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Bergoglio ridicules the military salute

As he leaves Casa Santa Marta, Pope Bergoglio imitates the Swiss guard who gives the Pope the conventional military salute. As the pictures show, the Pope's attitude was one of joking and ridiculing the centuries-old tradition of the Swiss Guards at the Vatican, whose ranks have proved many times their fidelity to the Roman Pontiff by shedding their blood in his defense.

As Sovereign Pontiff and Head of the State, the Pope must receive the military salute. However, as an ecclesiastic, he is not supposed to respond to this salute as a military superior normally does.

To this improper response, we must add that a superior, above all if he is the Pope, should never joke with the military salute. Besides showing a lack of respect for his own dignity as the Vicar of Christ, it is highly offensive to the Swiss Guard as a body and to any military man who takes his mission seriously.

And he did it for the sole purpose of laughing and make others laugh. This is a concern quite understandable for a clown, not for a Pope.

Photos from the Internet

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Posted November 1, 2015

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