I do have a lot of sympathy for His Holiness the Pope but this incident , or “bad luck” as the Pontiff calls it, only shows that the wisest of men let glaring chinks in their judgment show up rather poorly now and then…
Firstly , he put himself at risk sneaking out into the streets of Rome in the times of Covid and Omicron.
He was putting the shopkeepers, his old friends, at grave risk since they surely would’ve have knelt before him, taken his hands and reverentially kissed them.
Who are these friends of the Pope anyway that he felt compelled he must pay a social but private visit at such considerable risk to himself and to them?
Thirdly, the Pope raises eyebrows too, doesn’t he? … How often does His Holiness similarly give the slip to his personal security guards and furtively go out playing truant, incommunicado and underground, into nondescript public spaces and for what other purposes than to buy classical music CDs?
Doesn’t someone in the Vatican staff know that the finest collection of classical music is available today online for downloading as compact playlists from the internet? The Pope could easily have been provided with whatever excellent selections he desired. Why go out in the middle of the night to buy a deck of CDs?
The Pope now thinks he has managed to deftly damage-control the whole incident by simply laughing and dismissing it off as just a “joke” …. ! But then has he asked himself if the rest of the Christian and non-Christian world too finds it equally funny that their supreme spiritual leader is caught sort of gallivanting around the streets of Rome under cover of night … and when caught out by patrolling, prowling paparazzi, awkwardly passes it all of … er .. as “just dropping in on my old pals to catch some fresh air”?
Your Holiness, I for one am at a complete loss to know what to make of this incident? Maybe you gave in to the temptation of Carpe Diem but have now ended up confessing Mea Culpa?
https://vinepair.com/booze-news/pope-francis-declares-wine-is-a-necessity/?amp
QUOTE; “Pope Francis is not only breaking down barriers between nations, promoting gender equality and encouraging interfaith love and peace, he is also very, very cool.
“His Holiness has twitter with over 7.2 Million followers and has touted the power of the internet for joining the people of the world in communication. The Pope is truly a man of the people and if he couldn’t get any awesomer, he is known also to enjoy good wine…
His exact words were, “Water is needed to live, but wine expresses the abundance of the banquet and joy of the celebration”. UNQUOTE
So, then … I now begin to wonder myself, Mamma mia … is it all maybe then a case of In Vino Veritas ?!
Sudarshan Madabushi
A newly ordained priest at the Vatican was asked by the Pope to study the texts in the library to enhance his knowledge
of customs and rituals. Being a smart kid he told the Pope he would study the original scripts and not the transcriptions as a mistake was possible in transcribing the original texts . The Pope agreed and the young priest disappeared into the bowels
of the Vatican. He did not surface for a week which worried the Pope who then went looking for him. He found him a corner with an open script in his lap and moaning and crying . The Pope asked him what the matter was. Through sobs the young priest said he was going thru the original script on how the priestly class should live and serve the faithful when he came across the sentence that the clergy should lead a celebrated life but in the transcription of the text someone long ago had misspelt celebrated as celibate and the clergy for all time was doomed to lead a life of celibacy! AMEN!
😆😁…. Now that’s a joke that we must celebrate !