REGINA: What has been the reaction from intellectuals?
LAWLER: In general, intellectuals either like or dislike the book, according to their own leanings.
REGINA: And Catholics in the pews?
LAWLER: I’ve had a stronger positive reaction from “ordinary” Catholics, who tend to welcome the book because— as I said above— it helps to explain things for them. I haven’t perceived much difference between old and young readers, except that younger people have less of a tendency to think that criticism of bishops— in this case the Pope— is always a bad idea.
REGINA: What about the clergy?
LAWLER: Priests have been more cautious about saying that they enjoyed the book, but quite a few have quietly thanked me. Priests, after all, have to cope with the results of the Pope’s statements and policies; they recognize the problems that have been generated.
REGINA: Where would you say opposition to your book come from?
LAWLER: There are two different sources of opposition: Liberal Catholics tend to dislike the book because they welcome the Pope’s statements and policies. To a remarkable extent, liberal Catholics have sought to suppress criticism. I have NOT found the same sort of hostility among secular liberals; they are more willing to acknowledge that the Pope is taking the Church in a different direction.
REGINA: Interesting.
LAWLER: Some conservative Catholics dislike the book because they are offended by ANY criticism of the Holy Father. In many cases, critics have gone to great lengths to try to explain away the problems with papal statements.
REGINA: All of this of course begs the question of intent: does the Pope understand that his lack of clarity is a disruptive and divisive force?
LAWLER: Yes, although he would not put it in those terms. Pope Francis clearly understands that he is making waves— that he is disrupting things within the Church. He would no doubt say that a great deal of things should be disrupted (and probably most Catholics would agree, although we might disagree on which things to disrupt). I doubt very much that he would acknowledge the divisions that he has created. But they’re very hard to ignore. It’s been astonishing to see, on a day-to-day basis, how often the Pope uses harsh language to describe those within the Church who disagree with him.