# I Found a New Word For Pope Francis...

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-found-a-new-word-for-pope-francis/731543>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [September 17, 2015, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-found-a-new-word-for-pope-francis/731543 "2015-09-17T06:49:12Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Jim\_B](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jim_b/32/4338_2.png) [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\
**Post date:** [September 17, 2015, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-found-a-new-word-for-pope-francis/731543/1 "2015-09-17T06:49:12Z")

</div>

My family and I just loved Pope John Paul II. My mother was Polish. And plus he was a study in balances. Not too liberal, not too strict.

Anyways, that was then, and this is now. And even I have to admit, on the issues at least, Pope Francis is much better. He is kind too, and compassionate.

And actually, according to my Webster’s dictionary, there is a word for that:

Avuncular

It means “like-an-uncle”.

According to my dictionary, it sometimes is negative. But I of course only mean it in all its positive connotations;).

What do the rest of you think:)?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\
**Post date:** [September 17, 2015, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-found-a-new-word-for-pope-francis/731543/2 "2015-09-17T07:11:28Z")

</div>

I don’t know about a positive word, but the more he travels around, more agnostics seem to appear. Is there a word for that?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![brovolone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a88e4f/32.png) [@brovolone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brovolone)\
**Post date:** [September 17, 2015, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-found-a-new-word-for-pope-francis/731543/3 "2015-09-17T07:27:39Z")

</div>

I think statefarmular is more fitting.  
It means “like-a-good neighbor.”

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\
**Post date:** [September 17, 2015, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-found-a-new-word-for-pope-francis/731543/4 "2015-09-17T08:43:52Z")

</div>

I think he seems less bad than other popes. He hasn’t harboured child sex offenders as far as we know and doesn’t seem outright hostile to gays. That is not a very high (low?) bar to clear though is it?

He is still leader of an organisation that does far less than it could, I’m not impressed by any church or religion that maintains a healthy bank balance and huge property portfolio. Sort of goes against one of Jesus’s main messages doesn’t it?

Come back when he joins the 21st century and I’ll give him proper praise and then ask him what took him so long.