Pope ‘badly advised’ in remarks to bishops

MEXICO’S MAIN archdiocese has taken the unusual step of challenging Pope Francis on his harsh words to local bishops during his visit in mid-February, writes James Roberts.

The Pope told local bishops not to be career-minded or self-important. “We do not need ‘princes’, but rather a community of the Lord’s witnesses,” he said.

An editorial published last Sunday on the website of the archdiocese of Mexico City, whose archbishop is Norberto Rivera Carrera, said: “The Mexican bishops have been accompanying the suffering, downtrodden people, devoting their lives to others and not living like ‘princes’,” and suggested the Pope had been “badly advised”.