The Pope’s popularity in the US is falling ahead of his first visit. Is his environment encyclical to blame, asks Madeleine Teahan
Is Pope Francis the most popular person in the world? Sometimes it feels that way, but with the Pontiff making his first trip to the United States this September there are signs that Americans maybe turning against him. A Gallup poll released last week suggested that Francis’s popularity has fallen dramatically in the country, down to 59 per cent from a peak of 76 per cent the year before. The poll surprised the media. After all, the most unlikely fans have lined up to praise the Holy Father in recent years, among them actress-turned-activist Jane Fonda, football legend Diego Maradona and punk rocker Patti Smith. But Joe Public loves him too, it was assumed. After all, it was not so long ago that Bloomberg Business broadcast a discussion during which serious analysts discussed whether Pope Francis was the most popular person in the world. Since his election in 2013 this is what opinion polls have consistently shown, most memorably illustrated when Time magazine named him their Person of the Year, only nine months after he was elected. Francis’s popularity subsequently grew; according to a poll conducted by Pew Research last December, a median of 60 per cent of people across the whole world had a favourable view of the Pontiff, with only 11 per cent viewing him in a negative light. The report concluded:
