The Secret Pope Francis Haters

In The Daily Beast: “The Secret Pope Francis Haters.” Barbie Latza Nadeau writes:

…There are a growing number of dissident voices from deep within the Catholic community who aren’t exactly impressed with the so-called “Francis effect” on the church as a whole…

and

Toeing the new party line instilled by Francis is proving to be the greatest challenge for conservative Catholics who are quite used to a prudent and predictable Pope…

and (quoting John Bloodworth of the progressive political blog Left Foot Forward)

“Pope Francis’s position on most issues should make the hair of every liberal curl. Instead we get article after article of saccharine from people who really should know better.”

But Jesuit Fr. Thomas Resse says that

the Pope won’t likely worry about how people judge his first year on the job.

Read the whole thing here.

Editor

Katharine E. Harmon, Ph.D., edits the blog, Pray Tell: Worship, Wit & Wisdom.

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Comments

10 responses to “The Secret Pope Francis Haters”

  1. Martin Wallace OP

    I think you will find that the author of “Left Foot Forward” is James (not John) Bloodworth. The error occurs first in Ms Nadeau’s article. Thanks for drawing this article to our attention, though.

    Reply
  2. Norman Borelli

    “John Vennari, noted Catholic observer and editor of “The Catholic Family News,” has been pounding a steady drumbeat on the danger of Francis’s widespread populist appeal since his election a year ago. “He seems to have a good heart and some good Catholic instincts, but theologically he is a train wreck—remarkably sloppy,” Vennari wrote in a recent blog post. “Though this might shock some readers, I must say that I would never allow Pope Francis to teach religion to my children.”

    —
    Wow! The Pope, isn’t qualified to teach religion? Can you imagine the hew and cry that would have resulted if somebody had said this about Pope Benedict? Welcome to the cafeteria, Mr. Vennari.

    Reply
  3. Jack Rakosky

    The Francis Effect

    Francis is certainly well known by many people who know very little about Catholicism from secular Harvard professors to college students from Catholic family backgrounds who had no idea who was Pope under Benedict, or who Cardinal Dolan is.

    The papacy of Francis is in its infancy.

    We had another Pope, JP2, who also dominated the media over a long period of time and was known by many people. However it is not very clear what his legacy was, or will be both inside and outside the Church. It will be interesting to see how the media treat his canonization along with that of John XXIII in the light of Francis and the sex abuse scandal.

    We are going to have another series of events, the Synods on the Family that have the potential for change in the church similar to Vatican II. How will this play out in the media? Will Francis be a John XXIII figure leading the Synod to change, or a Paul VI figure dashing the expectations of Catholics and the world?

    The Pope is not Catholicism which is multifaceted and diverse, a polyhedron rather than a globe in the words of Francis.

    What is attractive about Francis to church and non-church liberals is that he is emphasizing things like “big tent,” reconciliation with other churches and the world, and care for the marginal and the poor that were not at the center of media attention under B16 . He is also not emphasizing things like abortion, gay marriage, etc, which did gather media attention under B16.

    Francis has two great potential vulnerabilities.

    The first is sexual abuse. Many people are coming to the conclusion that his inability to act on this arises from his own complicity as Archbishop. Latin America like Asia and Africa have been slow to recognize the problem. Will he have a conversion and admit he is a sinner In this matter?

    The second is women. Like JP2 he sees women in terms of Mary, the mother of Jesus. However modern church women are more likely to see themselves as Mary Magdalene, the companion of Jesus and Apostle to the Apostles announcing the Gospel, and to see his vision of women as Mary as containing some deeply flawed Latin American values about women (marianismo).

    Will we Catholics and the world discover our rich diversity beyond the limitations of JP2, B16 and Francis?

    Reply
    1. Bill deHaas

      @Jack Rakosky – comment #3:
      Thanks, Jack – a couple of other aspects:
      – agree with Todd’s additions and would like to posit that it appears that Francis is trying to accomplish something much more impactful that just Vatican intervention. It starts with empowering episcopal conferences legally – that these conferences can take action in terms of their own conferences e.g. the ability legally to intervene, discipline, and implement abuse controls even over bishops (in other words, make bishops accountable. The legal steps would go a long way to implementing the vision of the fathers of VII and would probably stop the usual papal yo-yo effect when each new pope modifies laws, etc.)
      Second – agree on Jack’s comment about women but, OTOH, Francis has also called for a female theology…..one could interpret this as a typical Jesuit first step that may lead to others?

      Reply
    2. Alan Hommerding

      I’d think that modern church women see themselves as being made in the image of God, and baptized into Christ, image of the unseen God.
      It’s doubtful that church men see themselves following the example of one or another of the males who were part of the life of Jesus of Nazareth. (“I’m a Joseph. I’m a Peter. I’m more of a Thomas.”) Why do we insist on viewing women in a “once-removed” way?
      I’m not usually a fan of bumper-sticker theology, but I think that “If you’re not going to ordain women, stop baptizing them” gets to the core of the matter rather quickly.

      Reply
  4. Todd Flowerday

    On Pope Francis’ “two vulnerabilities” …

    The problem isn’t sexual abuse, but the administration of bishops who have enabled sex addicts among their clergy, and to a smaller degree, in their midst. When the institution begins to treat it as a problem of addiction and not of temporary moral lapsing, then we’ll have progress. B16 ruffled a few feathers to get some movement on this. I expect that the Ignatian training of our pope will move things a bit more forward. He can’t help but see the credibility problems of today’s bishops. And it’s only going to get worse.

    On women, he’s in a tough spot. And he must know it. Again, the Jesuits are generally more open to lay people and have a respect for them, including women, than seminary professors or diocesan priests. Slow progress is what I expect over the next few papacies. Francis will not be the last change in tone. I hope.

    Reply
  5. Paul F Ford

    This might give us some perspective: http://millennialjournal.com/2014/03/14/global-catholicism-the-church-is-changing-but-not-how-we-might-think-2/

    Reply
  6. Bill deHaas

    Here is one of the best perspectives that I have read:

    http://millennialjournal.com/2014/03/14/global-catholicism-the-church-is-changing-but-not-how-we-might-think-2/

    Reply
  7. crystal watson

    About the millennial journal article by the Jesuit linked to above …

    1) the other non-Western Jesuits whose opinions he asked for …. they’re, of course, all men, and I’d venture to say somewhat on the conservatives side, both because they are mostly from the global South, and because they have applied to a religious order. This is going to skew their opinions in a certain way, just as Western European female non-religious views would be skewed in a certain way.

    2) the fact is that women’s health care – especially their ability to easily get access to contraception and abortion – has a lot to do with fighting poverty in the global South … http://youtu.be/FJ81C85Dyq4

    3) there is nothing shameful about the values we in the West have. The fact that poverty is no longer the most important issue here, but instead a quality of life and a closer look at equality have come to the fore, is a good thing. Certainly global poverty must be addressed, but what we shouldn’t do, I think, is deem the issues of women’s rights, gay rights, etc,. as unimportant in comparison … they don’t have to be pitted against each other and we don’t have to choose between them.

    This split between the values of the religious West and the religious East/South has already happened in the Anglican Communion, and there really is no way that the Communion in the West will embrace the values of the global South, where women are second class citizens and anti-gay laws are rife.

    Reply
  8. Jack Rakosky

    Fundamental flaws in the Synod on the Family
    There may not be enough focus on women, interfaith families or Asia

    http://www.ucanews.com/news/fundamental-flaws-in-the-synod-on-the-family/70444

    My own reading of the questionnaire found two critical lacunae. As a woman functioning in an interfaith family for the past 25 years in a subcontinent where women form the anawim – or “poor ones” – vulnerable, exploited, marginalized, I felt excluded. I found no attempt to elicit information about the status of women in the family, a factor so crucial to the health of the family.

    Interfaith marriages were another silent zone in the questionnaire. Unfortunately the focus of the questionnaire was on divorced Catholics and same-sex unions. I wish there had been more sensitivity to the concerns of Asia. As I read the questionnaire sent by Rome it occurred to me that the concerns of interfaith couples are similar to those for divorced.

    Dr Astrid Lobo Gajiwala is head of the Tissue Bank at Tata Memorial Hospital in Mumbai and a lay theologian and activist. 

    WHILE THE SITUATIONS AND CONCERNS OF WOMEN AROUND THE WORLD MAY NOT BE EXACTLY THE SAME; THEY TEND TO HAVE A FAMILIAR RING.

    Reply

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