General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: I'm Really Getting to Respect this Pope [View all]DonCoquixote
(13,616 posts)The problem is that Francis only came about because Benedict ran the church into the reef. Granted, a lot of what Benedict did was started by John Paul II, but some people never quite get red the riot act they deserve because of Charisma and Luck (which JP had in spades.) However, as we see here with our president, it is not enough to say the right things and do safe, slow measures when the ship is already on fire and sinking! Yes, there are a chorus of idiots who see nothign wrong, and will shriek like mandrakes when you do anything remotely not hard right, but when everythign is in flames, you do not need buckets, you need high-pressure firehoses.
Francis was made to wash the taste of Benedict out of poeple's mouths, and also to placate Latin America, aka Rome's breadbasket. However, the powers that be know that Francis has best, a few years, then they can roll in a hard right SOB. If Francis wants to live up to hsio words, he has to change somethign RIGHT NOW. Fortunately, unlike Barack Obama, the pope CAN be a dictator, and if they oppose him, they know they will slit their own throat by destroying the image of an infallible pope.
Now, is he goign to undo hundreds of years in one? No, but on women;'s issues, he has a clear way to make changes, namely because the Episcopals did it for him. The Episcopals have a simialr structure to the Catholics, but they have had married priests, and WOMAN priests. He can easily have a talk with Canterbury, and based on said research, find letting husbands and wives into the clergy will not reduce the world to ashes. Now, I realize that is not a complete list by a long shot; birth control and abortion do need to be allowed in, but I gave an example of a step that would indeed do something meaningful, and help wear away the wall of sexism. Once women becaome the vicars and bishops, the monster of sexism will start bleeding to death.