The Pope, God's locum, Our Lord, is someone I'd <br />Liken to an eternal Father, like Our Eternal Father. <br />That is, he doesn't die, or, sure he dies, but rather, <br />To be precise, he only really dies on the outside. <br /> <br />Because when his body leaves off being a governor, <br />His soul, still stuck in its ancient honour, <br />Doesn't go to paradise or hell - it ain't a goner - <br />But passes straight into the body of his successor. <br /> <br />In this way, he can undergo slight changes in his brain, <br />His stomach, ears, nose, skin, mouth or eyes; <br />But the Pope, inasmuch as he's a Pope, stays the same. <br /> <br />An that's the reason why every body fated to receive <br />That kind of dignity, falls down from the sky <br />Soulless, with nothing else but the power to breathe.<br /><br />Giuseppe Gioacchino Belli<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/from-hand-to-hand/
