Pope Francis delivered an unintentional show of support Sunday for the NFL’s New Orleans Saints, all thanks to a Twitter algorithm.
“Today we give thanks to the Lord for our new #Saints. They walked by faith and now we invoke their intercession,” Pope Francis tweeted.
Today we give thanks to the Lord for our new #Saints. They walked by faith and now we invoke their intercession.
— Pope Francis (@Pontifex) October 13, 2019
Pope Francis’ intention was to honor the five newly canonized saints: St. John Henry Newman, St. Marian Thresia, St. Giuseppina Vannini, St. Dulce Lopes Pontes and St. Marguerite Bays.
????VIDEO: #PopeFrancis pronounces the canonization formula in Latin at the canonization Mass of 5 new saints:
St. John Henry Newman,
St. Marian Thresia,
St. Giuseppina Vannini,
St. Dulce Lopes Pontes, and
St. Marguerite Bays pray for us! #CardinalNewmanpic.twitter.com/MN4VtLxoIW— Catholic News Agency (@cnalive) October 13, 2019
But Twitter’s algorithm turned the Pope’s hashtag into a hashtag that included the fleur-de-lis logo of the New Orleans Saints. (RELATED: Pope Francis Tells Journalist: ‘I Am Honored That The Americans Attack Me’)
Dear whoever in Vatican Communications wrote this, you may want to check hashtags before posting them: #Saints brings up an NFL team logo which I don’t think was your intention.
— ????Fr. Matthew Schneider, LC???? (@FrMatthewLC) October 13, 2019
Fans responded with a slew of jokes, suggesting that if his Holiness was onboard, it might be high time to put some money on New Orleans.
Putting all my money on the Saints today.
— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) October 13, 2019
When are you releasing your Locks of the Week?
— pourmecoffee (@pourmecoffee) October 13, 2019
Who Dat
— andy lassner (@andylassner) October 13, 2019
— Mr. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯hite (@RicardoBlanco) October 13, 2019
The Pope has now used a designated NFL hashtag. Please place your sports bets accordingly. https://t.co/4I5d2KUths
— Emily Zanotti’s Great & Unmatched Wisdom (@emzanotti) October 13, 2019