He always got such a kick out of parading in front of his adoring fans. Notice that superb touch of the little red velvet slippers peeking out from the lacy floor-length alb. And that javelin is positively Olympian.
As far as we are concerned, the only thing the Roman Church did well was provide support and encouragement to its artists and architects. Benedict took full advantage of this in his wardrobe budget and, to be fair, he deserves credit for his fashion sense. He would have loved attending the Met Gala, strutting about with all the other fruitcakes.
Not to be outdone, Benedict’s successor, Pope Francis, a Jesuit to the core, adopts a much more sober style of dress, more the austere Little King look, or the R2D2 tea-cozy.
Note the ascetic quality of his get-up, the only frivolous touch being the beanie/yarmulke causing some confusion and consternation among Benedict’s pallbearers. They didn’t know if they were coming or going. But then, note the elegance of his posture as he lines up his putt. His passion for golfing at the Castel Gandolfo links is evident here, much like some tennis people are always swinging a racket around the house, or sleeping with them.
XXX
