Pope Francis is embracing the funny…
The 87-year-old Argentine head of the Catholic Church, bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State is set to meet with Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, Chris Rock and other comedians from around the world on Friday for a special meeting.
According to the Vatican’s news site, the meeting “promises to be a moment of meaningful intercultural dialogue and sharing of joy and hope.”
Those on the guest list also include Jim Gaffigan, Whoopi Goldberg, Tig Notaro and Conan O’Brien.
Also on the list of James Martin, the Jesuit priest who was dubbed the chaplain of The Colbert Report.
Other comedians from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, France, Germany, Mexico, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Ireland and Italy will be in attendance.
In total, more than 100 guests are on the list for the papal audience.
Ian Hislop and Stephen Merchant are guests from the UK.
The Vatican noted that in an interview with an Italian TV channel, the pope said that he “prays daily in the words of St. Thomas More, asking the Lord to grant him a sense of humor.”
The meeting was organized by the Vatican’s Dicastery for Culture and Education and Dicastery for Communication, and will take place at the Apostolic Palace.
The Vatican wants to “celebrate the beauty of human diversity” and “promote a message of peace, love and solidarity,” per the Vatican’s news site.