"Lord, give humor"

Goldberg, Mittermeier, Fallon and co. with the Pope

"Lord, give me a sense of humor": Pope brings 105 famous comedians to the Vatican.

(Bild: AFP)

It sounds like a "Who's Who" of international comedy: the audience list for the "protagonists of the world of humor". 105 artists from 15 countries are expected to turn the Vatican into a stronghold of humor on Friday - and perhaps even knock the Pope off the (holy) chair with their jokes, as Kathpress reported on Wednesday. After all, according to the Vatican, Francis prays daily: "Lord, give me a sense of humor."

From the USA alone, greats such as actress Whoopi Goldberg ("Sister Act"), presenters and comedians Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon and Chris Rock are taking part. From the German-speaking world, Torsten Sträter, Annette Frier, Meltem Kaptan, Michael Mittermeier and Till Reiners as well as the Swiss Hazel Brugger have confirmed their participation. With 67 attendees, Italy is the most strongly represented country. But there are also humorists from France, Ireland, Poland, Portugal, England, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico and even from as far away as East Timor.

The beauty of human diversity
But why is the Pope bringing in all these actors, cartoonists, comedians, presenters and comedians, many of whom are more likely to attract attention with biting criticism of the Church than with pious tones? Perhaps the Vatican wants to open itself up further to art, media and society with the meeting organized by the authorities for culture and education as well as for communication - similar to the sensational performance of the Vatican at the Venice Biennale.

The aim of the meeting with the humor stars was to celebrate the beauty of human diversity and to spread a message of peace, love and solidarity, the Vatican announced. The hope was for a moment of intercultural dialog, joy and hope, it said.

Mittermeier beaten by chaplain
Torsten Sträter (57) is always up for that. The man with the cap, a Protestant Christian by birth, will be arriving directly from a visit to Macedonia, where he is working as an ambassador for the aid organization SOS Children's Villages, as his management announced on request.

Although comedian Michael Mittermeier (58) comes from predominantly Catholic Bavaria, he has a lot of critical things to say about the church. For example: the beating chaplain in his convent school, who always said afterwards: "That hurt me more than you, my son." Mittermeier announces the appointment with the Pope, including the list of participants, on Instagram with the words "Hard to believe!". In response to a user's comment asking whether "all comedians will thank the Church for several centuries of real satire", he writes: "Definitely."

"Let's not miss out"
Comedienne Hazel Brugger (30), who was recently honored with the German Cabaret Award as the "queen of comic repartee", is also promoting the date with the Pope: "We won't miss it," she and her husband Thomas Spitzer said on their joint podcast. They left it open as to whether they would be bringing their two young daughters along.

Also invited is the German-Turkish actress and comedian Meltem Kaptan (43), who won several awards for her role in the film "Rabiye Kurnaz vs George W. Bush" (2022). The actress and comedian Annette Frier (50) from "Holy Cologne" is practically the only one to reveal a connection to the church and faith: "Praying helps," she told the magazine "Chrismon". Till Reiners (39), known from the "heute-Show", was outraged by the privileges of the church; he had brought a clumsy, dead Jesus with a cross to his side.

This makes it all the more exciting to hear what they all have to say to the Pope from Argentina on Friday - and vice versa. Francis himself often takes the opportunity to joke and laugh heartily. It was only at the end of May that he invited a great humorist to World Children's Day: Comedian and Oscar winner Roberto Benigni ("Life is Beautiful") lovingly read the Holy Father the riot act on the steps of St. Peter's Basilica - like a good court jester. In doing so, he called for the Chair of St. Peter to finally be given to a woman. "People would even talk about that on the moon!" Benigni shouted to the applause in St. Peter's Square. The Pope took it in his stride, but did not change canon law for the time being. After all, according to one of his quotes, Christians can be recognized by their humour without losing their realism.

After the humor audience, Francis will travel by helicopter to the G7 summit in Apulia on Friday. There, the Pope is due to talk about artificial intelligence and meet a number of heads of state. He has already had his fun in the morning.