U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders praises Pope Francis in a new video interview with the Canadian Catholic television network Salt + Light, calling the pontiff a socialist like himself and lauding his critique of the global market system. Sanders, who spoke to the network back in September during the pope’s visit to the U.S., also says Francis is having a “profound impact” on people all over the world. “I think what the pope has done, in a very bold way … is raise the issue of the worship of money, the idolatry of money, and to say maybe that’s not what human life should be about,” says the Democrat. “That is a very, very radical critique of the hyper-capitalist system, world system, that we’re living in today.” “I think that the pope is playing an historical role coming at exactly the right moment in human history, where his voice is having a profound impact, not only on our country, but all over the world,” he states. Sanders speaks in an interview with Basilian Fr. Thomas Rosica, who heads the Canadian network and also assists the Vatican press office with English-language press inquiries. The interview will air for the first time Tuesday evening, and will then be made available on the network’s YouTube channel. Asked by Rosica if he considers the pope a socialist, Sanders replies: “Yes.” “What the pope is saying is that human life, our existence, should be more than just the accumulation of more wealth,” says the Democratic candidate. “And everybody knows that right now we have the wealth, we have the technology to provide at least a decent standard of living for all of our people.” “So few should not have so much, and I think that’s what the pope is talking about,” he states.
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