He's the head of one of the most corrupt organizations in all of human history.
He might have some good ideas of his own, but they're getting lost in the
noise of the rest of his hypocrisy.

Evil. He protects sexual predators and promotes rejection of LGBTQ people, and misogyny. And he's religious, so what's to like?

He's earned the nick name of "PR Pope" for a reason. He's probably a nice guy on a personal level and has used that to his advantage to make him look all hip and progressive to the masses, but still maintaining status quo. For whatever sensible and progressive thing he may say, you bet your ass there are plenty of shady and par the course things he's doing behind closed doors.

That and he is still the figure head of an organization that I cannot respect at all with it's rampant corruption, child abuse, and its overall detrimental effect on society. He simply doesn't do enough to earn any real respect unless he is willing to make a bold stand and actually do a helluva lot to reform. Talk is cheap and doesn't impress me, do something worth a damn and maybe then I'll take notice. I know they have their fair share of aid and charities, but they are ultimately undermined in my eyes with how much profit they rake in and blow on themselves.

Still needs to do something about pediophelia and child desertion by priests who fathered children.

Possibly as progressive as you can be in that job and not end up dead.

I totally agree with what many have said but many have not talked about the money laundering of the Vatican bank. So, his god also needs money.

Relative to other popes, not AS bad. But don't imagine that he's a voice of real change or reform. Catholic dogma says that Catholic dogma as expressed by papal decrees and published church tradition, is infalliable. So Frances cannot admit to any mistakes. He can only change emphases and to some extent interpretation of past proclamations, to push actual church practice away from literal adherence, in hopes that somehow, a half dozen popes in the future, including potentially more regressive / conservative ones, the church will quietly change the actual doctrines a little at a time.

I'm not holding my breath. It took the RCC hundreds of years just to officially admit they shouldn't have sanctioned Galileo (this admission was not long ago, don't remember exactly when but in this century).

If the pope trusts HIS (no women popes?) god's plan why does he sit behind bullet proof glass? Why doesn't the Vatican use their wealth to help humanity?

No Pope is good they lie to others and possibly themselves for the progression of there religious sect.

I think he's very progressive for a Pope. Some of the stuff he's come out with (accepting the Big Bang Theory and evolution) are massive steps forward from the kind of backward thinking that the Catholic Church is famous for. He's gone on the offensive against the cover-ups of child sexual abuse within the church. On the whole, I think he's a good egg.

Some of what he says is still problematic. Particularly going on the offensive against transgender people. But I don't think even he's big enough to change that fundamental tenet of Catholicism: that your purpose on this Earth is to pair off, breed for your God, and to raise your offspring to do the same once they're old enough. Until Catholicism can accept contraception, it's never going to accept homosexuality or any kind of transition process that renders an individul infertile. It's God's self-given right to get to press that magic baby-making button if he wants to, whenever you have sex. Circumventing that mechanism is a big Catholic no-no.

I once read that somewhere in the region of 98% of Catholics have used contraception at some point in their lives. I'm sure a fairly high percentage use it regularly. It's about time the Church faced reality. Especially considering that it's actively discoraging condom usage in the parts of the world that suffer worst from HIV.

as far as popes go, I love Pope Frank. Dude has been making huge strides in bringing catholicism to the 21st century. However it's kinda like "who is your favorite serial killer"

I'm gonna go with not as bad as his predecessors

In every catagory from women's rights, chidren's safety to protection and care of the indigent, he has completely and willfully faild. He acts more as a lobbyist for the organization than a pious priest attempting to faithfully guide his church.

Defender of child molesters and con artists.

Meh. Pope Francis got his troubles, I got mine.

There are some things I like about him more than most. Unfortunately, they are overshadowed by his transphobia.

I cannot see any Pope as being better than any another.
Vicarious Blood Atonement one day may be all the doctrine they do not surrender to reason. It is the basis and the Church would be pointless without it. Where is any good in that? I do not see any place for neutrality

If you contrast him to Ratzinger, Francis is Significantly better. But as the leader of a corrupt organization that promotes "Faith" as an avenue to truth, I'm not sure I would go as far as "Good."

This pope song (although written during Ratzinger's time) is rather poignant.

I once thought good,
but now I say bad, even evil.
Perpetuating the lie,
protecting kiddy fiddlers, though less so than previous one.
The lesser of 2 evils is still eveil.

Good for gays. Still crappy for women. Still gives child molesting priests a safe haven and a free pass.

Good with Public Relations.

As absolute as some people think the pope is, his rule is not absolute. What he would do if his rule were absolute would be confecture. My opinion is that he feels he is in a position to do much good and that is what he is left with. The old saying of don't throw out the baby with the bathwater comes to mind.

Any vaguely positive change is good

He is a bit more tolerant than most popes. He seems to accept gay people. He seems to respect science. But still, he is a leader of a corrupt institution. I have trouble trusting people in that particular institution. I respect the work of nuns like Sister Joan Chittister and Sister Simone Campbell. They have done a lot of work for human rights and are feminist. But I do not understand how they can remain Catholic.