Vance and Francis: divergent values but shared ideas

There appears to be an ideological divide between Vance and Francis, but the number of points in which their views converge "are still quite numerous", said Francois Mabille, director of the Geopolitical Observatory of Religion at the Institute of International and Strategic Relations (IRIS) in Paris. One bone of contention between the two would be Vance's ties to the conservative fringe of the U.S. Church opposed to Francis, but Mabille nonetheless sees areas of common ground, such as on issues including the resolution of the conflict in Ukraine. The pope, for his part, has worked since his election in 2013 to open the Church to women, whom he has promoted to positions of responsibility at the Vatican, and to homosexuals, whose couples can now be blessed.