Benedict and Francis, Lennon-McCartney

From the beginning, part of the narrative about Pope Francis has been that he’s sort of the anti-Pope Benedict XVI. Where Benedict was cold and aloof, Francis is seen as warm and populist; where Benedict was rigid and dogmatic, Francis is open and flexible; where Benedict was a man of the system, Francis is the antidote to it.

One could go on crafting different ways of making the same point, but the idea is clear: Benedict and Francis are often set in opposition.