If the attention he’s received over the summer is any indication, then Pope Francis’ upcoming visit to the United States is likely to receive a great deal of media scrutiny. Just picture the scene as the supreme pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church heads to the highest halls of political power: the U.S. Congress and the United Nations.

The pope’s visit provides a good opportunity to reflect on the relationship between church leaders and politics. As the Rev. Robert A. Sirico, president of the Acton Institute, recently pointed out, when Francis ascends Capitol Hill to address a joint session of Congress, “He won’t be there as a policy wonk but as a pastor.” In this way, Francis is part a long line of religious leaders who have called civil authorities to moral account as part of their pastoral and prophetic vocation. Consider Nathan’s rebuke of King David, or Ambrose’s bold excommunication of the Emperor Theodosius, or Martin Luther King’s letter from a jail in Birmingham or Pope John Paul II’s principled condemnation of communism.

While Francis may have some direct points to make about particular challenges facing America, his pastoral role means that he likely won’t be endorsing specific agendas or proposals. One of the interesting things about Francis, of course, is his spontaneity and liveliness, so we can’t be certain what he will or will not say in any particular context. But with respect to offering spiritual and moral guidance on the issues of the day, popes have been clear that they speak with moral authority and not with specific policy expertise. As Francis’ immediate predecessor Benedict put it in his encyclical Caritas in Veritate, which included a reference to an earlier pope, “The Church does not have technical solutions to offer and does not claim ‘to interfere in any way in the politics of States.’” Or, as Francis observes in his encyclical Laudato si’, “Merely technical solutions run the risk of addressing symptoms and not the more serious underlying problems.”

Read the article “Politics, the Pope and the Public Square” on thinkchristian.reframemedia.com.