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Pope Francis, fresh from getting his picture on the cover of 

, now graces the pages of a new Italian fan magazine devoted to His Holiness.


But the pontiff tells an Italian newspaper that he views all the attention as "offensive."

), "hit the newsstands [Wednesday] with a 69-page first edition full of photos of the pope, his life story, his appeals for peace and articles about what people think of him," Reuters writes. The first issue seemed timed to coincide with Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, and comes barely a week ahead of the first anniversary of Francis becoming pope, on March 13.
Published by ex-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's media empire and looking much like a typical supermarket tabloid, 

includes a pull-out centerfold of a smiling, cassock-clad Francis and advertisements for weight-loss cures, laxatives and beauty creams, Reuters reports.
Aldo Vitali, the editor of 

, writes in the premiere issue that its purpose is "not so much to celebrate" the pope, but to help spread his message.


Reuters notes that Vitali is also the editor of an Italian TV listings and celebrity news magazine.


Meanwhile, in an interview with Italy's 

 published Wednesday, Francis says he doesn't care for the level of hype that surrounds his papacy.


, Francis rebuffs critics of the church's internal handling of the clergy abuse scandal.
"The Catholic Church is perhaps the only public institution to have acted with transparency and responsibility," Francis says, adding, "No one else has done more. Yet the Church is the only one to have been attacked."  Copyright 2019 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Religion and Faith

Published by ex-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's media empire and looking much like a typical supermarket tabloid, Il Mio Papa includes a pull-out centerfold of a smiling, cassock-clad Francis.

Italian publisher launches Pope Francis fan magazine

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