Pope Francis entered his 80th year on Thursday amid hopes among his critics that it will be his last at least as pope.
While Francis remains enormously popular among most rank-and-file Catholics, a small but vocal group of conservatives who have never much cared for his radical agenda have grown increasingly strident in criticizing the pope now that there is little doubt left about his priorities.
They have taken aim at the just-concluded synod on family issues, where the divisive issue of Communion for the civilly remarried took center stage.
They have raised alarm at Francis' call for a more decentralized church and his loosening of the Vatican's marriage annulment process.
To put it more simply: "Many people in the Vatican want Francis dead," said Francesca Chaouqui, the woman at the heart of a leaks scandal currently convulsing Francis' Vatican.
