Pope Francis is in pretty good company

A few months ago Pope Francis was commenting on how some North American Catholics are reactionary in their attitudes.

He urged Catholics to move forward in their thinking, calling for "appropriate evolution" of theology to reflect the thinking of current times about social issues, just as the Catholic Church has moved from accepting slavery slavery to condemning it as inhumane and not Christian behavior. Today the issue of gay rights has similarly changed and the pope would like to see Catholic theology change on that as well.

His comments incited the usual outcry from more conservative Catholics, with one snarky social media reader responding "That's what you get when you elect a socialist pope."

Pope Francis probably wouldn't be too insulted being called a socialist. He frequently has commented on how economic inequality is the root of all social ills and supports the rights of disenfranchised people, including refugees, migrants and the poor. In fact, in his native Buenos Aires in Argentina, he frequently was called "the slum bishop" because of his many visits to shantytowns there. The ironic part of all this is that what conservative Catholics and for that matter many evangelical Christians call socialism sounds an awful lot like what Jesus Christ preached while he was on earth.

The New Testament of the Bible is peppered with such admonitions as "Sell your possessions and give to the poor" or "If anyone has material possessions and sees a follower in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in that person?"

There's the story Jesus tells his followers about tending to the needs of others, chiding them for not caring for him. As he says, "... Then they will reply, 'When did we see you hungry or thirsty or naked or sick or in prison and didn't do anything to help you?' Then he will answer, ' I assure you that when you have done it for one of the least of these, you have done it for me.'"

Jesus tells a wealthy young man who seeks salvation and already leads an exemplary life, "If you wish to be be perfect, sell your possessions and give to the poor ... Then come follow me."

He campaigned against accumulating riches and titles and warned that his behavior was going to prevent the very thing the church leaders of his day preached was the point of all their rules and regulations — eternal salvation. A lot of his advice on how to gain salvation sounds like socialism.

Just for the record, socialism is defined as "a political and economic theory of social organization that advocates that the means of production, distribution and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.

Think of it as a well-run monastery or perhaps an insurance company.

Unfortunately the world has not yet seen a government able to avoid using socialism as a vehicle to advance the greed and power lust of individuals heading up countries. Calling mainland China or the former Soviet Union a socialist state is far from the truth.

But Jesus didn't advocate a government getting involved in the implementation of his brand of socialism. He felt people could share the wealth on a one-to-one basis as needed, as pointed out in Luke 33 :10-11: "The crowed asked him then, 'What then should we do?' He answered, 'Whoever has two shirts must share with the one who has none and whoever has food must do the same.'"

And then there's "Contribute to the needs of God's people and welcome strangers into your home" from Romans 12:13.

All of this sharing of resources was not restricted to those folks people liked or knew or trusted. People were directed to help anyone who needed it and there was no exemption for tax collectors or prostitutes or foreigners even though their church leaders, the Pharisees, despised them. In today's world, that means we have to help the migrants and the gays and the homeless and whatever ethnic or religious group we're disrespecting this week.

In short, it sounds an awful lot like Jesus was a socialist and Pope Francis is in pretty good company.

This is the opinion of Times Writers Group member Lois Thielen, a dairy farmer who lives near Grey Eagle. Her column is published the first Sunday of the month.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Pope Francis is slammed as a socialist. But Jesus was a socialist