Pope Francis elicited laughter from the faithful on Wednesday after he prefaced a papal kiss with one simple request: “don’t bite!”
The hilarious moment occurred as Francis greeted pilgrims at the Vatican auditorium ahead of his weekly general audience. Following his run-in with a rather overexcited patron last week, the Holy See appeared to be taking things rather cautiously on Wednesday, keeping his distance from the burgeoning crowds.
But when a nun shouted a request at Francis “A kiss, pope!” he could not resist making the quick-witted remark, according to Reuters.
“I’ll give you a kiss, but keep calm,” he said. “Don’t bite!”
Last week’s awkward incident, which involved Francis slapping away the hand of an overkeen pilgrim, garnered huge press attention. In footage of the bizarre moment, the woman could be seen grabbing the Pope’s arm as he attempted to walk in the opposite direction, before yanking him towards her. The pope, clearly perturbed by the woman’s gesture, slapped her hand away repeatedly, freeing himself from her grasp.
He later apologized for his actions. “We lose patience many times,” he said, according to CBS News. “It happens to me too. I apologize for the bad example given yesterday.”