Pope Replaces Conservative Cardinal

Let’s see if anybody notices. On Monday, Pope Francis continued to rock the boat in the Catholic Church by removing an outspoken American cardinal who was a staunch critic of abortion and same-sex marriage, and appointed another American in his place. The removal of Cardinal Raymond L. Burke from the Congregation for Bishops is being seen as a move that means Francis is willing to go beyond just a change in rhetoric to make the church more inclusive. “He is saying that you don’t need to be a conservative to become a bishop,” one expert told The New York Times. Burke recently gave an interview in which he aired his disagreements over the reduced focus on abortion and same-sex marriage, saying, “We can never talk enough about that.”