Who Articulates the "Catholic Position?" It's Not Always the Pope

There are wealthy right-wing Catholics who are replacing, or trying to replace, the Pope as the voice of the denomination. These self-righteous fat cats own news outlets, hold their own conferences where issues are articulated and claim to hold the most legitimate Catholic view. One of these is the now defrocked head of "Priests for Life," Frank Pavone.

I can't begin to unravel all the organizations who function under the brand of the Catholic denomination. Some of these, like Priests for Life, are outside the church umbrella with their own source of funding. There are countless Jesuit and Sisters groups that seem to have their own funding and causes but fall more under the denomination's umbrella. 

The groups I think have the most influence are ones with lots of money but are outside church authority. I would guess that at this moment there are full time employees of these groups traveling the world talking to Cardinals. They have in mind certain individuals they want to be the next Pope and are campaigning now anticipating the death of Pope Francis. 

One example of a freewheeling independent enterprise trying to guide the Catholic church away from its present path and toward another is headed by a man named Tom Monaghan. He founded and later sold the Dominos pizza chain. He is listed on celebrity net worth at about $600 million. 

Monaghan hates abortions and birth control. He came up with the idea of a communications enterprise and a university which would crank out his right-wing religious ideas. The communications operation is Ava Maria radio, etc., and the University, Ava Maria University. The university was to be free of all birth control. It was eventually located in Florida and was to become large with an adjoining large city. The University is now at only 1,000 students. The plan was to be 5,000 students before the year 2020. It charges $28,000 per year in tuition. The town was planned to be 15,000 people. It is at 6,000. It is by the everglades. There is so much spraying for mosquitos the insecticide in its water is above recommended levels.  All of this was to bend the trajectory of the Roman church. If Monaghan has had any success in influencing Rome I'm not aware of it. I suspect there are several other super wealthy Catholics trying to do something similar.

Money, technology and whacko religious ideas are alive and well. We don't know how much influence they have on the Catholic or any other denomination.