Winston Churchill famously said of Russia in 1939 that “it is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.” To hear many commentators and experts on religion, especially the Roman Catholic faith, tell it, this phrase could be used to describe Pope Francis.

The world marked the fifth anniversary of Pope Francis’ installation as bishop of Rome this month, and the verdicts came flying from all directions.

Conservatives say he is doctrinally confused and that he has reversed, or is trying to reverse, the ethical rigor of Pope John Paul II and the liturgical dignity and theological clarity of Pope Benedict XVI.

Liberals complain that Pope Francis has failed to change doctrine, on divorce and remarriage, for example. That he has not reformed church structure. And that he has failed to come to terms with clergy sexual abuse — either as past sin or ongoing sin. They say the church has never really done penance for the horrors of priest pedophilia, not only in the U.S. but around the world.

And then we have the opinion of actual, ordinary people — cab drivers, moms, factory workers, young adults — not only in the U.S. but around the world, and of all faiths: We love him.

Why should that be?

Well, for one thing, Pope Francis continues to set an example that promotes the virtues of kindness and humility, values that cross all lines.

Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, now 81, was elected the 266th pope of the Roman Catholic Church in March 2013, taking the name of Francis of Assisi — a saint who was a beggar who rebuilt the church with charity, poverty and mission work. Francis is the first pope from the Americas.

This pope chooses to live in a two-bedroom apartment in the Vatican rather than the papal palace, wears a silver rather than a gold cross, rides in a Fiat or a Ford Focus instead of a limo, washes the feet of criminals and transports Syrian refugees in the papal aircraft.

And he said of homosexuals: “If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has goodwill, who am I to judge?”

When he said that, the heads of many a modern pharisee exploded.

The other great thing the pope said was on the day of his election: Speaking to the crowd below his balcony in St. Peter’s square, and to the worldwide TV audience, he asked the people to pray for him.

The pope has issued two encyclicals, or teaching letters: “Laudato Si,” which urges protection of the earth, and “Lumen Fidei,” on the light of faith. His apostolic exhortation “Amoris laetitia,” (The Joy of Love) advises priests on pastoral care for families, including how to minister to widows and people who are abandoned, separated or divorced.

The pope has famously said that priests should be shepherds “living with the smell of the sheep.”

He has also reminded Catholics that the Eucharist is “not a prize for the perfect, but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak.”

Maybe there is no riddle, mystery or enigma to Pope Francis. He is not an intellectual, not a theologian, not a dogmatist and not a reformer. He is a pastor — a loving pastor who has based his pontificate on two simple, inexhaustible and never fully achievable values: mercy and compassion.

Pope Francis leads his flock by his example — living simply, identifying with marginalized people and directing his priests and his flock to practice what they preach: humility, mercy and compassion.

This is why he is a people’s pope. And, five years on, the people, justly, love him.