I've been told (three times apparently) that if I want to be a true Catholic I should be guided by the Magisterium rather than by Pope Francis. I was brought up a Catholic but until coming to this message board I never heard of the Magisterium. Everyone has heard of the Pope, but I have asked a few friends who were also brought up Catholic and none of them have heard of the Magisterium.

So what exactly is it? I read a bit about it on Wikipedia but there are a lot of things Wikipedia does not inform me about the Magisterium.

What exactly is the Magisterium?

Who is in the Magisterium?

How many are in the Magisterium?

Who appoints them to be in the Magisterium?

When was the last time the Magisterium issued guidance about some Catholic teaching?

Is the Magisterium currently in agreement with Pope Francis about everything or has the Magisterium disagreed with Pope Francis about anything?

If the Magisterium and the Pope disagree about the interpretation of some Catholic teaching, who is in a position to judge whether or not the Pope or the Magisterium is correct when it's a matter of interpretation?

https://www.ewtn.com/faith/teachings/chura4.htm

“The day to day teaching of the Church throughout the world, when the Bishops are in union with each other and with the Pope, and present something as definitive, this is infallible. (Vatican II, Lumen gentium # 25)”

I sort of think (remember my status as an outsider) that wiki could be of help here. The questions, indicating a rather extensive and fundamental lacuna in understanding, need a similarly extensive exposition.

Not my sandbox.

The Magisterium is not a group of people, it is a term that means essentially 'the teaching authority of the Church', the Magisterium is not a 'who' it's a 'what'.

It's a start.

Pope Francis has said some interesting things about (1) gay people, and (2) about divorced and remarried Catholics, and (3) about cohabiting couples, and (4) about capital punishment, for example, but some Catholics say he has caused confusion, or has been misreported, or that he's wrong. What is the clear and correct teaching of the Magisterium on these four issues, or where can I find it.

I think you know darn well what the Church teaches on all of these issues, and you have known for a very long time, you just want to believe that these teachings are 'unclear' because you want to use the pretext of a lack of clarity as an excuse for rejecting it.

I also believe that you already know where you can find the teachings of the Church, not least of which because we have answered this question several times already, in several different threads, going back months.

The way that you regurgitate the same 'questions' over and over again, pretending that none of the previous answers you have been given ever happened and that none of the previous conversations we have had on the question ever took place, is not a very honest method of engagement. To continue to assert that 'no one has answered your question' after several attempts to answer said questions have been provided is not an honest method of engagement.