Pope sees banner first year, but expectations More than need

VATICAN CITY — From his simple sound bites to his breaking of Vatican rules, Pope Francis has made being Catholic cool in his first year.Pope sees banner first year, but expectations high
He might not like his superstar status, but he certainly knows how to work a crowd and he has endeared himself to the public for looking out for the poor and radically shifting the church’s focus to mercy rather than
moralizing.

“Now, people are happy to say ‘Well, actually I am a Catholic,’ and sometimes they’re quite keen to let themselves be known as a Catholic,” British Cardinal Vincent Nichols said. “And I think that’s the effect of Pope Francis. There is credibility around the Catholic project.”

But not everyone is thrilled and expectations are high for his second year, with high-profile travel, Vatican reform and discussion on hot-button issues like family and sex on the agenda.

Some key moments in Francis’ first year give insight to what the future may hold for the 1.2-billion strong Catholic Church.