Before flying to the Apulia region of southern Italy to meet world leaders at the Group of 7 summit, the Pope Francisco organized a very different audience this Friday morning in the Vatican in which the importance of humor was celebrated. The pontiff welcomed more than 100 comedians from 15 countries, including American celebrities Whoopi Goldberg, Jimmy Fallon, Chris Rock, Stephen Colbert and Conan O’Brienand Argentina Malena Guinzburg.
“In the midst of so much gloomy news, immersed as we are in many social and even personal emergencies, you have the power to spread peace and smiles”Francisco commented. “You bring people together, because laughter is contagious,” he continued, jokingly asking: “Please pray for me: for, not against!”
Francis noted that in creation, “divine wisdom practiced your art for the benefit of none other than God himself, the first spectator of history,” God delighting in the works he had made. He also added: “Remember this: When you manage to bring intelligent smiles to the lips of a single spectator, you also make God smile”.
Francis also said it was okay to “laugh at God” in the same way that “we play and joke with the people we love.” After delivering his speech, the Argentine pontiff greeted all the comedians individually, sharing laughter and jokes with some of them. “It was great, it was very fast and really loving, and it made me happy,” Goldberg said afterward.
O’Brien noted that the Pope “spoke in Italian, so I’m not really sure what was said.” “Being in that room and with all my fellow comedians, some of whom have been good friends of mine for many years, in that environment, was quite strange,” added the television presenter. “We were all thinking: how did this happen? Why are we here and when are they going to kick us out?”
Colbert admitted that his Italian “is really bad, I would like to speak it better.” But he managed to remind the Pope that he had made the audiobook for his memoirs. “It was wonderful, I will never forget it,” he joked.
The meeting aimed to “celebrate the beauty of human diversity and promote a message of peace, love and solidarity, and promises to be a moment of intercultural dialogue and exchange of joy and hope,” the Holy See said in a statement.
The Supreme Pontiff referred to the “notable impact that the art of comedy has on the world of contemporary culture. Through humorous talent and the unifying value of laughter, unique reflections on the human condition and the historical situation are offered today.”
And it is not the first time that the Pope Francisco recognizes the work of artists, on one occasion expressing that “comedians – actors, artists, caricaturists, writers – have the ability to dream new versions of the world,” and that “they often do so with irony, which is a virtue.” wonderful”.
AP Source
[Fotos: Vatican Media/Handout via REUTERS]
