The Politics of the Conclave (1 Viewer)

[GrandAdmiral]

Thought this deserved a thread if its own. With the passing of Pope Francis, the Church now begins preparation for the Conclave to select his replacement. It is obvious that the hard-right wing of the church is on a mission to roll back almost everything Francis put into place.

I haven't watched "Conclave" but there are plenty of stories of dramatic elections in the past. I don't expect the dirtiness we see in the halls of Congress, but I expect the hard right to seriously make themselves known in Conclave and in the public.

The next Pope: who are the frontrunners to succeed Pope Francis?

The new pope's leadership will set the tone for the Church's future, whether continuing Francis's progressive reforms or shifting back toward conservatism.

www.newsweek.com

 

[bird]

It is likely that this conclave will be contentious. Francis elevated a lot of cardinals that were more in his mold. We can also bet that the conservatives will fight furiously.

All of that said, the Roman Church still has not followed through on what I think is crucial thing. To try and reclaim some moral consciousness they should turn every priest, religious, bishop, archbishop and cardinal accused of abuse or of participating in cover up over to the state for investigation.

 

[GrandAdmiral]

A new Pope has been elected and he's American. How long before the fair leader takes credit for making that happen (despite the fact that he is as progressive as Francis was)?

 

[bird]

Oh, goodie. A pope who was directly involved in the sexual abuse mess by providing shelter to an accused priest.

 

[Optimus Prime]

A new Pope has been elected and he's American. How long before the fair leader takes credit for making that happen (despite the fact that he is as progressive as Francis was)?

I’d be surprised if it hasn’t already happened

EDIT: Surprisingly restrained for him, although I'm sure to him the meaningful moment is more of the "When the one personally chosen by God to lead the people met the new Pope"

 

[Optimus Prime]

MAGA melts down over ‘WOKE MARXIST POPE’ who is a ‘Never Trumper liberal’

Laura Loomer lamented that the new pope ‘is anti-Trump, anti-MAGA, pro-open Borders, and a total Marxist like Pope Francis,’ adding that it’s ‘GROSS’ that he now leads the Catholic Church

www.independent.co.uk

 

[Optimus Prime]

 

[fooferdoggie]

 

[Optimus Prime]

Pope Leo XIV’s eldest brother shared a raft of pro-Donald Trump, anti-Democrat content on social media, including reposting a clip that branded former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi a “drunk c***.”

Just weeks before Leo, 69, emerged from the conclave as the first American to lead the Roman Catholic church, his brother Louis Prevost appeared to share several posts on Facebook in support of the Trump administration, while rebuking his Democrat friends.

In an April post, the elder Prevost shared a clip of then-California Representative Pelosi from 1996 expressing concerns about the trade deficit between the U.S. and China.

“These f***ing liberals crying about tariffs is just unreal. Do they not know that there is a thing called video?” the caption of the Facebook post, which Prevost did not write, read.

This development comes after the new pontiff, born Robert Prevost, 69, was already criticized by the MAGA movement for apparently opposing Trump’s America First agenda……..

Pope Leo’s brother shares clip calling Nancy Pelosi a ‘drunk c***’

Louis Prevost’s anti-Democrat rhetoric was unearthed in a string of Facebook posts

www.independent.co.uk

 

[Dragon]

Pope Leo XIV’s eldest brother shared a raft of pro-Donald Trump, anti-Democrat content on social media, including reposting a clip that branded former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi a “drunk c***.”

Just weeks before Leo, 69, emerged from the conclave as the first American to lead the Roman Catholic church, his brother Louis Prevost appeared to share several posts on Facebook in support of the Trump administration, while rebuking his Democrat friends.

In an April post, the elder Prevost shared a clip of then-California Representative Pelosi from 1996 expressing concerns about the trade deficit between the U.S. and China.

“These f***ing liberals crying about tariffs is just unreal. Do they not know that there is a thing called video?” the caption of the Facebook post, which Prevost did not write, read.

This development comes after the new pontiff, born Robert Prevost, 69, was already criticized by the MAGA movement for apparently opposing Trump’s America First agenda……..

Pope Leo’s brother shares clip calling Nancy Pelosi a ‘drunk c***’

Louis Prevost’s anti-Democrat rhetoric was unearthed in a string of Facebook posts

www.independent.co.uk

There are some nuts in every family. We have them too. My sister in law who has never been able to hold down a job for more than a few months her whole life have embraced the right wing propaganda of "immigrants are taking our jobs". She has always felt entitled but has never put in the effort and loses interest in any jobs in less than 3 months,

 

[Optimus Prime]

More
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……….Another accused Barack Obama and the Democratic party which he led as president from 2009 to 2017 of “longing for the total destruction of our way of life and turning this country into a dictatorship, and a racist one on top of it”.

Yet another post called for Democrats who met with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, after he and Trump argued in the Oval Office about his country’s war with Russia to be arrested on charges of treason.

And a separate post shared an anti-LGBTQ+ meme with the text: “Your child isn’t trans – you’re just a shirty parent.”

In interviews that he granted after Leo’s election, Lou has made it a point to say that he and his brother, widely seen as ideologically moderate, have their differences.

Lou told the New York Times that he was conservative, and he and Leo – as the outlet put it – “disagreed on some things”.

And, more lightheartedly, Lou described how he rooted for his home town Chicago Cubs baseball team while Leo backed their intracity rivals the White Sox as they grew up there with their parents and their middle brother, John.

Nonetheless, Lou’s attempt to portray himself and Leo as their own men has done little to quell the polarizing reaction the older brother’s Facebook posts have inspired since drawing notice.

Among the newer comments visible on Lou’s account as of Monday was one reading: “Your brother must be soooo embarrassed.” Another of the more polite ones read, “Your comments and language is unbecoming of anyone. Shame on you. Besides it being nasty it’s also factually incorrect. I hope this is not a reflection on the Roman Catholic church.”

Lou, though, had defenders in his corner. One Facebook user on Lou’s page wrote “what the hell is wrong with people” who had gone there to complain about his beliefs. The conservative political website Gateway Pundit exalted him as “a red-blooded American patriot telling it like it is”……

Anti-Democratic, anti-trans Facebook posts of Pope Leo brother draw scrutiny

Lou Prevost, who shared video that repeated slur against Nancy Pelosi, says he and brother ‘disagree on some things’

www.theguardian.com

 

[Optimus Prime]

Rightwing Catholic Americans in positions of power – from the vice-president, JD Vance, to Leonardo Leo – may have breathed a brief sigh of relief when, after the white smoke cleared, Pope Leo XIV emerged on the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica donning a traditional red mozzetta with a papal stole.

It was, observers pointed out, a starkly different choice than his predecessor Pope Francis, a reviled figure among many staunch conservatives, who had worn all white on the same occasion in 2013 to symbolize his desire for simplicity and humility.

In another nod to tradition, the American pope opted to sing – not recite – the Regina Caeli prayer in his first Sunday blessing, and dedicated one of his first audiences to the head of Opus Dei, the ultra-conservative religious order whose secret member list is believed to include prominent Catholics in Washington.

And yet, it seems widely understood that Leo, given his background, temperament and values, will largely adhere to the vision of the church set out by Pope Francis, and not rebuke or deviate from it, says Massimo Faggioli, a professor at Villanova. While he might like traditionalist things more than his late Argentinean predecessor, Leo cannot be called a traditionalist, Faggioli adds.


The deeper question for now is how the new pope will position himself vis-a-vis rightwing Catholics who hold significant power in the US church and in Washington, through their wealth and political influence. That includes men like Leonard Leo, a conservative Catholic activist who led the Republican mission to install a rightwing majority in the US supreme court, which is today mostly composed of ultra-conservative Catholics.

The schism within the American Catholic church – between conservatives who rejected the legitimacy of Francis’s papacy and more progressive-leaning Catholics who embraced it – is not dissimilar to the schism within the US itself. On one side, says Cathleen Kaveny, a professor of law and theology at Boston College, are conservatives who want to “lock down” church teachings and reject changes they see as illicit, and liberals who want church teachings to develop in line with societal changes.

Many experts agree that – unlike Francis – Leo won’t necessarily seek out to offend or chastise the American right for the sake of it.

“I don’t think he will try to upset people unnecessarily. Francis was more comfortable taking a unique stand. But Leo won’t give up his own commitments, especially to the poor, just to appease his critics,” says Kaveny.……….

The right reviled Francis. How will Pope Leo XIV confront the schism in the US church?

Some conservatives rejected Francis for his leftist leanings, but Leo could be able to realize his forerunner’s visions

www.theguardian.com