The irrational "hope" in Francis seems to give proof of a mythical desire for a messiah and the inevitable crash of disappointment. The main problem with this is that we seem to have a childish notion of "messiah" - someone who will take away all of our questions and make our life comfortable. A kind of scapegoat?  
Francis' essential gift is a restoration of conscience to the individual and a challenge to community. For most of us this is a disappointment rather than an opportunity. We simply don't want to "pick-up" that cross, we want someone else to do it and we will follow - maybe.