Pope Francis - a candid interview - part 2

According to one cardinal who took part in the 2005 conclave which elected Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Bergoglio had received the second most votes after Joseph Ratzinger. But at the moment of the election, the Pope said that he felt “a great peace.” As they were counting the votes, “I was praying my rosary.” Pope Francis said he doesn't cry in public, but admits that there have been occasions where “I was about to cry and stopped right in time.” One of these instances, he said, occurred when he “was speaking about persecuted Christians.”

The pontiff also added that he’s not afraid of anything. He is “in God’s hands” with regard to any possible attempts against his life. He simply prays that, if it has to be, God will give him grace not to feel physical pain. Pope Francis said he says this prayer because he is a “coward” when it comes to pain. “I can manage the moral pain, but I can't manage the physical pain.” Pope Francis also said that he feels the pressures of daily life like any person who governs. And he admitted that the intensity of his duties is weighing on him. “I am pushing forward an intense rhythm of work,” as if it were the last year of school, he said.

Pope Francis also addressed problems surrounding the media's coverage of him, which he says “takes a word and uses it out of context.” The Pope said he reads only one newspaper – the Italian “La Repubblica” – but even then only for about 10 minutes. He also has not watched television in twenty-five years owing to “a promise I made to the Virgin of Mount Carmel on the night of July 15, 1990.” A supporter of the soccer team San Lorenzo, he does not watch the football matches, and he keeps himself updated on a weekly basis by a Swiss Guard. According to Pope Francis, the worst evils in the world are poverty, corruption and human trafficking. He said that he always asks people to pray for him because he “needs it. It is an internal need.” Pope Francis concluded the interview by saying that he simply wants to be remembered as a good guy.