Politicians and religion: a bad mix

Just about the most honest thing you can say about the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is that its members seem to like some parts of Christianity — they just don’t know very much about what it is meant to be.

And maybe that’s at the core of the latest battle between the Trump administration and Pope Leo.

Trump says the Pope is “weak on crime” — well, yes. Pope Leo is long on mercy, short on ordering personal vengeance. That’s … his job.

Trump doesn’t seem to understand the difference between politic roles and religious ones — just like he didn’t understand that sharing a meme on social media that highlighted Trump himself as a Jesus-like figure, tending to the sick, might cause an uproar.

And Trump isn’t alone.

Vice-President JD Vance recently said the Pope doesn’t understand Christian teachings, saying Pope Leo should be “more careful when he talks about matters of theology.” Have we ever heard a politician lecture a Pope on the proper interpretation of theology before? (Leo, by the way, has a master’s of divinity and a doctorate in canon law.)

And then there’s U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

This week, Hegseth read a prayer to members of the military where he cited Ezekiel 25:17, but Hegseth’s prayer instead closely mirrored a speech from the movie Pulp Fiction, given by Samuel L. Jackson just before he kills another character in the movie.

It’s a common enough error: after all, Samuel L. Jackman cites Ezekiel 25:17 at the start of his speech in the movie.

But the real Ezekiel 25:17 reads (in the King James Version), “And I will execute great vengeance upon them with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall lay my vengeance upon them.”

Hegseth’s much longer version matched Jackson’s: “Blessed is he who, in the name of camaraderie and duty, shepherd the lost through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to capture and destroy my brother. And you will know my call sign is Sandy One when I lay my vengeance upon thee, and amen.”

A subtle difference? Well, for a start, the real Bible verse cites the actions of the Lord, while Hegseth’s cites the actions of brothers in arms. One makes retribution the preserve of the Christian God, while the other justifies vengeance as a biblical right of men.

Maybe we should leave Christian theology to the theologians, though it’s not so useful for justifying foreign wars.

Here’s what Pope Leo has said very plainly this week: “Blessed are the peacemakers,” he said in Cameroon. “Woe to those who manipulate religion and the very name of God for their own military, economic and political gain, dragging that which is sacred into darkness and filth.”

Pope Leo also said, “authentic peace arises when everyone feels protected, heard and respected, when the law serves as a secure safeguard against the whims of the rich and powerful.”

“The masters of war,” Pope Leo went on, “pretend not to know that it takes only a moment to destroy, yet often a lifetime is oft not enough to rebuild. They turn a blind eye to the fact that billions of dollars are spent on killing and devastation.”

Pope Leo’s version of theology — and of humanity, frankly — is a more laudable one than the self-serving versions of Hegseth, Vance and Trump.

Religion in its purest sense is meant to lift us to be our better selves, not to justify the very worst of our behaviour.