His Holiness needs a stiff drink.
A video on social media shows Pope Francis greeting and joking with a crowd of people in St. Peter’s Square. Someone behind the camera – reported to be a Mexican seminarian – thanks the pontiff for greeting the audience despite his well-documented knee pain. The pope, listening with a straight face, then told the crowd his latest idea for pain relief.
“Do you know what I need for my knee?” the pope responded, breaking into a smile. “Some tequila!”
POPE FRANCIS SEEN PUBLICLY IN WHEELCHAIR FOR FIRST TIME, CITING KNEE PAIN
The pontiff began being escorted via wheelchair to his appearances this month – the first time he’s needed such support since his surgery in 2021.
Last July, the pope underwent surgery on his colon and was hospitalized for almost two weeks. Since the operation, the pontiff has regularly complained of knee pain and other side effects that make mobility and physical exertion difficult. Pope Francis has previously opted to sit when possible instead standing for prolonged periods of time.
On Easter Sunday, the pope participated in a service at the Vatican and was able to walk the long aisle to his seat by using an attendant as support.
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Pope Francis is not the only pontiff to enjoy a couple drinks.
The retired Pope Benedict XVI (R) and the premier of the state of Bavaria, Horst Seehofer (CSU), drink a glass of beer in the Vatican Garden in Vatican City, April 17, 2017. Benedict’s private secretary Georg Gaenswein stands behind the two. (Photo by Lena Klimkeit/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI occasionally drank alcohol at public celebrations, most famously on his 90th birthday. The pontiff celebrated nine decades on Earth with the Bavarian premier of state Horst Seehofer over a mug of beer.