Opus Dei is an institution of the Catholic Church whose goal is to support the Church against liberal opposition. It was founded in 1928 by the Spanish priest Escriva de Belaguer and was subordinate to the Pope. Its secular influence peaked perhaps in Spain under Francisco Franco, who appointed many of its members to his cabinet. The order quickly spread abroad, and had 95,000 lay and clerical members in 2016. The conservative Pope John Paul II promoted many of its members to positions of influence, so that it has become one of the major instruments of conservatism within the Catholic Church.