To kiss pope's hand - or not - enters the Catholic culture wars

On Monday, when Pope Francis visited a Catholic shrine in Loreto, he repeatedly withdrew his right hand as a long line of people bowed and tried to kiss the ring on it. Rorate Caeli, a website read by Catholic traditionalists, Tweeted: "Francis, If you don't want to be the Vicar of Christ, then get out of there!" Papal biographer Austen Ivereigh, a supporter of Francis, countered by Tweeting: "He's making sure that they engage with him, not treat him like a sacred relic. Some Vatican watchers noted that even former Pope Benedict, a hero to nostalgic conservatives, and his predecessor John Paul, did not like having their hands kissed - at least not by long lines of people, for the sake of expediency.

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