I peruse the National Catholic Reporter very frequently to view the latest Roman Catholic Church news. The editorial staff of the NCR wrote a piece this past week, entitled, "What Kind of Reformer is Pope Francis?" The following blog is inspired by that article.

Pope Francis is at the two year mark of his papacy and many, many people, from the persons in the pews, to the professional theologians, to the news reporters, religious and secular, are following his progress on Church reform. How is Pope Francis doing in regards to Church reform?

He appears to know many things that require fixing in the Church, such as, how the Vatican Bank is organized and operated and he has done some shuffling of the Vatican offices. He continues to address such issues as sexual abuse by the clergy and clerical financial abuse. He never ceases to remind the Church leadership, including priests, bishops, and cardinals, that they are to be not only governing the people but, they need to be true disciples of Christ, specifically, reminding them of their pastoral work of love and mercy. Indeed, Pope Francis directs all of the Church to embrace their Christian mission, especially for the love and care of the poor and disenfranchised.

By Pope Francis keeping the mission to the poor front and centre, he has shown the R.C. Church and the world, what we, as Christians are supposed to be about, and he has renewed people’s faith and confidence in the R.C. Church. I know of several people who have said to me, that they are feeling proud about being Catholic again. Pope Francis has seriously improved and repaired the image of the Catholic Church.

There is however, one glaring problem, and that is Pope Francis’s lack of understanding of what the Lord’s mission is, in 2015 and beyond, for the women of the Universal Roman Catholic Church. While Pope Francis might very well see and understand what "things need fixing" in the Church, and he has referred to a need for an "over-haul" of the Church, but, he does not possess a "vision" for the women that Christ has called and empowered to bring about a New Evangelization and subsequently a New Church, new, in the sense, of completely revitalized, completely reformed, or in Pope Francis’s words, "over-hauled". It’s this lack of his understanding and vision for the Women, this vacancy, that prevents Pope Francis from being the ultimate reformer of the Universal Roman Catholic Church and it is because of this vacancy, that the R.C. Church will struggle and continue to struggle to be created anew!

We are now in Holy Week, let us pray for yet another, sending out of the Easter spirit of renewal!

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