So far, it’s been a tough football season for the New Orleans Saints, who have suffered seven consecutive losses and also lost their head coach. But now, at least, they have the thoughts and prayers of Pope Francis behind them.
The Washington Post notes that the pope has been intently blessing the Saints, likely without meaning to do so.
For the past week, he—or whoever runs his X account— has been appending #Saints to many @Pontifex posts, apparently unaware that he’s using the go-to hashtag for the NFL team’s fans, which automatically generates a fleur-de-lis symbol.
On November 1, for example, the pope wrote that the #Saints are “incapable of being indifferent to the needs of their neighbour. They bear witness to the paths of light that we too can trod.”
“The #Saints are precious pearls and are always living and relevant because they provide a fascinating commentary on the Gospel,” the pope observed on Tuesday.
“We cannot become #Saints with a frown,” he advised on Thursday. “We must have joyful hearts that remain open to hope.” This is basically the premise of Friday Night Lights, an early aughts primetime soap about high school football—clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose—as I’m sure the pope will be aware.
Even if he’s not, the Saints could probably use any help the pope can supply, given that they’re not having a very successful season so far. As the Post reports, they’ve suffered a string of defeats against just two early wins, and on Monday, the team’s general manager fired head coach Dennis Allen.
Whether or not @Pontifex is aware of all that is presently unclear, but from his lips to the Saints’ social media manager’s ears. “Amen,” the football team’s account tweeted Thursday.
“Thank you for your prayers, Pontiff,” they wrote on Tuesday. “We need them.”
If the pope somehow doesn’t know he’s been tagging the Saints, he probably should, given that he’s done it before. October 13, 2019, found him giving “thanks to the Lord for our new #Saints,” which the team noticed and appreciated.
Blessings!
