In this episode of The Catholic Bookworm, Kiki Latimer interviews Pedro Gabriel on his book Rigidity: Faithfulness or Heterodoxy? (May 17, 2024) “Why is Pope Francis always criticizing faithful Catholics?” is an oft-repeated question whenever the Holy Father makes one of his usual invectives against religious rigidity. Francis has indeed made such denunciations a hallmark of his pontificate. But what does he mean by “rigidity”? Is he truly attacking faithful Catholics? Is he promoting moral and religious laxity? In this book, Pedro Gabriel aims at clarifying Pope Francis’ teachings on rigidity, by relating them with certain keywords emerging repeatedly in his interventions. He also seeks to falsify the idea that a Catholic is faithful by being rigid, by comprehensively exploring precedents in Church history where the rigid course of action did not always prevent the faithful from falling into heterodoxy. Finally, Gabriel explains how eschewing rigidity does not necessarily entail the opposite extreme of laxism. Rigidity: Faithfulness or Heterodoxy by Pedro Gabriel | En Route Books and Media