The main problem with critics and opponents of Pope Francis or of any Pope or Council is that they are unwilling to accept decisions of Church authority, which is the authority of Christ, based on faith alone. Instead, they judge each decision on doctrine or discipline, with their fallen fallible faculty of reason, and they reject whatever is contrary to their own understanding. They assume that the Pope or Council must be wrong, if what they decide does not agree with their own fallible understanding. In pride, they judge the Vicar of Christ. In pride, they judge the Bishops. In pride, they condemn whatever they do not understand and whatever their understanding finds to be an alleged error.

Faith is required by Christ to be saved. A Catholic who refuses to live by faith, and who only accepts doctrine and discipline which is in agreement with their own judgment and understanding, either does not have faith, or is refusing to live by that faith. Often the opponent of Popes and Councils has badly misunderstood doctrine, and therefore reaches the wrong conclusion by their fallen faculty of reason. In addition, these papal accusers are not willing to trust that the Holy Spirit is teaching and guiding the Church through the Popes and Bishops and Councils. They treat the decisions of the Church as if these were more likely to err than their own private judgment.

Then, they do not accept correction from other members of the Church. For they have exalted themselves as judges above the Popes, Bishops, and Councils, above the Magisterium itself.

So the main problem is not that these critics and opponents need to be given an explanation that will cause them to understand the decisions of Popes and Councils properly. Rather, the problem is that they are not willing to live by faith. They prefer to live by their own fallible faculty of reason, and their own pride-filled judgment. And so they are not correctable. They will listen to neither their fellow Catholics, nor to any Pope, Bishop, or Council. If a new Council were held to correct them, they would reject it, just as they reject past Councils.

Explanations are for the faithful, so that they will not be led astray by the bad explanations and false accusations of the papal accusers.

RLCJ