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The Vatican said in a statement Monday that Francis had reaffirmed the doctrinal evaluation and criticism of U.S. nuns made last year by the Holy See under his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI. The assessment accused the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, an organization that represents most U.S. female Catholic orders, of promoting "radical feminist themes" and ignoring the Vatican's hard line on same-sex marriage and abortion.

At the time, the Vatican dispatched an archbishop to rewrite the group's statutes and set up reeducation programs to bring nuns back into line, alleging that leaders of U.S. orders had challenged the church's teachings on women's ordination and ministry to homosexuals.

The move was denounced by Pat Farrell, then the head of the organization, as creating "pain and scandal." Protest vigils were held outside churches, and a petition attacking the Vatican's decision attracted 50,000 signatures.

The Leadership Conference of Women Religious represents about 57,000 sisters, or 80% of U.S. nuns.

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Kenneth Briggs, the author of a book about the Vatican's clash with U.S. nuns, said Francis' backing of the Holy See's unyielding line was "a major blow" to prospects for more dialogue.

"It seems like the Vatican has put a more appealing salesman in charge of the same old product," Briggs said.

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