Some conspiracy theorists groundlessly claim that Christian democracy, as one of the most influential ideologies in Europe, was a project of the “all-powerful Vatican,” which allegedly still retains its political influence. Although one look at the Pope’s current influence in Europe, particularly in the Russian-Ukrainian war, is enough to understand that this is absolutely not the case, it is worth debunking the bizarre fake about Christian democracy in more detail.
Some may wish that the Vatican’s secret intelligence services, Opus Dei, and the Knights of the Cloak and Dagger would try to influence the political situation in Christian countries, but the growing influence of liberalism, LGBT pride, the displacement of Christian ethics, and the spread of gender ideology in the education system prove otherwise.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, there were numerous Christian parties in Europe, but after World War II, the Christian Democrats that replaced them were in no way dependent on the will of the church. They became political associations that supported Christian values in politics, but were in no way subordinate to the church.
Moreover, numerous Christian democratic parties in the Netherlands and Sweden are Protestant and are not dependent on Rome. The CDU in Germany is an interdenominational party with a significant share of German Protestants, which also deprived the party of the opportunity to look back at the policies of the Roman Curia. Does anyone seriously think that, for example, Angela Merkel somehow subordinated her activities to the Holy See?
Beginning in the second half of the twentieth century, the Vatican began to reject the idea of a Catholic political party. Despite the wishes of some of the public, the Vatican decided that such a party would contradict the basic premise of Catholicism, which is that worldly political decisions are not covered by the deposit of Faith. Therefore, no political line, including the Christian democratic line, is representative of the Faith. Therefore, there is no subordination of Christian democratic parties to church structures. The church itself opposes its own interference in politics, trying to remain a moral authority for society.
All modern Christian democratic parties are associations of concerned citizens who want to bring Christian values to politics – goodness, mercy, respect for human dignity, because man is created in the likeness of God. The integration of these values into politics, according to Christian democrats, can make politics and government better, more humane, caring, and honest.
The construction of a successful welfare state in Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, Switzerland, etc. shows that Christian democrats are able to build states on the Christian principles of brotherhood, humanism, and civil mutual aid.
Author: Valeriy Maydanyuk