The Pope’s popularity in Italy has dropped from 88 percent in 2013 to 71 percent in 2018.
But you’d be mistaken to think that the decline has to do with Archbishop Viganò’s charge that Francis had covered-up for Cardinal McCarrick.
The poll was taken before that story broke.
According to the poll’s author, much of the dissatisfaction with the pontiff has to do with his welcoming approach toward migrants.
Even before Viganò’s bombshell accusation, Italians were already distancing themselves from the Vatican.
In a sense, the Catholic Church in Italy set itself up for rejection.
In the months leading up to the March election, it doubled down on its policy of greater openness to immigrants whether legal or illegal.
In a dozen different ways, Church leaders let it be known that refusal to welcome the migrant was, in effect, a rejection of Christ.
Yet voters ignored the Church and voted in large numbers for the anti-immigration parties. And there is no sign that they’ve regretted their choice.
According to recent polls, many practicing Catholics prefer the hardline immigration policies of the new Interior Minister, Matteo Salvini, to those of Pope Francis.
As an Ipsos poll reveals, support for Salvini doubled in four months among Catholics who attend Mass at least once a week.
The director of the Ipsos Research Institute said, “There is a clear difference between a significant part of Catholic opinion and the hierarchy of the Church.”
A moment’s thought will reveal that Catholics are not only rejecting the hierarchy’s policy on immigration, but also its policy on Islam.
Italians and other Europeans are not terribly concerned about immigrants from Poland, South America, India, and the Philippines.
They’re worried about immigrants from Muslim countries.
With good reason.
Despite numerous attempts to keep it quiet, it’s no secret anymore that the influx of Muslim migrants into Europe has resulted in a giant crime wave.
And the situation in Italy is not nearly as bad as it is in other countries such as Germany, France, Belgium, England, and Sweden.
In many parts of Europe, stabbings, rapes, acid attacks, and pitched battles between police and migrant gangs are daily occurrences.
One can surmise, therefore, that Italy is not the only country where respect for the Church has fallen sharply.Continue reading
- Image: Huffington Post