BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Should we even be listening to religious leaders when they opine on the financial crisis? Ted Sorensen, in his marvelous new book "Counselor: A Life at the Edge of History," is absolutely right to assert that in the United States, at least, "the wall between church and state . . . has served both church and state so well for so long in this country."
As a very close adviser to both current presidential candidates and former adviser to President John F. Kennedy, this gifted speechwriter and consultant helped JFK deflect concern back when people thought that a Roman Catholic could not govern this nation impartially — on the spurious ground that he'd be taking backstage orders from the pope. That fear was absurd and, in fact, worries about a Catholic candidate perished forever after JFK's inspiring performance as president, tragically short-lived though it was.
But residual distrust of any clerical comment on contemporary policy issues often triggers knee-jerk suspicion rather than careful attention in this political culture. The other day, for instance, Roman Catholic Pope Benedict XVI spoke out in Rome about the current global financial crisis. Because of the secular values of our media culture, the pope's observations were little noted here. But they were particularly noteworthy because they conveyed a perspective that one doesn't get from the average (or even above-average) economist, politician or even presidential candidate.