From The Guardian-And then there is the parochial news: Vincent Nichols, the archbishop of Westminster, has finally got his hat. This is in part a reward for loyalty and competence but it will also strengthen his hand in the coming struggles within the English Catholic church. Nichols has been attacked by a traditionalist minority for his tolerant presentation of church teachings and his lack of enthusiasm for the theatrical approach to liturgy. Like the rest of his clergy, he was not at all keen on the ordinariate, Pope Benedict's scheme to attract Anglican clergy who wanted to escape from women priests. There is no sign that Francis has any interest in that group at all.
But Nichols will soon face a real challenge: the church is consulting its members on what they think of such matters as the ban on birth control and the exclusion of remarried couples from communion. We actually already know what most English Catholics think of these teachings: they think they are nonsense and ignore them. But official questionnaires, such as are going the rounds of English parishes now, make the policy of silent compromise much harder. If the laity find their opinions have been solicited, and then once more ignored, this will weaken the church still more.
More here-
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2014/jan/13/pope-francis-new-cardinals-rebalancing
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