Pope – Saint or Marxist . As Dom Helder Camara, another prophetic archbishop from Latin America, famously observed, “When I give food to the poor they call me a saint. When I ask why they are poor, they call me a communist.” Some things never change.

Of course no one is troubled by a pope who embraces the sick and loves the poor. But when he dares to reflect on the moral and structural causes of poverty, that is a different matter.

Business commentators may rise to the defense of the marketplace. But Pope Francis is not primarily interested in a debate about “wealth creation.” He stands in a tradition that goes back to the prophets of Israel, whose moral litmus test was the welfare of society’s least and most vulnerable members.

Pope Francis has taken it upon himself to speak for those who have no voice, to arouse the conscience of Christians, and to contribute to a culture of solidarity. He longs, he says, for a “Church which is poor and for the poor.” Perhaps what distinguishes him from his predecessors is simply that he has identified this as a central focus, and that he evidently intends to hold the church accountable to this mission.

 CNN opinion piece by Robert Ellsberg reflecting on Rush Limbaugh and others.

(Of course St. Vincent de Paul experienced this with some of the civil… and ecclesiastical… leaders of his time.  Frederic Ozanam faced it in his day. And many followers of Vincent and Louise today are challenged when they raise issues of systemic change.)