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Theology Applied

THE LIVESTREAM - Pope Francis Is Dead - Catholicism Is At A Crossroads

Apr 21, 2025
01:11:02

This morning, Pope Francis, the 266th pope of the Roman Catholic Church, died. Francis was the first Pope from the Society of the Jesuits and the first that was born outside of Europe since the 8th century. Since being elected in 2013, his time as Pope was marked by a strong humanitarian agenda, with an emphasis on climate change, opposition to the death penalty, advocacy for decriminalization of homosexuality, and criticism of anti-immigration policies. He was heavily criticized throughout his time by conservatives both inside and outside the Catholic Church for policies and statements that seemed at odds with the historic and traditional teachings of the church on marriage, homosexuality, immigration, and the death penalty.



But now, with Francis’s passing, a new Pope will be elected. Roman Catholicism is still the largest Christian tradition, numbering 1.4 billion adherents to Protestantism’s roughly 800 million. It holds massive amounts of land—over 150 million acres worldwide—and billions of dollars in real estate, stocks, and bonds. In short, it’s not going anywhere. But even with all of its assets, it still sits in a precarious position.



The young members of the Roman Catholic Church are shockingly conservative. According to the New York Times in 2024, “In an era of deep divisions in the church, newly ordained [Roman Catholic] priests overwhelmingly lean right in their theology, practices and politics.” Local dioceses are bursting at the seams with young families and conservative men who are fed up with modernity and uninterested in a rock concert at the local megachurch.



This episode is brought to you by our premier sponsors, Armored Republic and Reece Fund, as well as our Patreon members and donors. You can join our Patreon at patreon.com/rightresponseministries or donate at rightresponseministries.com/donate.



So what will the next Pope do? Will he attempt to reform the church from the inroads that liberalism has made? Imagine what would happen with a Pope open to revisiting Vatican II and Trent. The fate of the West—especially Europe, which is more Catholic than Protestant—may hang in the balance. Join us now as we discuss.



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