The Vatican II reforms, for example, emerged not from a populist groundswell, but from the preferences of progressive theologians and bishops. This hierarchical approach, in which spectatorship trumps participation among the rank and file, is a major reason for indifference among ordinary Catholics today.
方济各面临的第二个潜在障碍是，与他的前任一样，他推动的是自上而下的革命。比如，梵蒂冈II改革并非爆发于民粹主义风潮，而是产生于进步论神学家和主教。这一层级方针——观众压倒芸芸众生的参与——是如今普通天主教徒如此冷漠的主要原因。