When Saints Took a Turn on the Social Field
Vatican’s Twitter Slip‑Up Mixes Holy Figures with American Football
In a well‑meaning tweet, Vatican staff mistakenly paired saints with the New Orleans Saints foot‑ball team. The official English account of Pope Francis posted, “Today we give thanks to the Lord for our new #Saints. They walked by faith and now we invoke their intercession.” Inside the tweet, the hashtag was followed by a fleur‑de‑lis that’s also the logo of the football franchise.
The mix-up triggered a wave of whimsical responses from fans of the New Orleans Saints, who celebrated the pope’s basic “new saints” salute with a playful nod to their own team’s style.
- “Praise the Lord and pass the football,” one fan wrote.
- Several others chuckled at the accidental blessing for the Saints’ quarterback.
- The tweet spread like wildfire, drawing attention from sports watchers and religious audiences alike.
Meanwhile, the real saints—confined to St. Peter’s Square—did nothing of the sort. But they earned a memorable, if unintended, shout‑out from hurried Twitter‑is.
