Pope Francis to meet prominent comedians in the Vatican
By Deborah Castellano Lubov
Pope Francis will meet with famous comedians in the Vatican on Friday, 14 June, the Holy See Press Office announced on Saturday.
The audience, jointly organized by the Vatican's Dicastery for Culture and Education and Dicastery for Communication, with more than 100 entertainers will take place in the Apostolic Palace at 8:30 a.m., and is intended to "establish a link" between the Catholic Church and such artists, the press release noted.
Promoting joy, peace, and hope
The upcoming meeting, it noted, aims to "celebrate the beauty of human diversity ... [and] promote a message of peace, love and solidarity". It "promises to be a moment of meaningful intercultural dialogue and sharing of joy and hope."
Household names such as Jimmy Fallon, Stephen Colbert, Conan O'Brien, Whoopi Goldberg, and Chris Rock are set to be among the comedians taking part from the United States.
Meanwhile, there will be comedians from all around the world, including from the UK and Ireland, present on Friday, with the largest group - fully two-thirds of the participants - being from Italy.
'Lord, give me a sense of humour'
The statement recalled Pope Francis during an interview with Italian TV channel TV2000 when he said that he prays daily in the words of St. Thomas More, asking the Lord to grant him a sense of humor.
The Holy Father in the past has acknowledged the power the art of comedy has to contribute to a more empathetic and sympathetic world; and had observed, during his June 2023 encounter with artists in the Sistine Chapel, that, after all, Scripture itself is rich in moments of irony.
On that occasion, the Pope likewise expressed to the artists gathered under Michelangelo's frescoes, his belief that humorists, including actors, artists, cartoonists, and writers, have "the ability to dream up new versions of the world," and often do so "with irony, which is a wonderful virtue."
UNITED STATES
1. Stephen Colbert
2. Jimmy Fallon
3. Jim Gaffigan
4. Whoopi Goldberg
5. James Martin
6. Tig Notaro
7. Chris Rock
8. Conan O’ Brien
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