Stephen Schneck , director, Institute for Policy Research and Catholic Studies, commented to Catholic News Service on the two year anniversary of Pope Francis's pontificate and the "Francis Effect." See below.
From: Catholic News Service (via St. Louis Review) Date: March 11, 2015 Author: Mark Pattison
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"Pope Francis has transformed the public perception of the Church that had been seen as "judgmental, shouting a big no at the world. The Church that Pope Francis portrays is humble, welcoming, open to the world," said Stephen Schneck, director of the Institute for Policy Research and Catholic Studies at the Catholic University of America in Washington D.C. "His vision imagines the Church as a field hospital ... for the spiritually wounded."
Schneck talked about the pope's upcoming encyclical on the environment and "how much it's being dreaded in some quarters." Already, he said, there's been "a litany of pre-emptive strikes by conservatives even though not a word has been released," he added, citing the journal First Things and the Acton Institute among the critics.
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Read more about Schneck's expertise .