The U.S. Catholic bishops are gathered in Baltimore, once again, which means that reporters are listening to waves of friendly words in public, while trying to get bishops to be candid in the tiny windows of time when they are free to meet with outsiders.

The more tense the atmosphere, the smaller the windows of open discussion. Long ago, during meetings in a hotel ballroom in Washington, D.C., several reporters (including moi) blocked the service door to the kitchen so that we could ask questions when bishops tried to slip out that back door.

The issue? Vatican efforts to discipline a bishop who was getting out of line on doctrinal issues. Back then, it was a progressive bishop who was in trouble with the pope.

Times change. Today, it’s doctrinal conservatives who are worried, since they are on the wrong side of trends in Rome. For more background, see my recent post: “Attention U.S. Catholic bishops: You are not allowed to say that this pope isn't Catholic.”

This early Associated Press report punches several crucial buttons:

BALTIMORE (AP) — Catholic leaders called for peace in a war-torn world and unity amid strife within their own clerical ranks on Tuesday, as U.S. bishops gathered in Baltimore for their annual fall meeting.

The meeting came soon after two actions by Pope Francis that illustrated the divisive challenges facing the Catholic Church – removing one of his harshest conservative critics from his role as bishop of Tyler, Texas, and releasing a document conveying a more welcoming stance to transgender people than the official positions of the U.S. bishops.

The key is that Catholics everywhere are supposed to be talking more openly, bowing to the spirit of “synodality.” That is, of course, a reference to the first major meeting of the Synod on Synodality, which featured strong efforts to prevent participants from speaking to journalists or releasing texts of speeches or remarks that were not cleared by synod leaders chosen by Pope Francis.

The AP report turned to American politics, of course, and offered this “tsk, tsk” analysis:

The bishops elected Toledo Bishop Daniel Thomas over a more prominent cultural warrior, San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone, as the new head of their committee on pro-life activities. The committee’s chair serves as the conference’s point-person in efforts against abortion, a top priority for the bishops.

Jamie Manson, head of Catholics for Choice, called it an ironic choice, given that Thomas serves in Ohio where Catholic groups “just spent more than $12 million fighting a losing battle against abortion access.” Ohio voters enshrined abortion rights by ballot amendment last week.

Manson said in a statement that “the Catholic bishops are doubling down on their losing abortion strategy through 2024.”

The bottom line: The Vatican believes that the U.S. Catholic bishops are too conservative. That’s a message that resonates, of course, with many mainstream journalists who cover politics and religion.

What news consumers need are Catholic journalists who dig deeper, reading between the lines of Day 1 USCCB remarks. I suggest reading this long, long report from The Pillar, an independent Catholic publication that is known for upsetting both liberal and conservative Catholics.

In this day and age, that means The Pillar is considered “conservative” by the mainstream press. It’s true that this publication is conservative on matters of Catholic law and doctrine and, today, that’s where the key battles are being fought.

The headline on its Day 1 report proclaimed, “In the red corner: Has Cardinal Pierre isolated himself from the US bishops?” Here is the overture:

When Archbishop Timothy Broglio began on Tuesday morning his USCCB presidential address on the state of the Church in the U.S., he quoted from scripture, urging that “whoever has ears ought to hear what the Spirit says to the Churches.”

To most of those with ears to hear, it seems clear that Broglio was talking to U.S. apostolic nuncio Cardinal Christophe Pierre — offering a pointed rebuke of Pierre’s recent comments on American Catholics and their leaders, given in an interview with American Magazine. 

Broglio’s speech, accompanied by frequent and vigorous nods from the assembly of bishops, appeared to be intended as both apologia for the Church in the United States and a kind of episcopal catharsis, for a body stung by criticism from Pierre, compounded by episcopal unease over the manner by which Bishop Joseph Strickland was recently removed from office.

Broglio’s thinly veiled rebuke seems to show Pierre has isolated himself from the American bishops to whom he’s supposed to serve as the pope’s emissary.

Here are two observations for journalists and news consumers who dig into this Pillar report.

First, it’s important to pay attention to the men who are wearing red hats, especially if Team Pope Francis selected them as cardinals.

Second, there is evidence that progressive cardinals on Team Francis and conservative American bishops (men without cardinal hats) have different reasons to be upset with Cardinal Christophe Pierre.

This is complex stuff. However, here is a key theme that looms over the meetings and, for sure, the candid discussions behind closed doors. Let’s walk through a few passages in the Pillar piece:

Since his arrival as apostolic nuncio in Washington DC, Pierre has made it his business to speak frankly to the U.S. bishops.

The cardinal’s speeches at the opening public sessions of the USCCB’s spring and autumn assemblies have become known for the gently corrective tone with which Pierre usually delivers frank but fraternal encouragement for the U.S. bishops, usually on some point of papal priority.

In other words: “Yo, U.S. bishops, Pope Francis wants you to know ….” That leads us to:

In an America Magazine interview earlier this month, Pierre lamented that the Church in the U.S. does not reflect the apostolic vigor he sees in South and Central America, and said that the U.S. Church has much to learn on evangelization. 

Speaking of the U.S, Pierre said that “over 200 years, we have built fantastic church schools, hospitals, parishes, and churches. But almost nobody comes,” he said. “Pope Francis said, ‘Go out of the church.’ But we still remain in the church. Why?”

Pierre went on to say he is “not sure” he’s seen any real change in the Church in the United States during his tenure, though society has changed a great deal. 

As a result, the cardinal claimed that “some priests and religious and bishops [...] are terribly against Francis, as if he was the scapegoat for all the failures of the Church or of society.” 

Pierre lamented that “most of the young priests today dream about wearing the cassock and celebrating Mass in the traditional [pre-Vatican II] way,” and accused them of shying away from the work of evangelization, seeking comfort and security in an institutionalist approach to the Church and her liturgy.

As for the bishops, the cardinal said “I think all of them, in some way, feel they have to evangelize, but they don’t always find the ways to do so.”

OK, anyone who is paying attention to ANYTHING knows that the Jesuit pope is not fond of traditional forms of Catholic worship and the symbols that go with it. For background, read this Crux report from a few months ago: “Pope Francis tells priests to stop wearing ‘grandma’s lace’ at Mass.”

But here is what is strange about the Pierre remarks, on behalf of Pope Francis.

Catholicism in South and Central America is in decline, as opposed to displaying demographics suggesting evangelism and a state of “apostolic vigor.” See this Axios report from last year: “The decline of Catholicism in Latin America.” Here’s the blunt lede:

Catholicism is losing its grip in Latin America as the percentage of people who say they identify as evangelical has grown, data shows.

Meanwhile, Catholic life in the United States shows signs of modest growth — especially in (a) zip codes that are home to Latino Catholics and (b) the kinds of Sunbelt Catholic communities that, well, contain lots of parishes that seek and welcome converts and are frequently led by doctrinally conservative bishops.

Read between the lines of this Catholic News Agency summary :

The Catholic population in the United States has grown by about 2 million people in 10 years. With nearly 62 million people, it continues to constitute the largest religious body in 36 U.S. states, according to the latest religion-focused survey of America’s religious congregations.

Over the last decade, many Catholics, the survey found, have moved to the South.

“Perhaps the most notable changes were by region,” Clifford Grammich, a political scientist involved in the U.S. Religion Census, told CNA Dec. 5. “Fifty years ago, 71% of U.S. Catholics were in the Northeast and Midwest; in 2020, 45% were. And the South now has more Catholics than any other region. I was surprised to see there are now more Catholics than Southern Baptists in Missouri and Virginia.”

Where is Catholicism in decline in the United States?

Well, that would be places like Chicago and Newark, the kinds of cities where the cardinals are enthusiastic about the doctrinal initiatives popular with Team Francis.

Stay tuned. Maybe some brave U.S. bishops — on the left or the right — will hold press conferences and speak clearly?

Also, note this fiery X thread from a well-known female Catholic scribe.

FIRST IMAGE: Synod on Synodality graphic from the website of the Church Life Journal at the University of Notre Dame.