The conversation has become predictable. A friendly acquaintance — a neighbor, a fellow parent, our real estate agent — asks about my work. I say I've been writing a book about the pope, and the acquaintance smiles and nods and says “Isn't he so wonderful?” or, “That must be an inspiring thing,” or, “I have a friend who would love to read it.” And then eventually I find myself saying, uncomfortably, “Well, they should know that it's not entirely favorable.”
A pause, puzzled and slightly crestfallen. “But you're writing about the nice pope?”
The consistency of these exchanges is a testament to the great achievement of Pope Francis' five years on the papal throne. He leads a church that spent the prior decade embroiled in a grisly sex abuse scandal, occupies an office often regarded as a medieval relic, and operates in a media environment in which traditional religion generally, and Roman Catholicism especially, are often covered with a mix of cluelessness and malice.
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