Pope Francis’s successor will face a litany of challenges, from the place of women and the LGBTQ community in the Catholic Church, to diplomatic challenges in a conflict-riven world.
UNITY
Uniting a divided church will be one of the main tasks facing the new pope.
During his 12-year-long papacy, Francis often came under fire for his more liberal policies, such as welcoming migrants and restricting the use of the Latin Mass.
Traditionalists in the United States and Africa in particular were angered by his efforts to give lay people and women a greater role in the Church, and his decision to open the door to blessing same-sex unions.
His successor will have to make peace between the Church’s conservative and liberal fringes.
“A pope always brings people together,” Luxembourger Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich told reporters.
“That unity in the church will be very important. But you don’t unify the church by…
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