American pope and American president: two very different types of leaders
We now have a pope who teaches compassion and love of others and a president who valorizes cruelty and loves only himself.
The College of Cardinals has done what the Democratic Party leadership could not. They gave the world a vision of the other America: the strong, competent, and compassionate America.
Pope Leo XIV, celebrated here in Chicago as a baseball fan, a regular guy who gets on a ladder to trim tree branches at his brother’s house, and man who likes a good Chicago hot dog, launched his papacy by talking about leadership. Now, I know, leading the Catholic Church and leading the government of the United States are very different things. Still, it is hard to hear his admonition about successful leadership and not be ashamed of what we see in the White House.
In his first homily, this American Pope taught that it is essential for leaders to set their egos aside to focus on the mission. He said, “It is to make oneself small so that he may be known and glorified, to spend oneself to the utmost so that all may have the opportunity to know and love him.”
This is the teaching of a man of faith, saying that successful evangelism requires moving out of the way to make room for Jesus.
I have a different faith, an older, Jewish faith. But I admire the humanity, the strength, and the wisdom in the Pope’s counsel. And I read it as an example of the leadership utterly missing in false prophet in the White House.
When Leo calls upon the cardinals to lead by with humility and compassion, he is not asking them to do the impossible. It is, after all, not so hard to do good in this world. It is not so hard to focus on others. It is not too much of a burden to care for those who are in need. In the Hebrew bible, when God gives the Torah to the people he says:
Surely, this Instruction that I enjoin upon you this day is not too baffling for you, nor is it beyond reach. It is not in the heavens, that you should say, Who among us can go up to the heavens and get it for us and impart it to us, that we may observe it? Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, Who among us can cross to the other side of the sea and get it for us and impart it to us, that we may observe it? No, the thing is very close to you, in your mouth and in your heart, to observe it.
Very often, in American history, we have chosen leaders who understand this. We have had presidents, Senators, members of Congress, mayors, and school board members, who feel the awesome weight of service every day that they have the responsibility of authority. And they call upon the people who work in their administrations to put the people first.
Last week the College of Cardinals, elevated a Chicagoan to the papacy, and sent a message that there is power in humility and righteousness in service. Because of that, we have two examples of American leadership. A pope who teaches compassion and love of others and a president who valorizes cruelty and loves only himself.
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While the pope talked of the dignity of every human being, Mr. Trump floated the idea of ending the right of habeas corpus. This is an idea that appears in the Magna Carta and has ever since been the bedrock of legal rights. It guarantees that a government can’t just make someone disappear without any trial. Mr. Trump wants that power. Of course, we already have an example of what Trump will do with it. His name is Kilmar Abrego Garcia. Mr. Trump took him off the streets and sent him to prison in El Salvador. His administration now admits that was a mistake. The Supreme Court ordered him to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return to United States, but Trump is ignoring that order. Who else has been swept up and disappeared into that dungeon? We don’t know. And yet, Mr. Trump wants the power to do that to anyone.
This week we learned that the Trump family has increased its personal wealth by $3- billion since inauguration. That’s one billion dollars each month since taking office. It is the most corrupt and no doubt illegal abuse of power in American history. Can it be, in this once great democracy, that the aim of our government is the enrichment of one man? It cannot be, and yet here we are.
In a working democracy, in a nation of laws, a president so corrupt would rapidly be investigated and prosecuted. But in Donald Trump’s America, the Justice Department is not interested in the rule of law. It exists to impose his will on others. The FBI is not there to investigate crimes. It exists to intimidate and remove those who annoy him. The Treasury Department is not there to strengthen America’s economy. It exists to create opportunities for deals or market manipulation that will further enrich Mr. Trump.
Democratic party leadership has, so far, proven feckless and weak. But ordinary Americans have not. We have shown up. We have protested. We have voted down MAGA candidates in state elections from Texas to Wisconsin. I saw someone wearing a Harvard sweatshirt the other day when I was walking my dog. I asked if the person went to the school. She said, no, but because Harvard stood up to Trump, she wanted to wear it. It’s a small example, but it is no different than Microsoft moving its huge legal business to Jenner & Block, a law firm that fought against Mr. Trump’s effort to extort it.
The new pope will preach the gospel with courage and humility. Here in the United States, where our president abuses the awesome power of his office every day, it is up to us to preach a different kind of good news. There are thousands of examples of fighting back, and the number grows every week. Cruelty and cupidity are not the only news. So are compassion and generosity. So is the people’s determination never to be subjects rather than citizens.
Two very different kinds of American leaders are now on the world stage. Which one will we choose to be like?
I call upon each of you listening to bear witness to crimes, to interrupt the lies, to reaffirm our commitment to the rule of law and to each other. It is not hard to do. And choosing this path will in our time bring an end to this terrible regime.