Conservative Catholics Fear Pope Francis Has Abandoned Core Teachings of the Church (VIDEO)

He's a freakin' leftist, way outside the mainstream of American politics, to say nothing of the conservative laity.

At the Wall Street Journal, "Conservative Catholics in U.S. Greet Pope Francis With Unease":

ARLINGTON, Va.— Jacquelyn Dupuy attends Mass every Sunday, as well as several days during the week. She gives daily lessons on the catechism to her two young children. And on the first date with her now-husband, she quizzed him about his views on abortion.

But she won’t be among the throngs crossing the Potomac River to see the pope during his time in Washington, D.C., this week. Because of her deep faith, she says, Ms. Dupuy is troubled by Pope Francis’ relaxed disposition when it comes to controversial topics such as homosexuality, contraception and divorce.

“I’m not exactly sure where he stands on issues that are really important to me,” says Ms. Dupuy, a 37-year-old stay-at-home mother. “I feel there is a disconnect. He seems to be saying things that contradict church teaching.”

Ms. Dupuy’s apprehension illustrates some of the broader anxieties about the pope among a key cohort of American Catholics: the conservative faithful who have provided a strong and energetic base for the church over the last three decades.

For them, some of the major issues behind Pope Francis’ world-wide acclaim—his conciliatory approach to gay people, for instance—have instead been a cause for dismay. Like Ms. Dupuy, many fear the pope is blurring the lines around seminal teachings and creating confusion about what it means to be Catholic.

“Conservatives worry about the way he seems to have turned from the culture war over issues like abortion and homosexual marriage,” says Robert Royal, president of the conservative Faith and Reason Institute in Washington, D.C. “The image that gets transmitted is that these are not ‘Francis issues’—that he’s more interested in income inequality, the gap between rich and poor, the environment,” adds Mr. Royal, who belongs to the Catholic diocese here.

“It’s high time that he said, ‘here’s the church’s teaching and we will not change on these issues,’ ” says Patrick O’Neill, a father of three who attends another church in the diocese, Holy Trinity in Gainesville, and says he “humbly disagree(s)” with the pope on his decision to discuss allowing divorced and remarried Catholics to receive Communion.

Rev. Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman, wouldn’t comment on specific criticisms about the pope. “It can be hard for some people to understand the pope’s positions,” he said. “But we trust that, if people listen and watch carefully what the pope says and does, everybody is going to be reassured that the pope is leading the church the right way. He’s applying the Gospel to today’s world.”

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