Was Jesus a Socialist?

 

by CAPP-USA

 

To answer whether Jesus was a socialist we need to first define socialism.

Classic Socialism

Classic socialism, usually associated with Karl Marx, is the transitional economic system between capitalism and communism. Its aim is state ownership of the means of production – with people then sharing equally in the outputs of the system.

The Catholic Church Condemns Socialism

At the height of extreme Capitalism caused injustices of the Industrial Revolution, Pope Leo XIII made the Church’s response to Marx’s theories for a ‘better’ economy abundantly clear:

Socialism is “emphatically unjust” for it “would rob the lawful possessor, distort the functions of the State, and create utter confusion in the community.” (Rerum Novarum, 4)

Socialism “must be utterly rejected, since it only injures those whom it would seem meant to benefit, is directly contrary to the natural rights of mankind, and would introduce confusion and disorder into the commonweal.” (Rerum Novarum, 24)

One hundred years later, Pope St. John Paul II, all too familiar with socialist and communist regimes, stated that under socialism, freedom “is replaced by a burdensome system of bureaucratic control which dries up the wellsprings of initiative and creativity”. (Centesimus Annus, 25)

Basically, socialism will never work because “It is not possible to understand man on the basis of economics alone”. (Centesimus Annus, 24)

Read more about the Church’s consistent opposition to Socialism here

So, Jesus was NOT a socialist!

Even moderate socialism “is based…on a theory of human society… irreconcilable with true Christianity.” (Pope Pius XI, 120) 

Democratic Socialism

What about a Christian socialism? Was Jesus a social democrat? A Christian socialist? Surely, that approach takes in the ‘best of both worlds’.

Democratic socialism, a more fluid concept, essentially advocates for:

• Government provision of a range of basic services, such as health care and higher education – for free or at a significant discount, and/or;
• Government control of vast sectors of the economy – to ameliorate perceived “ills” (climate change, income inequality, etc.)

And, the Church says many positive things about the ends of this more “moderate socialism”.

Pope Pius XI said moderate socialism “inclines toward and in a certain measure approaches the truths which Christian tradition has always held sacred; for it cannot be denied that its demands at times come very near those that Christian reformers of society justly insist upon.” (Quadragesimo Anno, 113)

He went further, “It can come even to the point that imperceptibly these ideas of the more moderate socialism will no longer differ from the desires and demands of those who are striving to remold human society on the basis of Christian principles.” (Quadragesimo Anno, 114)

So, perhaps you can be a Catholic and a “moderate” socialist at the same time. A kind of Catholic socialism.

No – Democratic Socialism is Opposed to the Gospel

“Socialism…wholly ignoring and indifferent to [the] sublime end of both man and society, affirms that human association has been instituted for the sake of material advantage alone.” (Pope Pius XI, 118)

Indeed, the “means” of even “moderate socialism” “cannot be reconciled with the teachings of the Catholic Church because its concept of society itself is utterly foreign to Christian truth”. (Pope Pius XI, 117)

Even moderate socialism “is based…on a theory of human society… irreconcilable with true Christianity.” (Pope Pius XI, 120) 

Pope Pius XI “made it clear that no Catholic could subscribe even to moderate Socialism”. (Pope St. John XXIII, 34)

Socialism, even moderate forms like democratic socialism, essentially reduces mankind into economic elements. The Catholic Church rejects that human beings can be so understood.

So, Jesus was NOT a Democratic Socialist!

Read more about Democratic Socialism here

So, What is the Basis of a Catholic Economic System?

We should always remember, “The creation of…wealth must always be at the service of the common good, and not only for the benefit of a few.” (Pope Francis, 3)

“The crisis will not be completely over until situations and living conditions are examined in terms of the human person and human dignity…Our duty is to continue to insist…that the human person and human dignity are not simply catchwords, but pillars for creating shared rules and structures”. (Pope Francis, 2)

Only being “open to the Absolute can guide us in the promotion and building of forms of social and civic life — structures, institutions, culture and ethos”. (Pope Benedict XVI, 78)

Read more about the Church’s take on economic systems here