I guess I’ve always leaned more towards #2
Nothing personal...just a breakdown of the situation...
This one means that you, in fact, are the Pope, as you actually decide what you can and cannot obey, which is no kind of obedience worthy of the name. In reality, of course, this is all just a ploy, as such people never actually obey (or even really pay attention to) what is being said. How does that seem remotely Catholic? What is the point of having a Church or supposedly-infallible leader at all? This is like a warm, cozy blanket to make people feel better in response to an unfathomably sad and difficult situation -- but it is NOT Catholicism.