Pope Francis' positive thinking

Pope Francis is the first pontiff to come from the Society of Jesus, or the Jesuits, a religious order not known for an unquestioning attitude towards central authority or conservative tradition. He has taken charge of an institution facing unprecedented questioning of its authority on moral issues. His early utterances have therefore been eagerly scrutinised for clues to the nature of his leadership of the more than 1.1 billion Catholics worldwide. A 12,000-word interview with an Italian Jesuit magazine, since widely published, gives the fullest account yet of his vision for the church.

He warns that the church's moral edifice might "fall like a house of cards" if it does not balance its obsession with divisive rules about abortion, gays and contraception with the need to make the church a merciful, more welcoming place for all.

The interview amplifies his groundbreaking remark two months ago that softened his predecessor Benedict XVI's line on homosexuals - "If a person is gay and seeks God and has goodwill, who am I to judge him?"

This may be encouraging to critics of the priorities of Benedict and John Paul II, but not to conservative bishops, including some in the US, who have voiced dismay that Francis has not enforced church teaching on these three issues.

Nonetheless, he has articulated a struggle to reconcile doctrine with a pluralism of human values. Pointing out that the dogmatic and moral teachings of the church were not all equivalent, he said: "The church's pastoral ministry cannot be obsessed with the transmission of a disjointed multitude of doctrines ... We have to find a new balance ... The church has sometimes locked itself up in small-minded rules."

These are candid observations. Hopefully they will lead to constructive debate. The 76-year-old Argentinian pope is still widely regarded as a conservative, if not doctrinaire. That credential could be a positive factor in broadening inclusiveness and reversing a decline in the church's active following.