Under Pope Francis, the Church is now “openly ruled by an individual rather than by the authority of Scripture alone or even its own dictates of tradition plus Scripture,” a Vatican adviser has said.

In an admiring portrait of the Pope, Fr Thomas Rosica wrote that Francis “breaks Catholic traditions whenever he wants” because he is “free from disordered attachments”.

Fr Rosica, a Canadian priest and media advisor to the Vatican, was writing on the website of Salt & Light Catholic Media Foundation, of which he is CEO.