He told Congress that it was time to put politics aside and work together for the common good. Our Congress is more focused on following their party’s agenda than getting any sort of progress made. Republican debates are now consumed with the superficiality of Donald Trump, a man who doesn’t face issues but dances his way around questions. This is a perfect example of a politician who will not address issues but instead run away from them, one who does not focus on issues at hand but instead worries about his political image. He then continues to elaborate by stating, “Legislative activity is always best based on care for the people.” Legislative agendas by congress should be ones that do what is best for the people. It should strive to meet peoples’ needs. We elected Congress in hopes that they would do the best job to provide us with our needs.
“Let us remember the Golden Rule: ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you’.” It is time to respect one another regardless of our differences.
We should treat all humans with respect and dignity. When you talk to someone from a different place or with different political views, you realize that people aren’t always so different.
“We know that no religion is immune from forms of individual delusion or ideological extremism. This means that we must be especially attentive to every type of fundamentalism, whether religious or of any other kind. A delicate balance is required to combat violence perpetrated in the name of a religion, an ideology, or an economic system, while also safeguarding religious freedom, intellectual freedom, and individual freedoms.”
He acknowledges that there is always going to be people who use religious claims for the wrong reasons, but that doesn’t mean that one should not be allowed to practice their own beliefs. Many different religions are currently under persecution in the U.S. Christians are being bashed for their views on abortion and gay marriage. Muslims are accused of being extremists. People can coexist in a world where you have differences with other people.
“Now is the time for courageous actions and strategies, aimed at implementing a culture of care and an integrated approach to combating poverty and restoring dignity to the excluded.”
Those who are suffering, like the thousands of Syrians fleeing their own country, need us to work together. They need us to take action and make a plan to solve problems. The Pope is challenging Congress to get something done. This speech to some doesn’t seem like much progress, but it is. It gave people who are suffering a voice in Congress. Hopefully Congress will listen to that voice.
