Even Pope Francis has to deal with an over-enamored fan from time to time.
Such a thing is exactly what went down during a recent crowd greeting in St. Peter's Square. As footage of the moment shows, Pope Francis was on his way to a Vatican City nativity scene when a woman from the crowd reached out and seemingly attempted to pull Pope Francis in. A brief hand-centered back-and-forth ensued, ultimately leading to Pope Francis slapping the woman's hand away.
During an address on Wednesday, Pope Francis apologized for his reaction, citing it as an example of losing one's patience.
"His salvation is not magical, but it is a 'patient' salvation, that is, it involves the patience of love, which takes on wickedness and removes its power," he said. "The patience of love: love makes us patient. We often lose patience. So do I. And I apologize for yesterday's bad example." During the same address, he also called on humankind to begin the new year as a journey of "hope and peace."
In a previous Christmas Day message, Pope Francis called on widespread support of refugees and pointed to the holiday as a reminder of the judgment-free love he believes is offered by a higher power.
"God does not love you because you think and act the right way," he said at the time. "He loves you, plain and simple. His love is unconditional; it does not depend on you."
