The majority of the faithful in China - 6 million Catholics - have refused to join the communist pseudo-church. (Sketch by Tess Mullins)

Jorge Mario Bergoglio likes to remind us that God is a God of surprises. I’ll say. The only thing that would have been more surprising than these last five years’ being the papal equivalent of Kingda Ka is if I had somewhere discovered a herd of wildebeests able to speak ancient Sumerian. Day after day, heresy after heresy… I confess, Dear Reader—during the Reign of Bergoglio, I have been powerfully surprised.

But let us not be stingy. We must give credit where credit is due. There is a lot, after all, for which we might thank His Holiness. This half-decade of reaching for the theological Dramamine has brought with it plenty of opportunities to think through some unexpected questions.