Pope Francis is trying to reduce what he sees is the excessive idealisation and idolisation of the papacy.
“I do not see myself as something special, I am a sinner and am fallible.”
“We must not forget that the idealisation of a person is always a subliminal kind of aggression. When I am idealised, I feel attacked,” he said in conversation with the German newspaper, Die Zeit, which took place in the Vatican at the end of February.
Speaking of the spiritual crises that everyone has in their lives, Pope Francis sees such moments as part of growing and maturing in the faith.
“A faith that does not fall into crisis remains childish…I have spoken of the dark moments… and the empty moments. I also know the empty moments.”
And he offered some good spiritual advice on dealing with them: “You cannot grow without crises in human life.”
Die Zeit asked Pope Francis about the appearance of posters in Rome accusing him of not being merciful toward his perceived enemies.
The pope laughed and noted that the posters were in the Roman dialect, the romanaccio that he describes ruefully as “beautiful.”
He admitted that he prays every day for the ability to laugh, including a prayer by St. Thomas More to be granted a sense of humour.
The pope says the prayer every day and has recommended it to the members of the Roman Curia:
Prayer for Good Humor
by St. Thomas More
Grant me, O Lord, good digestion, and also something to digest.
Grant me a healthy body, and the necessary good humor to maintain it.
Grant me a simple soul that knows to treasure all that is good
and that doesn’t frighten easily at the sight of evil,
but rather finds the means to put things back in their place.
Give me a soul that knows not boredom, grumblings, sighs and laments,
nor excess of stress, because of that obstructing thing called “I.”
Grant me, O Lord, a sense of good humour.
Allow me the grace to be able to take a joke to discover in life a bit of joy,
and to be able to share it with others.
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