text: American bishops aren't just out of sync with Pope Francis, they're out of sync with the world around them. Pope Francis gets out in the world among the people, he gets his hands dirty, he gets hugged by children, he hears what people are saying about their real, actual lives in a challenging, often scary world. American bishops, by contrast, have turned inward  in their own self-constructed echo chamber in which no dissent from the party line is ever allowed. They have grown deaf to the world around them and choose to focus on issues about which most people care very little. They have become legends in their own minds. It's a pity they have chosen this path because a strong, healthy episcopate would be a good thing for the American Church and for the world at large. Sadly, that is not what we have.