Cities compared for belief, and its absence

Pope Francis has said that he believes his pontificate will be short and that Benedict XVI has opened a door to an era of emeritus popes. “I have the feeling that my pontificate will be brief: four or five years; I do not know, even two or three,” Francis said in an interview with the Mexican Televisa channel.
“It is a vague sensation. Maybe it’s like the psychology of the gambler who convinces himself he will lose so he won’t be disappointed and if he wins, is happy.”

He added that Pope Emeritus Benedict, who resigned in 2013, should be regarded not as an exception, but as an “institution”.

Asked about the violence and crime devastating Mexican society the Pope said that Mexicans are being punished by the devil for their devotion to the Virgin of Guadalupe. “I think the devil has not forgiven Mexico for Mary having shown her son there,” he said. “In other words, Mexico is privileged by martyrdom, because it has recognised and defended its mother.” Francis added that even atheists “feel they are her children”.

Last month, the Pope raised hackles in Mexico when he said he hoped that Argentina could avoid “Mexicanisation” as it fights to prevent the rise of drugs gangs. “Clearly this is a technical term,” he said last week. “It has nothing to do with Mexico’s dignity.”