Lakota, political prisoner 103592R.
Report to commandante's office.
Political prisoner 103592R.
Report to commandant's office.
Theodor.
Prisoner 103592R. Report!
Mr. George Faber, Eminence.
It was good of you to come, Mr. Faber.
A summons from the Vatican
is a very important event.
- Please, sit down.
- Thank you.
Mr. Faber, we would like
to offer you a story.
An exclusive story.
- With the usual strings, Eminence?
- And a few more this time.
Well, I'd like to know what they are first.
The story's political. Very political.
We need a certain reserve, a certain
discretion in its presentation.
We've known each other a long while.
I stand on my reputation.
Oh, it's a good reputation, Mr. Faber.
But you have to take the story as
I give it to you, or leave it.
If you leave it, I'll
hand it to the French.
I'd like it to break from
an American source...
preferably on television.
- It's an interview, then?
- That's right.
You can't bind me too closely, Eminence.
I can't always control
what a person might say.
Yes or no?
If that's the best you can do, Eminence.
The very best.
Kiril Pavlovich.
Piotr Ilych Kamenev.
Good evening, premier.
It's a long way from the Lubianka prison.
Isn't it, Kiril?
Sit down, please.
Thank you.
Will you drink with me?
If you wish.
Why have you brought me here?
I was curious to know how
the years had treated you.
- Is that all?
- No.
You have haunted me, Kiril, for 20 years.
Think back to the Lubianka.
It was a kind of mutual hell, wasn't it?
I, the tormentor. You, the tormented.
The man in the mirror...
...the man who looked into the mirror.
At the end, neither of us knew
which was which, correct?
Correct.
I took you to pieces like a watch...
...and put you together again.
It was a very intimate experience.
I have never been able to forget it.
May I ask you a question?
You never hesitated before.
That's true.
This is you.
Political prisoner 103592R
Kiril Pavlovich Lakota.
All of you is here, from the
day you were born until now.
Except the answer to one question.
What you have learned in
That is a big question, Piotr Ilych.
The answer is important to me, you now.
What I have learned?
I have learned that without
some kind of loving...
...a man withers like a
grape on a dying vine.
Is that all?
I'm trying to learn more.
Have you learned enough to face freedom?
I have been free for a long time.
Not entirely, perhaps.
But you still haven't answered my question.
Why have you brought me here?
I want to show you a world gone mad.
Come.
Chinese mobilization is
now 80 percent complete.
The map indicates three new divisions
moving to the border of the Soviet Union.
Increased crop failures in
large areas of China...
...now make famine an
absolute certainty.
As a result, reports show that the
Chinese are preparing for thrusts...
...into the rice bowl areas of
Burma, Thailand, North Vietnam...
...and a simultaneous
takeover of Hong Kong.
The United States 7th Fleet is
deployed in battle position...
...in the China Sea.
And four missile-carrying
submarines of advanced design...
...have been added to the fleet.
Every day we ask ourselves
what we can do about it...
...before the nightmare turns itself into
a mushroom cloud blotting out the sun.
You see this fellow here.
He may not look like much,
but do not be deceived.
He's the leader of the Chinese people.
And sure though he undoubtedly is...
...in three months' time, he
may not be able to feed them.
It's a mad world in which we starve
a great country into an atomic war.
I'm sending you back into
this world, Kiril Pavlovich.
What do you mean?
We're going to release you.
Release me?
- I don't under...
- We've made a deal for your freedom.
Deal?
I am party to no deal.
You are, you know.
You're a man under authority.
You have always been.
The authority makes the deal.
You will accept it, see?
Why have you brought me
here to tell me this?
Because you are a simple
man who has haunted...
No, that is not enough!
Because wherever you are...
...I will know that there is one man
who knows me as well as I know him...
...and who can tell the truth
about Piotr Ilych Kamenev...
...and his Russia.
You must not hope to use me.
I don't.
Premier...
...this is Father Telemond of the
Vatican Secretariat of State.
- Your Excellency.
- Here is your man.
Kiril Pavlovich Lakota,
former archbishop of Lvov.
- My lord archbishop.
- Oh, please.
Your passport, my lord.
As from this moment...
...it is understood that His Lordship
is a citizen of the Vatican City State.
And enjoys diplomatic immunity until
his exit from the Soviet Union.
First, Kiril Pavlovich is to be informed
of the other conditions of his release.
Which are?
That the Vatican will publish
only the simple fact...
of Archbishop Lakota's release.
That Archbishop Lakota will
make no public statement...
regarding conditions or
persons in the Soviet Union.
I cannot accept these conditions.
But they have been accepted for you.
To your liberty, Your Excellency.
To my exile.
How soon do we get to Rome, Father?
About an hour and a half.
And then?
You'll be lodged at a Ukrainian college.
You're supposed to be received
immediately by the Holy Father.
You are feeling unwell, Father?
No, I've an enemy in my blood. One
day it will kill me, so they say.
- I'm sorry to hear that.
- Would you care for a drink?
One has to learn to get used to the idea.
You are... You are writing a book?
Oh, I wish I were. No, no.
My works are under examination by
a special pontifical commission.
Why?
For years, I've been forbidden
to teach or to publish anything.
I was suspected of holding
opinions dangerous to the faith.
How did you get this job?
I was kicked into a sacred congregation
to keep me out of mischief.
No, in fact, I'm an anthropologist.
I spent a long time in Asia.
I saw the world there exploding
into millions of hungry mouths.
I had to ask myself...
...what kind of wisdom the church
had to cope with this explosion.
So I start writing, and
I became a philosopher.
And you...
You have written many books?
- Ten.
- Oh, 10?
- How many published?
- None.
Scandinavian Airlines...
announce the arrival of their ight
SK681 from Moscow and Copenhagen
- Passengers will be arriving at gate 10.
- Hi.
The power of the human eye.
- What are you doing here?
- I've never watched you work. I'd like to...
I told you this was serious.
No one should know.
- Can't I just watch?
- No, honey.
Half the Vatican's up there waiting for me.
Oh, and am I not presentable?
George...
Yeah.
Wait at the coffee bar for me.
I won't wait.
- We'll have dinner tonight.
- I don't know, George.
Now, I have to go. I...
Look, I'll call you.
Eminence.
How do you do?
Now, just... Just a few
questions, Excellency.
When were your first
informed of your release?
Last night, in Moscow.
Were you surprised?
Well, I was shocked.
Were you ill-treated
during your confinement?
Not for a long time now.
More recently, I've been
working in heavy industry.
To that extent, then, you did
submit yourself to the system?
Insofar, Mr. Faber, as
any system provides...
...bread, work and dignity, I am
prepared to cooperate with it.
These things are good in themselves,
whether they exist in Rome or in Siberia.
And bread, work and dignity
do exist in Siberia.
Were you permitted to practice
your ministry as a priest?
No, I... I practiced it without
permission, among my fellow prisoners.
Do you see any hope for the
day when Christian faith...
...specifically, the Roman Catholic faith
may be practiced in Marxist countries?
I have no inside information...
...as to how the kingdom of God
is going to be established.
Well, that's enough. Thank you very much.
Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you.
I think, Eminence, you may
have caught yourself a Tartar.
I think we may have caught a Christian.
Oh, thank you.
The most Reverend Kiril Lakota,
Metropolitan Archbishop of Lvov.
Our brother Kiril.
Twenty years, and God has
given him back to us.
- Sit down, sit down.
- Thank you, Holiness.
- You are well, strong?
- I am very well, Holiness.
- You had a good journey?
- Very good.
You were properly received here?
Your rooms are comfortable?
Oh, I'm treated like a prince.
As, indeed, you are.
Now we announce it.
Our brother Kiril is
created cardinal priest...
in the title of St. Athanasius.
Your Holiness...
...I beg you to dispense
me from this honor.
You do not know me.
You cannot know what the
years have done to me.
But why? It is the highest
honor we can bestow.
You have served the faith. Defended it.
I do not wish to dispute authority.
But I can be of no use to you here.
That is for us to decide.
In any future dealings with the
Kremlin, you may be invaluable.
We have arranged for you to work
here in our Secretariat of State.
Excellency, you must take
your place with us now.
I beg, Your Holiness...
...to give me a simple mission
where I can be with simple men.
I think we need to be private
a while with Brother Kiril.
There is a legend about you that once
you were asked to deny the faith.
And they tied up seven
priests and shot them.
Shot them before your eyes.
And still you would not deny the faith.
Is that story true?
I try not to look back on
that or other days, Holiness.
God is with you, my brother.
I believe that God has sent you.
Trust us to make the best use of you.
But first, you must still be honored.
Kneel.
You are created cardinal priest
in the title of St. Athanasius.
- Lydia. Lydia.
- Excuse me, madame.
Oh, there you are.
- Marchesa.
- Hello, Mr. Faber.
Do you have a cigarette?
I was telling this young woman she
should settle down and get married.
Don't you agree, Mr. Faber?
I don't presume to give
advice to young women.
They very seldom take it, anyway.
You are very discreet.
A necessary virtue.
Rome's a very small town.
And it's full of gossip.
Lydia worries about me, George.
You're very lucky to have
such a solicitous friend.
I am an old-fashioned woman, Mr. Faber.
I believe in life, love and
the pursuit of happiness.
But you have to know the rules of the game.
You mustn't underrate my husband, Marchesa.
He knows all the rules.
Dr. Faber.
Mario, get some drinks or something.
I'm sorry to be late, but half
Rome seems to have scarlet fever.
Oh, don't worry. I'm
well-washed and disinfected.
How are you?
Oh, I'm fine.
- I came with Mario.
- Yes, I saw.
He's very handsome. Don't
you think so, George?
Yes, he's very handsome.
How old is he?
Well, I think you ought to
ask him yourself, Ruth.
I'm sure that Marchesa would be
glad to give you an introduction.
Oh, no.
Whatever else I may be, I'm
a realist about my age.
Excuse me, Marchesa.
George.
Marchesa.
Chiara.
You see, she's really awfully mean to him.
- You're very witty tonight.
- Thank you.
I didn't mean it as a compliment.
You mean, you don't approve of me?
I don't, Ruth, when you're
unreasonably jealous.
I'm unreasonably jealous because
jealousy makes me unreasonable.
- Your Eminence.
- May I come in?
Please do.
- Am I interrupting something?
- Not at all.
My congratulations.
Thank you.
- May I have your coat?
- Please.
What a surprise.
This calls for a celebration.
May I offer you a drink?
Oh, that would be nice.
Frascati.
What...? What is that?
I found it in the Vatican Museum.
This is a vegetable.
- Only a thousand years young.
- Oh, really?
But this is lovely here, this fish.
- More than 200 million years old.
- No?
Father, are you sure you are
getting the best medical care?
The doctors, they don't know anything.
They're like auto mechanics.
- Why don't you sit down.
- Oh, no, don't be silly.
- Sorry for the mess.
- Thank you.
So your hearing is set for tomorrow, huh?
Ten-thirty. Did you have a
chance to read my book?
Yes, I did.
Well, I'm not going to die from the truth.
I found very little of the Christian
faith as I know it, in your book.
For 20 years, that faith
alone kept me alive.
Go on.
I found it...
...speculative, dangerous...
...and full of...
- Heresy
- It...
It challenges the faith.
For instance, Jesus Christ speaks
of the redemption of the soul.
I find not one mention of the
word "soul" in your writings.
But it's there, only under another name!
Why change a name if
you're not afraid of it?
To express in modern terms...
reality and truth more clearly.
Well, Father, if you truly believe that...
...why did you remain a priest?
- Are you accusing me of dishonesty?
- I'm not accusing you of anything.
That is for you to answer.
But are you sure you are
honest with yourself?
I'm under a death sentence. I
cannot afford to be otherwise.
- May I offer you another drink?
- No. No, thank you.
You know, David, for many men, belief
is a place to crawl for safety.
Of course, they will fear and accuse you.
Your writings are a danger to their safety.
I'm not afraid of being accused.
I'm only afraid of being silenced.
You know, even God has not spoken His
last word about His own creation.
Would you like to hear some Shostakovich?
That would be fine.
Eminence, you are destroying
me before the commission does.
Oh, David, that was not my intention.
No, as a matter of fact, after
I read your book last night...
...I couldn't sleep.
I saw a brilliant mind reaching out
to the last frontiers of thought.
A place where I wouldn't venture.
I came to wish you well tomorrow.
I will say my mass for you.
Thank you.
This...
...is Father Telemond.
So this is a commission,
and not a tribunal.
Its object is to examine the
content of your works...
...to see if they conform to
fundamental Christian doctrine.
You, yourself, are not on trial.
And I beg you to believe your presence
here is no reflection on your reputation.
I'm glad to hear it, Eminence.
Here's the first problem, Father.
It runs right through all your work.
What are you? Philosopher?
Theologian, poet, scientist?
How are we to judge you?
Judge me as one man, trying to
answer the questions of every man.
Which are?
Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going?
Is there any sense in beauty? In ugliness?
In terror? In suffering?
In the daily deaths...
...which make up the pattern of existence.
- There speaks the poet.
- Why only the poet?
Why not the theologian and the scientist?
They breathe too. They die too.
Then you start us, Father.
I've dug down through the
crust of God's earth.
There's a long record
of life written there.
A record full of wonders.
Dinosaur or ying reptiles, giant moles.
All gone.
But the line is clear...
traced by the creative finger of God.
And it always points in the
same direction, to us:
The knowing man, the thinking man.
And it points beyond us.
To what? Either this world
is a tragic trap...
...in which man lives without
hope and dies without dignity...
or it is like Teilhard de
Chardin wrote many years ago...
...a great becoming...
...in which mankind is thrust towards
a glorious completion in Christ.
I believe in the plan of completion.
I believe in the future union of
the world with the Cosmic Christ.
Let me walk in your country
for a while, Father.
The dinosaur disappeared from history. Why?
We are not sure.
The evidence points to the
fact that he was a creature...
...adapted to a special environment.
When the environment changed, he died out.
How?
Sometimes by disease.
Sometimes by violence.
When creatures stronger
than himself devoured him.
So the finger of God writes
violence and destruction too?
Yes. They are part of
the pattern of growth.
Of evolution.
The deer is a very prolific creature.
It would eat the lands bare.
The lion tears the deer down.
- So the balance of nature is preserved.
- Right.
Now we come to this. Talking about man...
...you called him a very special animal.
The animal who knows, and
knows that he knows.
Exactly. Now, down in our museum
is the skull of a prehistoric man.
His skull is broken by a stone ax.
He was obviously killed
by one of his fellows.
Yes, I've seen it.
- An act of violence, yes?
- Yes.
An act of destruction, yes?
Committed by a thinking
and knowing creature?
Yes.
Is it the same act as the shooting
of a man in a back alley in Paris?
Essentially, yes.
And that act, too, is a
part of the design of God?
The design includes it.
You did not answer "yes"
to that question. Why?
Because I see where you are leading me.
Exactly. We are leading you to
the problem of good or evil.
Right or wrong in the Christian sense.
The killing of that Stone
Age man by another man:
- Was it right or wrong?
- I don't know.
I beg your pardon, Father.
- You don't know?
- No, I don't.
It might have been an
act imposed upon him...
by the necessities of a time and
place of which we know very little.
Imposed by the evolutionary plan?
Yes.
- In other words, by God's plan?
- Yes.
So God is the author of sin and evil.
That's heresy, Father.
No, it is not heresy.
The reality is this:
For certain primitive tribes...
...murder was a religious act.
For us, it is a crime.
The growth from one attitude to
another is evidence of a divine plan.
Even today, too many Christians justify
mass murder under the name of war.
Tomorrow, please God, they will
outlaw war too, as a crime.
- What is it?
- Forgive me, Eminence.
His Holiness, the pope, has collapsed.
Paulo, you and Lou get the
van and go to St. Peter's.
In the square! Get there, would you?
- Did George leave a number?
- No. Shall I ring his home?
No. No. Would you ring the Press Club?
And if you fail there, just try
this other number, will you?
I may be late again tonight, Ruth.
Will you see her for supper
or at her apartment?
We should at least share the chores.
I mean, you could dump every
second dirty shirt on her.
- All right, Ruth. Stop it.
- Stop what?
Stop being vulgar. I guess
that's what I mean.
Pardon me.
When you go to her, does she let
you in or do you use your key?
Wanna count my keys, Ruth?
Here's the key to the filling
cabinet, to the front door...
Stop seeing her. Just
don't see her anymore.
- Sign the check...
- I don't have to sign anything.
Don't tell me if she's a paid little tart
or an unpaid little tart. Just fix it. Now.
You pick a hell of a
time to go into things.
I'm on the air in 47 minutes.
Brian, this is George. About the...
George, you are the last
journalist in Europe...
...to know that the pope is dying.
Why didn't you call me?
Where are you, George?
We tried the other number.
I'll be right over.
- Brian, I...
- Just give us a level, would you, George?
- One, two, three, four, five.
- All right.
Ten seconds, Mr. Faber.
Three, two, one.
You're on, George.
This is George Faber, overlooking St.
Peter's Square in Rome.
The Holy Father has collapsed.
Dr. Carlo Antonelli, one of the
top heart specialists in Rome...
arrived at the Vatican this afternoon.
And there has been a report...
that an oxygen cylinder
has been called for.
An inexhaustible, anxious worker...
possibly one of the most self-critical
pontiffs of this century.
The bell tolls.
The pope is dead.
Listen to the bell.
This is the death knell...
that rings from the Arco delle
Campane only for the pontiff.
Listen. There is a second bell.
Soon these bells will be
joined by bells over the city.
All over every city. All over the world.
The pope is dead.
The Camerlengo will announce it.
The master of ceremonies, the
notaries, the doctors...
...will consign him under
signature into eternity.
His ring will be defaced.
The seals will be broken.
The papal apartments will
be locked and sealed.
While the bells are still ringing...
the pontifical body will be
handed over to the embalmers...
so that it may be a seemly object
for the veneration of the faithful.
They will place his body...
...between white candles
in the Sistine Chapel...
...while the noble guard
maintains the death watch...
under Michelangelo's frescoes
of the last judgment.
On the third day...
...they will bury him, clothed
in full pontificals...
...with a miter on his head...
a purple veil covering his face.
And a red ermine blanket
to warm him in the crypt.
They will seal him in three coffins.
One of cypress...
one of lead, to keep him from the damp...
and to carry his certificate of death.
The last one, of elm...
...so that he may seem at
least like other men...
...who go to the grave in a wooden box.
The pope is dead.
They will mourn him with
nine days of masses...
...and give him nine absolutions...
...- of which, having been greater
than other men in his life...-
...he may have greater
need after his death.
It is strange.
When a president dies, he's
replaced within an hour.
When a king dies, long live the king.
When a pope dies, everything stops.
David, the reason I called you is...
...I'm told I will need a
secretary for the conclave.
I...
I wondered if you would
accept the position.
It's a great honor, Eminence.
But I'm afraid I'm the wrong man.
- Why?
- I'm under suspicion.
Well, there's been no verdict, no judgment.
The commission is suspended
till the new pope is elected.
And who will that be?
Whoever stands on that balcony. I
hope he will publish my books.
Would Rinaldi make a good pope?
He's a lovely man.
But I think we need a man of our time.
Then Cardinal Leone.
I'm afraid I'm the wrong one
to ask about Cardinal Leone.
Let us go to lunch.
Who, then?
In any case, it has to be an Italian.
Yes, I suppose so.
I'm an old man, Valerio.
- I have buried three popes.
- We are all too old.
There are not more than half a dozen
of us who can give the church...
...what it needs at this moment.
- Forgive me, Father. I mean, Eminence.
- Forgive me.
- Do you think you are one of them?
- One what?
One of the half dozen.
I know I'm not.
Do you think I have a chance of election?
- I hope not.
- Don't worry. I know I haven't.
Hold the lamp.
You know, Valerio, I should
have been a country priest...
...with just enough theology
to hear confession...
...and just enough Latin
to get through Mass.
I would sit in front of my
church on summer evenings...
...and talk about the crops.
Hey, give me the lamp, Franko.
Eminence.
Thank you, Eminence.
Franko!
Franko!
And what am I now?
A walking Encyclopdia of dogma.
A theological dictionary on two legs.
Each of us has his own cross.
That looks very comfortable.
Do you know what mine is? My cross, I mean.
To be rich and content and fulfilled...
...and to know that I
have deserved none of it.
And that when I'm called to judgment...
...I must depend entirely
on the mercy of God.
We are what we are.
And God must take up the
responsibility even for theologians.
Now, tell me...
where do we go for our pope?
The Cardinals of the Sacred College
have assumed trusteeship...
...over the church until
a new pope is elected.
From all over the world
cardinals will come...
...weighed down with
years and authority...
...to put on the scarlet of princes
and sit in the conclave...
...for the election of the
successor of St. Peter.
As soon as he's elected...
...the new pope will choose the
date for his coronation...
...a spectacle that will bring people
from every corner of the earth.
Outside this small enclave
of the Vatican...
...the world is in a
climate of crisis...
...and we may soon be
involved in an atomic war.
But for the men in the Vatican,
there is only one question:
Who will stand in the
shoes of the fisherman?
Who will preserve and proclaim
the message of Christ...
...to the men who live in this
troubled and dubious 20th century?
Behind the locked doors of the Vatican...
...there will be two ballots daily.
One in the morning and
one in the afternoon.
If the vote is unsuccessful...
...then the papers are
burned with wet straw.
...and the smoke from the
chapel will be black.
If the vote is successful,
the ballots are burned dry.
...and white smoke will rise.
And the vice regent of the Almighty
will be acclaimed by the people.
This is George Faber in Rome.
Good night.
We've got some footage on the cardinals.
You can see that in B.
Not much on the favorites, I'm
afraid Leone and the Romans.
You know, you did cut it a
bit fine tonight, George.
So you mean your life
would be a lot easier...
if I could be found at one
number, namely my home number.
Yes, it would. A lot easier.
So would yours.
You're the protocol expert. How did
the British do in the old heydays...
...when they wanted to break off relations?
Don't they teach you things
like that at Cambridge?
Not at Cambridge. We learned
it later in the club.
It's advisable, old lad,
to choose neutral ground.
Neutral ground?
- What about a cathedral?
- Oh, boy.
Maybe a zoo?
For His Eminence, Cardinal Leone, 29.
For His Eminence, Cardinal Columbi, 15.
For His Eminence, Cardinal Fracci, 12.
Insufficient for election.
For His Eminence, Cardinal Leone, 23.
For His Eminence, Cardinal Peumens, 19.
For His Eminence, Cardinal Rinaldi, 14.
Insufficient for election.
Insufficient for election.
After the sixth ballot,
still only black smoke...
...from the window of the Sistine Chapel.
All we know for certain is that none of
the favorites is likely to be elected.
Now it could be any
one of the Cardinals.
And new it could take an
indefinite time to elect him.
Meanwhile, the delay begins to cause
waves of crisis around the world...
...as the concern deepens.
Who will be the next pope?
That's a question for us too, tovarich.
Important question.
There are bigger ones.
Much more immediate too.
What difference does it make who rules
one square mile in the center of Rome?
Whoever he may be, speaks
with the voice of God...
for a quarter of the world.
Will that change stones into
bread for millions of Chinese?
Unless they're fed, we go to war.
That is my point, tovarich.
If we get a violent enemy in Rome, he can
do us more harm than you can realize.
If we get a man who is reasonable,
he can be of enormous advantage.
Especially in the mess we face now.
So...
...you turn to magic.
Roman magic like that.
What's happened to you, Piotr Ilych?
I will tell you.
I suppose it happens to every man
who sits in the center chair.
I've come to the end of the book of rules.
There will be universal
massacre in a matter of months.
And I have run out of mathematics.
Revolution is in the air and
we are not prepared for it.
Our young priests are prepared.
They're finding ways to live
with change and make changes.
Yes. Sometimes they frighten me.
But, why? They see injustice
and want to correct it.
And they may make more, through
ignorance and inexperience.
Our friend Lakota, here, should
be an expert on revolution.
Oh, no. I am no expert.
But you have lived under
a revolutionary regime.
Well, that is not quite right. Marxism
in Russia is very conservative.
Their revolution is for export now.
Our problem is to match
them with our own product.
- Which is?
- Oh, no, please.
- Please. I would rather listen.
- No, we would like to hear you.
Yes. Yes, indeed.
We should manufacture the
authentic Christian revolution.
Work for all, bread for
all, dignity for all men.
But without violence.
Well...
...excuse me, but violence...
...is a reaction against the
situation that has become...
intolerable. Isn't it?
Well...
...in the camps in Siberia, we
were starved and brutalized.
I stole.
I stole some bread.
I fed it, crumb by crumb, to a man
whose jaw had been broken by a guard.
I...
I fought the guard to save my friend.
I could have killed him.
That was a terrifying experience.
I, a bishop...
...could have killed a man.
So as a bishop, you would give
your approval to social disorder?
I might be forced to accept it as
a price for social change. Yes.
You are walking a moral tightrope.
We all have to walk it. That
is what we pay for being men.
But what if you had killed the guard?
I don't know.
I... I don't know, Eminence.
I do know we are in
action in a brutal world.
The children of God are ours to
protect and if we have to fight...
...we fight.
I...
I think I've talked too much.
- Good night, Eminence.
- Good night, Your Eminence.
Rest well.
Kiril.
Kiril.
My brothers.
My brothers.
We have already failed seven
times to reach an election.
I stand now to claim a
right under Canon Law.
In all humility...
...I proclaim to you my belief
that there is among us a man.
...already marked by God to sit
in the chair of St. Peter.
Like the first of the Apostles...
this man has suffered prison
stripes for the faith.
The hand of God has led him out of
bondage to join us in this conclave.
I announce him...
...as my candidate and
dedicate to him my vote...
...and my obedience.
Kiril, Cardinal Lakota.
Thank you, Eminence, but I...
I cannot consent to it.
I, too, proclaim him.
I also proclaim him.
- No, please. Please, please wait.
- I also proclaim him.
I proclaim him.
Please, time has passed me by.
- I, too, proclaim him.
- And I proclaim him.
- I, too, proclaim him.
- I beg you!
- And I proclaim him.
- I, too, proclaim him.
- For the love of God!
- I, too, proclaim him.
I proclaim him.
Please, reconsider what you are doing.
Do you accept election?
You must answer now.
Do you accept election?
I...
I accept.
And may God have mercy on me.
How do you chose to be called?
We choose to be called by our name.
Kiril.
It was the name of the saint who first...
...carried the Gospel into our country.
Your Holiness.
How do you do? What are we...?
Congratulations, Your Holiness.
What?
Undress, please, Holiness.
- The cross.
- Thank you.
Excuse me.
- What is your name?
- Gelasio, Holiness.
I'm Kiril Lakota.
Please pray for me.
Thank you.
Eminence, I hope you realize
what you have done.
Gaudium magnum. And joyous tidings.
We have a pope.
It's the Russian.
Kiril Lakota.
They've elected a Russian pope.
The College of Cardinals have elected
the first non-Italian pope...
...since Adrian VI...
With the world in a state of crisis. It
is impossible at this time to assess...
...what the ramifications might be.
- Holiness?
- Oh, Eminence.
- Today's appointments.
- Oh, yes.
Excuse me, my glasses.
Everybody wants to see the pope.
Bishops, businessmen.
Cinema actors?
I suggest you take it up with the
maestro di camera, Holiness.
Oh, I will. I will. Today.
No, we have to make some changes, Leone.
Otherwise I... I will
never get any work done.
I'm glad it's your Holiness and not myself.
But I need time to think. And to pray.
I hate the sensation of being managed.
The management of princes.
- It used to be a very special game.
- Yes.
You elected a man to absolute power and
then you had to limit his use of it.
Sometimes it's not a bad idea.
On the matter of Father Telemond...
...he has a brilliant mind
and deep spirituality.
I would like to keep him close to me...
...as a personal adviser.
With respect, Holiness, I
should counsel against it.
- Why?
- His opinions are suspect.
- They have been under examination.
- His opinions may be suspect...
...but the person, we
believe, is a godly man.
If Your Holiness chooses Father Telemond...
...you will be lending patronage and
authority to an unsuitable person.
Has there been any imputation against
his character or his rite as a priest?
It is opinions which are
suspect, not the man.
That makes the situation very dangerous.
We recognize the risk, but
we are disposed to take it.
You will convey to the commissioners
our desire for a quick verdict...
...on the works of Father Telemond.
I will do that, Holiness.
But once again, I must emphasize
the very real danger...
As Your Holiness decides.
Thank you.
Starvation has again
increased in China.
And military action
appears imminent.
There is a postscript I
want you all to hear.
A personal letter from Chairman Peng.
"I'm prepared to go to
extraordinary lengths...
...with the Soviet Union and the U.S.A.
to avert a horrible disaster.
But I have to warn you that if
the terms are too strenuous...
or if they do violence to the
dignity of the Chinese people...
...the situation will
pass out of my control...
...into the control of the army.
I urge you to convince the Western
world of the magnitude of our need...
...and of the risk of war,
which confronts us all."
We are at a minute to midnight, tovarich.
If the ants march out of the ant heap...
there will be ruin and misery
too horrible to contemplate.
Next picture, please.
Why do you laugh?
They laugh because this man was a
political prisoner for 20 years.
So today he has been elected
head of the Vatican City State.
He is spiritual leader
of 800 million people.
He can talk with every leader in the
West with the strongest voice of all.
The Catholic vote at the ballot box.
You must think of that,
you know, tovarich.
Think what it might mean if
he spoke the right word...
...at the right time.
His Holiness is ready.
Your Holiness?
- Yes?
- Mr. Igor Bounin.
Send him in.
Mr. Bounin?
I send you a gift.
Earth from the Ukraine. Sunower seeds.
Piotr Ilych Kamenev.
There is no other message?
"My respects and my compliments
upon your election.
The earth is sacred because it
is all we have to stand on.
The seeds are sacred...
because there is life locked inside them.
I hope that they may come
to flower in your garden."
I have heard your voice before.
We have met.
We have, sir, yes.
- You had another name.
- I have many names.
Of course. You sat at some of the
interrogations with Kamenev.
Yes, sir, that is correct.
Go on with your message.
"We shall be at war within two months.
There is no way in which China can..."
I'm sorry. I'm sorry, will
you please repeat that?
"We shall be at war within two months.
There is no way in which
China can come to terms...
...with the capitalist powers."
Go on.
"Would you commit to a double risk?
To speak to the Western world
on behalf of the Chinese...
...and the Chinese on behalf of the West?
This would entail a face-to-face
meeting with Chairman Peng.
He has agreed to come if you will come."
Is that all?
- There is a little more.
- Yes?
"You believe you stand in God's shoes.
I must wear my own.
Greetings, Piotr Ilych Kamenev."
Mr. Bounin...
...how do you interpret the...? The letter?
I have no interpretation, sir.
Not even on such important matters?
No, sir. It is a matter
between Kiril Lakota...
...and Piotr Ilych Kamenev.
And you are to carry back my answer?
If there is one, yes.
- Here.
- No, sir, I will remember.
Yes, of course.
I am...
touched by your gift.
How soon will you be back in Moscow?
Tonight.
The meeting you suggest...
...is perilous...
...and leaves us all...
...vulnerable.
But why the zoo?
Why ever would you want to
meet me here, of all places?
Well, there's... It's fun!
There's kids and animals.
- I absolutely hate the zoo.
- Hate it?
They used to bring me here for long
awful, boring walks when I was a kid...
...and besides, the animals depress me.
Let's go somewhere and have a drink.
You're very strange today. Are you
gonna run off in a half an hour?
No, I'm in no hurry.
Good. Then I'll have a margarita cocktail.
- Why a margarita?
- I've never had one before.
It sounds marvelous.
Darling.
Hi, Gelasio.
No, no, no. Please. Leave them.
Thank you.
Gelasio!
Gelasio.
Would Your Holiness like
something before he retires?
- Coffee, tea, warm milk?
- No, thank you.
Gelasio...
...we are going to be
together for a long time.
We...
Well...
...we should get to know each other.
I suppose so, Holiness.
- Won't you sit down?
- No, I...
Oh, no, no. Please.
Well, tell me about yourself.
- How old are you?
- Nearly 60, Holiness.
Sixty? No.
- Are you married?
- A widower.
- Do you have any children?
- There's a boy and a girl.
They're both grown now and married.
- Where were you born?
- Here, in Rome.
- Trastevere.
- In Rome?
Tell me about Rome.
What do I say, Holiness? Rome is...
Rome is...
Rome is Rome, Holiness.
For you, yes. For me, Gelasio, it's...
...an unknown country. Yet,
I am bishop of this city.
Tell me...
what will people think of a foreign pope?
They will make jokes about it.
But in time, they will accept it.
- We Romans have seen everything.
- Yes, you have.
Tell me, how does one get
in and out of this place?
- Vatican City?
- Yes.
There are gates.
We all have a pass.
- And the pope too?
- Oh, no.
He's the head of Vatican City.
He can get out where he
pleases and when he pleases.
Can he indeed?
Gelasio, can you find me a cassock?
- In Your Holiness' wardrobe.
- No. A black one, like a priest might wear.
And a black hat.
I...
I don't know.
I could try.
Are you all right?
I'm sorry.
I was in a hurry. I've got
an urgent case upstairs.
You almost had another patient.
- I'm afraid I'm going to lose this one.
- I'm sorry. ls there anything I can do?
Yes. Yes, there is.
It's down on the left. There's
an all-night pharmacy.
Take this and get it for me. And
bring it up to the second oor.
- Number 13.
- Number 13.
It's urgent.
Excuse me.
Excuse me, the doctor said this is urgent.
Just a moment.
That will be 3,500 lire.
I'm... I'm sorry. I forgot about the money.
I can send it to you tomorrow morning.
I could leave you a note.
A note is a piece of paper, Padre.
- Well, I'll go and see the doctor.
- But I trust you.
Thank you. I... I won't forget.
Where is 13, boys?
Doctor.
My Lord Jesus...
...I am your child.
- For whatever wrong I've done...
- He doesn't understand, Father.
He is not a Christian.
We are mostly Jews here.
He's comfortable now.
- Is there anything I can do?
- No.
The dying is easy.
It is the living that defeats us.
Shalom.
Shalom aleichem.
- We should go now.
- Yes.
- Shalom.
- Shalom aleichem. Shalom aleichem.
Where did you learn Hebrew?
Oh, I was a biblical
scholar when I was young.
That doesn't explain it, does it?
No, it doesn't.
No, I worked with a rabbi in a camp...
...in Siberia.
I've seen you before, haven't I?
Yes, I suppose you have.
Just think of me as a priest
you sent to the pharmacist.
What are you doing here like this?
Oh, I had to get out.
I just had to get out.
Angelo!
I wanted to hear all these
noises and watch people living.
Just simply living.
Angelo!
I was hungry for it.
Can you understand that?
I wish I felt life was
as appetizing as that.
That man upstairs, was he
long a patient of yours?
My mind wasn't on him.
Shall we go?
Yes. Can I carry your bag?
You know, I had 11 brothers and sisters.
Eleven of us in two rooms.
I'm sorry. I...
I don't know your name.
Ruth Faber.
I wonder where Angelo is.
Do you suppose he's the youngest?
You know, the one in the middle
always has it the most difficult.
- Dr. Faber, is...?
- Why is my marriage like this?
Is it wrong for a woman to have a job?
Is it because we haven't got children?
Is it because we both live
away from our own countries?
Is it because Rome is full of temptation
and the young girls are beautiful?
Oh, so beautiful.
And the answer to why is my
marriage like this is just...
...my marriage is like this.
You know, sometimes I'd give
anything to be that woman.
Shouting for Angelo, taking care of him.
Making the pasta, hanging
out washing on those lines.
But we seem to be given our roles.
I'm this sort of wife.
They cast me.
That's his wife.
And what does the man in the
long robes say to all that?
The man in the long robes would have
to put it to a pontifical council...
...and study the ramifications.
But the man inside the robes...
...would have noticed that
in all you've said...
...you never mentioned the word "love."
Do you mean I don't love him?
- Or I do?
- Oh, I cannot say that. Nobody can.
There is only one area to search.
And if love is mislaid...
where did you see it last?
And if you can't remember...
...maybe there was no
love in the first place.
Oh, there was.
Then it is mislaid.
And you must find it.
Do you smell that cooking?
Are you hungry?
When you're one of 11 children,
you're always hungry.
Do you know a place where you could
take an escaped prisoner to eat?
Yes, I know just the place.
Good.
Thank you.
- Your Holiness. the car is here.
- Thank you.
Well...
You have to go, don't you?
Yes, I suppose I do.
We're all in prison one way or another.
Yes, and those who understand
it suffer most of all.
Good night.
I...
I've socks for him...
...and shirts for him and sweaters...
for him.
I have papers for him, pencils for him.
And for some unaccountable reason...
...an amber cigarette holder for him.
You're going home to Mother?
No, I thought that's where you'd gone.
And life does have it's jolly
compensations, doesn't it?
Just when a man is about
to say goodbye to his...
tiny folly.
What does he look up and see, but his
wife's green and penetrating orbs?
And just as he's figured out a way to
handle that unfortunate situation.
...by buying buckets of
champagne, some flowers...
...a few crown jewels and some...
..."Let's get together" cards...
...my telephone rings...
...and I'm called to Paris.
By another tiny folly?
No, by something that makes our marriage
problem seem very small indeed.
I'd agree with that.
- Then you've heard the news?
- No.
We've all been called to Paris.
Every correspondent in the network.
The red light is flashing alert. We're
supposed to take it lightheartedly.
Darling, I...
I would at least have tried
to persuade you that...
...I was definitely calling
it off with Chiara.
It'll be all right.
I mean, not just about us.
I know it will.
I'll give your regards to Paris.
With this message...
...Kamenev sent me this.
It is full of Russian
earth and sunower seeds.
But it has a meaning.
If we cannot find a way to make
peace among the peoples...
...then the earth will be blackened.
And there will be no owers
anymore, for any of us.
How would you answer Kamenev, if you
stood in the shoes of the fisherman?
I would wait, Holiness.
We've had no time to study the
consequences of such a meeting.
- We have had no time.
- Because there is no time.
Very well, my friends.
You tell me what to do.
Delay, Holiness.
Delay only long enough to
consider what you gamble.
And turn my back and wash my
hands, like Pontius Pilate?
I cannot wash my hands of the
world, and neither can you.
My brothers, if this is the last
sound made by the last living man...
...it must be shouted loud and clear.
Life...
is a gift of God.
Do you believe that Jesus Christ is God?
Oh, yes.
That he died and rose from the dead?
Yes.
To what end? For what purpose?
In the old days we used to say,
"He came to redeem and save us."
Or, as the good nuns put it, "to
buy us back from the devil...
...and get us into heaven."
But you don't put it that way.
I'm afraid I don't believe it that way.
How do you believe it, Father?
I believe that man is born in bondage.
To what, Father?
To his own history.
And Christ, the Savior?
How does he buy man out of this bondage?
The death of Christ was the act...
...by which man was redeemed.
I'm concerned now...
...how does the act of
redemption continues for us...
...in this very troubled century?
How do you see that, Father?
This is crucial.
I know.
Let me try to explain...
carefully.
I have no son. But if I had
what could I offer him?
Only tomorrow.
I will die soon, perhaps.
What is offered to me?
Unless I know the answer
to that question...
I'm left without hope.
Christ died, he rose from the dead...
...he went into heaven, out of this world.
But if he's not still here...
...with us in this world...
...we are truly lost.
So...
...now we come to the classic question.
What think you...
of Christ?
Excuse me, Eminence, could
you ask the question again?
What think you of Christ, Father?
Who is he?
He is the point to which all
of evolution is tending.
He is the point at which the
whole universe must arrive...
...as the spokes of a wheel
arrive at the center.
He is the universe, summed up.
He is the Cosmic Christ.
Father Telemond...
...it is written in the scripture:
"Jesus Christ. Yesterday.
today and the same forever."
Are you not creating another
Christ of your own?
I am not creating Him.
I'm revealing a face of
Him we have not yet seen.
Do you have a private revelation, Father?
Perhaps I have, Eminence.
If I have, it is no merit of mine.
Indeed, it is a torment for me.
I cannot renounce this Christ whom I see...
...any more than I can renounce
Him who hangs on the cross.
You put us in great trouble.
Much that you have said and written...
...is of extraordinary depth and beauty.
Much of it is still unclear.
And, as you have seen, puzzling to us.
It would help if you gave
us one clear statement...
of what you believe.
I believe in a personal God.
I believe in Christ. I
believe in the Spirit.
But if by some perilous,
internal revolution...
I lost my faith in God...
...in Christ and in the Spirit...
...I think I still would
believe in the world.
Yes, I do believe in the world.
In the goodness of the world.
In the values of the world.
That, in the final analysis, is the first
and the last thing in which I believe.
This faith I live by.
And it is to this faith that
at the moment of death...
...mastering all doubts...
I shall surrender myself.
It is the opinion of the
commissioners, therefore...
...that the works of Father Telemond present
ambiguities and even grave errors...
in philosophical and theological matters
which offend Catholic doctrine.
They recommend that Reverend Father
Telemond should be prohibited...
...from teaching or publishing the
dubious opinions above mentioned...
until a full and formal examination...
...has been made.
Didn't the Second Vatican Council
affirm in the clearest terms...
the liberty of man's
conscience and the right...
of free research?
Well, yes, Holiness.
But with great respect...
...I submit that what a philosopher
may publish without harm...
...bears a different color when
it is written by a papal adviser.
Eminence...
...you have our thanks.
How is this news to be
conveyed to Father Telemond?
We shall tell him ourselves.
You have our leave to go.
This is a grief for Your
Holiness, I know it.
- I wish I could share...
- Our grief is private to ourselves.
Now, we would like to be alone.
David.
It's worse than I thought.
- David, perhaps in time...
- There's no time, Holiness.
At night, I hear the knocking on the gate.
All of a sudden the work is undone.
This is the moment...
you've always been afraid of.
But I am with you.
I am your friend. I am your brother...
But I'm condemned to
absolute silence, Holiness!
This was delivered in your name.
Please tell me what I must do.
I will give you an order.
You will rest.
You will submit to medical care...
...and you will be silent.
David...
it is the terror of life.
No one can carry another man's burden.
It is the terror of the church too.
I hate her!
And still I can't leave her.
I love her.
And still I can't live in her in peace.
By your leave, Holiness.
My friends.
Thank you for coming, Eminence.
Your Eminence. How are you?
I don't have much time.
But please council me and question
me without fear or reserve.
May I ask the reason for Your
Holiness' somewhat unusual dress?
It's easier to feel alike if we look alike.
Will Holiness make a statement
at or after the meeting?
I will make no statement
other than courtesies...
...until I have returned to Rome
and have consulted with you all.
Has the president of the United
States been informed of your visit?
Yes. So have all the European
and Asian heads of state.
Not all approve, but all,
I believe, wish us well.
What, in fact, does Your
Holiness hope to gain...
...from a private meeting
with two Marxist leaders?
The understanding of things which are
driving them and the world into war.
Their confidence in me as an honest
spokesman in this time of crisis.
Any more questions?
Thank you, Gelasio?
You will be the guardians of
the church while I am gone.
I'm suddenly very alone.
- We are with you, Holiness.
- Thank you.
We do not all agree, but
we are all with Peter.
And we offer you our
prayer for your journey.
Our Father who art in heaven...
...hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven.
Piotr Ilych.
For a while, I did not
think you would come.
- Why not?
- I've no rights over you...
...and you have no reason to trust me.
I'm not sure I can help.
I'm willing to try.
You are changed.
I do not feel changed.
There was a pride in you once.
More, an arrogance...
...as if you carried truth
in a private purse...
...and no one could dispute it with you.
When I hated you, and I did,
it was because of that.
I have learned what I am.
A low man who sits too high for his gifts.
Let me warn you:
With Peng, we cannot be too low.
If we are, he will despise us.
If we are too high, he will
reject us out of hand.
He lives by face. He
dare not lose it, then.
Does Peng understand that we
are as much at risk as he is?
And I don't think we are.
We are the affluent ones.
He has 800 million people.
There is famine over three provinces...
...and it will soon spread
over the whole land.
God help us in what we do now.
If He's where He can
hear us, I hope He will.
Chairman Peng of the
People's Republic of China.
Welcome, comrade.
Chairman, His Holiness, Pope Kiril I.
Mr. Chairman.
Shall we be comfortable?
- Would you care...?
- No, thank you.
I have agreed to meet him.
I am not convinced that he
can do anything for us.
I have only a voice, but
it reaches many people.
I am prepared to raise it.
To what ends?
To feed the Chinese people
first, to prevent a war.
And the price?
On my part, none.
But the capitalists will exact a price.
Comrade Kamenev, who is already
half a capitalist, has a price too.
I cannot say what they will exact.
I can only say what you
should not be asked to pay.
I will tell you what we will not pay.
We will not destroy what the
revolution has accomplished.
We will not submit to military
threats or colonial exploitation.
But you should withdraw your
own military threats...
...to the nations of Southeast Asia.
Let Americans give us a chance to trade...
...with the rice bowl countries
as we've done for centuries.
Let Russia remove the threat of these
missiles aimed at our production centers.
Troops and tanks along a
thousand miles of border.
Let the Americans pull out of the military
colonies in Thailand and Vietnam.
No one can do all these things at once.
In stages, it's possible.
Important thing is that
we make a start together.
Russia is prepared to match every move
you make to reduce military tension...
...and give you what credits she
can to buy in other markets.
The markets we need are closed to us.
I am prepared to plead and
negotiate for them to be opened.
Words are cheap.
Mr. Chairman, what is
your revolution built on?
What is Russia's revolution built on?
One man, who spent most of his
life in the British Museum...
...who was buried in a
tiny cemetery in England.
Karl Marx never carried a gun, he
never fought on the barricades.
All he had was words.
Words and an idea, which in 60 years
has changed the face of the earth.
And you think you can do it again?
I want to try.
But I have no chance to succeed if you
throw my words back in my teeth...
...the moment they are spoken.
I need your cooperation in what I do.
So I give it.
You'll fail. What then?
We are back in the jungle!
I didn't mean that.
I mean this:
His Holiness, Kiril I goes back to Rome.
He makes a great speech.
Writes letters, sends out messages.
They are ignored. Very politely, of course.
Now, what has he lost? Nothing.
What has he gained? Much.
He is a noble man. A peacemaker...
...who unhappily failed to make peace.
Mr. Chairman, you came because you
thought I might be able to do something.
Now, what is it?
Pay some of the price that we have to pay.
What do you expect him to pay? How?
When I came here today, I put my
head on the executioner's block.
When I go back across that border,
it might well be chopped off.
That's my risk. What is yours?
Thank you for coming so late at night.
What can I do for you, Holiness?
I need your help.
I will do anything I can to be helpful.
Thank you.
Won't you sit down.
I...
I just want to think out loud.
I mean, first of all, I want to say how...
How sorry I am about...
...what I had to do.
Holiness, I accepted the
verdict of the commission...
...as an act of obedience.
Of course, I cannot abandon...
...my personal search for the
truth, for you or for anyone.
- I would be untrue to myself
- I understand.
But please know now...
...I accept your decision without reserve.
Without any resentment,
with a clear conscience...
...and with a humble heart.
Your Holiness should not
feel any burden from me.
I'm truly grateful.
That is a magnificent gift.
David...
...I'm feeling lost.
I'm troubled by the whole
idea of my coronation.
Why?
I am not prepared to be crowned
with the pomp of a prince...
...while hungry men live
in the shadow of death.
Because in the emotion of the moment...
...I may have done wrong
to accept the election.
You are Peter.
There is one consolation.
As pope, I cannot preach error...
no matter what folly I may commit.
The church will survive.
- David...
- Forgive me.
- David, what is it?
- Forgive me.
Gelasio!
Gelasio!
Gelasio!
Gelasio!
Eminence.
We had asked to be left alone.
I came to offer...
...my sympathy to Your Holiness
on the death of Father Telemond.
I feel guilty.
You have no cause to feel that.
I cannot dismiss it, Holiness.
I have a confession to make.
Then I suggest you make
it to your confessor.
I am so in distress, Holiness.
You are a priest.
You are right.
I was jealous of David Telemond.
I did what was right...
...but my intention was
not right when I did it.
Why were you jealous of him?
Because of you, Holiness.
Because I needed, but could
not have, what you gave him.
Intimacy. Trust.
Affection.
And because I am an old man that has
served the church a long time...
...and thought I deserved better.
I was wrong.
None of us deserves anything...
...but the promised wage for
the worker in the vineyard.
Eminence...
...I, too, have sinned.
I kept you at a distance...
...because I could not
tolerate your opposition.
And I was at fault with Father Telemond.
I...
I clung to him because...
I am glad you came.
Leone...
...how does a man ever know if his
actions are for himself or for God?
You don't know.
You have a duty to act.
But you have no right to expect approval...
...or even a successful outcome.
So in the end, my friend...
...we are alone?
Yes.
I have seen three men sit in this room.
You are the last I shall see.
Each of them, in his turn...
...came to where you stand now.
The moment of solitude.
I have to tell you there
is no remedy for it.
You are here until the day you die.
And the longer you live...
...the lonelier you will become.
You will use this man and that
for the work of the church.
But when the work is done...
...or the man has proved unequal to it
you will let him go and find another.
You want love.
You need it, as I do.
Even though I am old.
You may have it for a little while...
...but you will lose it again.
Like it or not, you are condemned
to a solitary pilgrimage...
from the day of your election
until the day of your death.
This is a Calvary, Holiness.
And you have just begun...
...to climb.
"Accept this triple tiara...
for you are the Vicar of
our Savior, Jesus Christ."
These are the words with which Kiril
I will be crowned pope today.
I'm alone here now.
But by midday, the piazza and
all the approaches to it...
...will be jammed with
nearly 500,000 people.
For many, the elaborate ceremony,
the biggest on earth...
...will seem antique and obsolete.
For others, it will be a
symbol of continuity.
Two thousand years of
the Christian message.
From Peter the Fisherman to Kiril I.
You gave me absolute power.
You must submit to my use of it.
- You are bound to prudence, Holiness.
- We are bound to charity first.
- Your Holiness is proposing the incredible...
- The impossible.
The church has to function as a
society in the 20th century.
- That's true.
- For that, it needs financial resources.
- Christ never said that.
- Holiness, you took an oath...
...not to renounce any
power or possession...
necessary to the survival of the church.
The only thing necessary to the
church is the spirit of God.
What you propose is an affront
to all your predecessors.
They used the light they had. I used
that which has been given to me.
Are you sure it is a light,
Holiness, and not an illusion?
I believe it is a light.
I am obliged in conscience
to say it, Holiness.
You're doing a reckless
and a dangerous thing.
If the rest of you agree
with His Eminence...
...I am prepared to abdicate...
...now.
Well?
No.
This is Peter.
And I stand...
...with him.
Closest to the ceremony will
be the senior churchmen...
from the Vatican itself.
Next, the archbishops, the
bishops, the monsignore...
...and nuns from every part of the globe
representing their order or their country.
To be invited inside if
you're not a churchman...
...you would probably have
to be a papal prince...
...a monarch from another land...
...a member of the Italian government,
a general or a senior diplomat.
Unless, of course, you do
it the old Roman way...
...which is to know somebody
who knows somebody...
...who has an in.
Our Lord Jesus Christ...
...whose Vicar I am...
...was crowned with thorns.
I stand before you bareheaded...
...because I am your servant.
Please.
Though I speak with the tongues
of men, and of angels...
...and have not charity...
...I am become a sounding brass...
...for a tinkling cymbal.
Though I have all faith...
...so that I could remove mountains...
...and have not charity...
...I am nothing.
We are...
...in a time of crisis.
I cannot change the world...
...I cannot change what
history has already written.
I...
can only change myself.
And begin with unsure hands
to write a new chapter.
I am the custodian of the
wealth of the church.
I pledge it now.
All our money...
...all our holdings in land...
...buildings and great works of art...
for the relief of our hungry brothers.
And if to honor this pledge...
the church must strip
itself down to poverty...
...so be it.
I will not alter this pledge.
I will not reduce it.
And now...
...I beg the great of the world...
...and the small of the world...
...to share out of their abundance...
...with those who have nothing.