Last week, a viral video circulated on social media showing Pope Francis slapping the hand of a woman who yanked his arm as he walked through a crowd in St. Peter’s Square. On “Inside the Vatican” this week, Gerry and I explain what happened and discuss the pope’s apology for losing his patience.

Then, we turn to the growing tensions between the United States and Iran following the assassination of Iranian General Quasem Suleimani. Without mentioning the two nations directly, Pope Francis called for “all parties to fan the flame of dialogue and self-control.” How much of a difference can the Vatican make in this situation? Gerry takes us back to 2003 and explains what happened when Pope John Paul II asked President George H.W. Bush not to invade Iraq.

Finally, “The Two Popes” has made a splash on Netflix and at the Vatican, but what’s fact and what’s fiction in the new movie? Gerry and I break down which parts of the movie are true, and which are simply “inspired by true events.”

 

Links from the show:

• The papal hand slap divides Catholics and the media
• Pope Francis begins New Year with apology for hand slap, prayers for peace
• Pope Francis prays for dialogue as tensions mount between the U.S. and Iran
• Catholic leaders speak out as tensions escalate between the U.S. and Iran
• ‘The Two Popes’: What’s fact and what’s fiction?
• Jesuitical | What’s it like to play Pope Francis? An interview with Jonathan Pryce on ‘The Two Popes’

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