Who Is Pope Francis? | Nat Geo Live

[Music] Pope Francis drives a Ford Focus, which is kind of not what you expect, right? How does that work? Well, I haven't actually seen him drive it. I think he mostly rides, and they actually have a fleet of Ford Focuses. This was actually the only occasion that anybody at Vatican City asked me not to take a particular picture, and the particular thing that they asked me not to photograph was him struggling to get out of the car.

Because it is so small, he grabs and has to pull himself out, and they felt that it would just appear, you know, too undignified. I was like, well, fair enough. You know, let me just ask the Cardinal: now, are you surprised that Pope Francis gets around in a Ford Focus? I mean, not that there's anything wrong with that, but are you surprised?

Well, it's certainly a change in style. Okay, but there's something very, very important about that—very significant. Much of this Holy Father's message is as much what he's doing as what he's saying. I think he could say over and over again we all should have a simpler lifestyle, but when you see him in that little Ford, it says it.

Now, for what it's worth, he knows how to drive. He has a driver's license, but he prefers not to drive. He prefers most of all not to be driven. When he was in Argentina, he always took mass transit, either the bus or the subway. In fact, he's openly lamented to the Vatican press that that's something he can no longer do now that he's Pope.

The Pope is much more comfortable not just in a setting but actually around ordinary folks. Conversely, he has always been a great deal uncomfortable being in affluent trappings. In fact, after the conclave was over and he became Pope, and he gave his address to the audience, he went back to where there was a chauffeur-driven limousine waiting for him. He walked right past it and jumped into the van that was ferrying the rest of the people who had just elected him.

And one of the reasons for not taking the metro today is—could you imagine what the tie-up would be like if the Pope, when he arrived here, said, "Oh, I think I'll just take the metro"?

So, you're not anticipating any sort of surprise requests like that? No, he'll probably be in a very modest popemobile. Oh, okay. But I think he'll probably stick to that. [Music]