A rare look at Pope Francis

FAN Editor

Meet the Pope. This Sunday, 60 Minutes broadcasts excerpts from an unprecedented documentary on Francis that will show the pontiff in a way few ever get to see him. The documentary, “Pope Francis: A Man of His Word,” offers a rare and intimate experience in which the pontiff speaks directly to the camera without notes in his native Spanish. Jon Wertheim interviews the film’s director, Wim Wenders, for the story, to be broadcast Sunday, May 13 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.

Wenders speaks about filming the documentary and interviewing the pope. He tells Wertheim Francis impresses him most with his courage. “He is the most fearless man I ever met… not influenced by polls… I don’t think he would ever consider any public opinion over something he means and he’s convinced of,” says Wenders. “He’s totally fearless because he has a lot of opposition.”

Part of that opposition comes from the controversy surrounding priestly sexual abuse of children and the way the church has handled it. Francis recently apologized for comments he made on a case in Chile. Wenders says his question about pedophilia will show the world the pope is a man who can get angry. “We saw this anger once, really very strong,” he recalls. “It was almost physical.”

Looking into the camera, his anger etched on his face, Francis utters in Spanish, “Towards pedophilia, zero tolerance! And the Church must punish such priests who have that problem and bishops must remove… anyone with that disease… that includes to support the legal action by the parents before the civil courts,” Francis says in the film. “There is no other way…  Zero tolerance because it’s a crime. No! Worse! It’s leaving them alive but destroyed.”

Other excerpts from the film include the pope telling his priests to get more involved with their followers and exhorting the faithful to slow their frenetic lives down to avoid the toll such stress takes on their mental, spiritual and physical health.

The pope speaks plainly and directly, sometimes employing humor with a smile and a laugh. “If you ask me: ‘Give me an example of beauty, simple everyday beauty, with which we can help others feel better and be happier,’ two things come to my mind. A smile, and a sense of humor.”

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