Pope Francis' 5 Most-Controversial Comments

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor

Pope Francis has been head of the 1 billion-member Roman Catholic Church for about five years. During that time, he's periodically garnered headlines for his statements on a host of issues.

More often than not, however, the pontiff's remarks have been misinterpreted by mainstream media outlets, bloggers, and political activists who view Francis as a change-agent within the Church.

Here are five times when Francis has made statements that Catholic writers or Vatican officials subsequently had to clarify.

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