Candid courage

 https://www.pillarcatholic.com/p/the-courage-to-be-candid-chaput-on

"Every pope has two key roles in his relationship with the universal Church: a) being, in his person, a source and center of Church unity, and b) clarifying the teaching of the Church in matters of controversy.

Pope Francis was often a cause of disunity because of his style and temperament. And he declined to clarify theological debates when he was called on to do so. He seemed to refuse responsibility in those areas of responsibility required of a pope.

As Catholics, what we believe and how we worship bind us together as a believing community. We have different languages, ethnicities, and local cultures. But we believe and worship as one faithful people who then engage the world with the love of Jesus Christ. In other words, creed matters. So do the teachings that derive from it.

Pope Francis, too often, spoke too loosely about serious issues, confusing his listeners and diminishing the gravity of his office. He created ambiguity around important matters of doctrine, Christian practice, and Church law. And that never ends well...

A healthy obedience, including obedience in the Church, demands a lot of humility. That should be our first instinct. But it also demands the courage to be candid on matters of substance. Criticism of authority is not always wrong. Sometimes it’s necessary...

So there’s no excuse for cynicism. It gets in the way of self-examination and personal conversion, which are always the first steps in any wider effort of Church reform and renewal. Clinging to resentments about this or that perceived problem in the Francis pontificate achieves nothing."

Chaput never leaves you comfortable: be critical of the many, substantive failures of this pontificate without clinging to resentments.