Pope With the Humble Touch Is Firm in Reshaping the Vatican

Pope Francis greeted cardinals on Dec. 21 at a hall in the Apostolic Palace of the Vatican, where he addressed church officials.
POOL PHOTO BY CLAUDIO PERI
By JASON HOROWITZ and JIM YARDLEY
January 13, 2014
VATICAN CITY — Less than a year into his papacy, Pope Francis has raised expectations among the world's one billion Roman Catholics that change is coming. He has already transformed the tone of the papacy, confessing himself a sinner, declaring "Who am I to judge?" when asked about gays, and kneeling to wash the feet of inmates, including Muslims.

Less apparent, if equally significant for the future of the church, is how Francis has taken on a Vatican bureaucracy so plagued by intrigue and inertia that it contributed, numerous church officials now believe, to the historic resignation of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, last February.

Francis' reign may not ultimately affect centuries-old church doctrine, but it is already reshaping the way the church is run and who is running it. Francis is steadily replacing traditionalists with moderates as the church prepares for a debate about the role of far-flung bishops in Vatican decision-making and a broad discussion on the family that could touch on delicate issues such as homosexuality and divorce.

In St. Peter's Basilica on New Year's Eve, Francis, dressed in golden robes, hinted at the major changes he had already set in motion. "What happened this year?" he asked. "What is happening, and what will happen?"
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