During its long history, the Catholic Church has been subject to criticism regarding various beliefs and practices. Within the church, this often involves opposition or support for practices associated with traditionalist Catholicism. In the past, different interpretations of scripture and various other critiques contributed to schisms such as the schism with the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Protestant Reformation. The Catholic Church has also been criticized for some of its historical actions, such as the Church's promotion of the Crusades, and at various times by nationalist groups who feared the influence of Catholicism in undermining their regime. Furthermore, the Catholic Church has been criticized for not practicing ordination of women to the priesthood, its handling of incidents of sexual abuse, and various inter-faith interactions.
Mass of Paul VI
Since 1970, the Mass has been celebrated in the local language of where it is celebrated, and the Mass in Latin less frequently. A minority of Catholics prefer the Mass to be celebrated in Latin, and eschew celebrations of the Mass of Paul VI. In 2007, Pope Benedict XVI loosened some restrictions on use of the Latin Mass with the aim of healing the rift that had come about between advocates of the Novus Ordo Mass and advocates of the Tridentine Mass. Pope Francis rescinded many of the provisions of Summorum Pontificum with the promulgation of Traditionis custodes in 2021.
Ordination of women and the Catholic Church
The teaching of the Catholic Church on ordination, as expressed in the Code of Canon Law, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and the apostolic letter Ordinatio sacerdotalis, is that "only a baptized man validly receives sacred ordination". According to Roman Catholic thinking, the priest is acting 'in persona Christi' (that is, in the Person of Christ). In 1979, Sister Theresa Kane, then president of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, challenged Pope John Paul II from the podium at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.