[irishjuggler]

But I have met many Marxists in my life who are good people, so I don’t feel offended.

This is undoubtedly true. There are certainly many nice people who have been swept up in false, evil ideologies like Marxism... and Nazism and fascism. Can we imagine the reaction if someone had asked Pope Benedict if he minded that a few of his critics called him a Nazi, and he had responded that he had known many Nazis who were good people and was thus not offended?? It would have been hell to pay. That Pope Francis would give this sort of answer, and that it has generated no controversy, speaks volumes of leftist orientations all around.

[353FMG]

>There are certainly many nice people who have been swept up in false, evil ideologies like Marxism... and Nazism and fascism.<

.
You mean that after accepting Marxism or Nazism, nice people remain nice?

Hmm, Heinrich Himmler was just a nice chickenfarmer who adopted Nazism.

[Crolis]

Irishjuggler,

You make a very good point. While there are some people who take an ideology to criminal extremes (e.g. communists and Nazis), there are others who are well intentioned, even though they may be misguided.

I’m reminded of the book “The Rape of Nanking” which recorded that John Rabe, who was a German Nazi party member, lead a safety zone which saved numerous Chinese from Japanese aggression during WWII.

So I can’t disagree with the Pope’s statement that he has met many good Marxists. There can be genuinely good people are are caught up in a wrong ideology.