Praising Francis is not a slight to Benedict

  • March 6, 2014

As we approach the first anniversary of the election of Pope Francis, it is not difficult to find him top of mind.

His achievements over the past 12 months are quite remarkable, from the beginnings of cleaning up the politically charged and opaque Roman curia and Vatican bank to reaching out to the poor and disenfranchised around the world.

Having said this, it is no slight on Pope Benedict and his papacy. Mainstream media finds it necessary to praise Francis and by extension knock Benedict. (On this note, I saw the first example of media praising Francis without dumping on Benedict the other day during a hard-hitting PBS documentary about the Vatican and child abuse. Pope John Paul II took the brunt of the criticism, but that’s another story for another time.)

Digital Columnists

The article you have requested is only available to subscribers of the Catholic Register.


There are two ways to read this article.

1. Subscribe to our digital edition and read the complete newspaper, plus additional features, on your PC, laptop or tablet.  Subscription rates start at just $3.99.

2. Subscribe to our weekly newspaper and have the print edition delivered right to you door each week.